The U.S. Department of Transportation is currently investigating Delta Air Lines to ensure consumer rights are being upheld as the airline continues to face significant flight cancellations following a global tech outage last week.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg stated on social media that all airline passengers deserve fair treatment, and he is committed to ensuring those rights are maintained. This comes after the department received “hundreds of complaints” regarding Delta’s management of the disruptions caused by the technology failures.
Delta, headquartered in Atlanta, has been struggling to restore its operations after a flawed software update by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike disrupted businesses worldwide. A bug in this software update affected Microsoft’s Windows operating systems, leaving many corporate users unable to access their systems and facing issues like the “Blue Screen of Death.”
The incident impacted nearly every major industry, including healthcare, delivery services, retail, and finance, but airlines and airports were particularly hard hit. On Friday alone, over 46,000 flights were delayed and another 5,171 were canceled, according to FlightAware, with Delta suffering the most cancellations.
Delta reported canceling about 3,500 flights across its network on Friday and Saturday. The airline canceled more than 2,500 flights on Sunday and Monday and delayed an additional 3,441 flights. As of Tuesday, 738 flights had also been canceled or delayed.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian expressed regret for the disruption, stating, “Canceling a flight is always a last resort, and something we don’t take lightly. I want to apologize to every one of you who have been impacted by these events.” He also noted that Delta relies heavily on Microsoft Windows for various applications, including a crucial tool for tracking crew members that was affected by the system outage. To assist customers, Delta has implemented a travel waiver allowing free flight changes and is providing meal vouchers, hotel accommodations, and transportation options.