Delta Air Lines experienced significant disruptions on Monday, canceling hundreds of flights as the airline continued to recover from a global software outage that had plagued operations for three days.
The Atlanta-based airline reported the cancellation of 1,300 flights and delays for 1,600 on Sunday, as per FlightAware data. Over the weekend, Delta and its regional partner had already canceled more than 3,500 flights between Friday and Saturday.
By 8 a.m. ET on Monday, Delta had canceled 626 flights and delayed 144, accounting for about 20% of its scheduled operations. In contrast, American Airlines had far fewer disruptions, canceling only 38 flights and delaying 155, which represented around 5% of its operations.
The issues began with a faulty software update by cybersecurity company CrowdStrike late Thursday evening. A glitch in this update affected Microsoft’s Windows operating systems, leaving many corporate users unable to access their systems and facing the notorious “Blue Screen of Death.”
The incident caused widespread disruptions across various industries, including healthcare, retail, and finance, but airlines and airports encountered the most significant impact, with over 46,000 flights delayed and more than 5,171 cancellations reported on Friday alone.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian expressed his apologies in a statement, emphasizing that canceling flights is a last resort. He acknowledged the difficulties travelers faced during the disruptions and noted that Delta had a significant reliance on Microsoft Windows for many applications, including those for crew tracking, which were unable to adapt to the outages.
In response, Delta has issued a travel waiver allowing customers to change their flights without charge, along with providing meal vouchers, hotel accommodations, and transportation.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg highlighted on social media that his department received numerous complaints regarding Delta’s response to the disruptions. He asserted that Delta must offer refunds, free rebooking options, and prompt reimbursements for affected customers’ food and hotel expenses, adding that no one should be left stranded at an airport overnight or waiting for lengthy periods to reach customer service.