Delta Air Lines faced significant operational challenges on Monday, canceling hundreds of flights as it continued to recover from a global software outage that affected travel for days.
The Atlanta-based airline reported the cancellation of 1,300 flights and delayed 1,600 on Sunday, according to FlightAware data. This followed the cancellation of over 3,500 Delta and Delta Connection flights from Friday to Saturday.
By 8 a.m. ET on Monday, Delta had canceled 626 flights and delayed 144, representing around 20% of its scheduled operations. In contrast, American Airlines reported only 38 cancellations and 155 delays, roughly 5% of its planned flights.
The troubles for Delta were caused by a flawed software update by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, which rolled out late Thursday. This update caused issues with Microsoft’s Windows operating systems, leaving corporate users unable to access critical systems and some experiencing the notorious “Blue Screen of Death.”
The impact of the incident was widespread, affecting sectors like healthcare, delivery services, retail, and finance, with airlines and airports experiencing the brunt of the disruptions. On Friday, more than 46,000 flights were delayed, and 5,171 were canceled, with Delta being among the most affected.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian expressed regret over the situation, 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 acknowledged that Delta relies heavily on numerous applications operating on Microsoft Windows and mentioned that the outage hindered critical tools, including those for crew tracking. To mitigate the impact, Delta has offered a travel waiver allowing customers to change their flights free of charge, as well as meal vouchers, hotel accommodations, and transportation.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced on social media that his department had received “hundreds of complaints” regarding Delta’s management of the disruptions. He emphasized that Delta should offer refunds, free rebooking, and prompt reimbursements for food and hotel expenses to those affected, insisting that no one should have to spend the night at an airport or wait on hold for extended periods to contact customer service.