CNN
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Unexpected technical outages are affecting airlines and airports around the world, with major hotel brands also reporting disruptions. If you’re planning on traveling this weekend, here’s what you need to know.
Widespread IT issues are affecting travel around the world, and the issues are believed to be at least partially caused by a software update released by software company CrowdStrike for Microsoft Windows operating systems.
CrowdStrike’s CEO said in a statement obtained by CNN early Friday that the IT issue that caused the global outage had been identified and a fix had been deployed.
Microsoft, meanwhile, said the “underlying cause” of the global outage had been “resolved,” but added that some services were still affected.
Airports, airlines and travellers around the world continue to cope with the impact.
Which airlines and airports are affected?
David J. Phillips/AP
United Airlines was among the US airlines to report problems on July 19.
US-based carriers American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Allegiant Air, Sun Country Airlines and Frontier Airlines all reported problems on Friday. American Airlines later said it had “safely resumed” operations, and United Airlines resumed “selected flights” on Friday morning.
Delta Air Lines resumed some flights on Friday, but further delays and cancellations are expected.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said in a statement early on Friday that it is “closely monitoring a technical issue affecting U.S. airlines’ IT systems,” adding that “several airlines have requested the FAA’s assistance with grounding until the issue is resolved.”
The agency provided an update later in the day: “Currently, FAA operations are not being affected by the global IT issue. We continue to closely monitor the situation,” and said the IT issue “may continue to impact flights this weekend.”
Ryanair, Air France and Turkish Airlines also reported problems, while KLM Royal Dutch Airlines said the outage had “made it impossible to process flights”. AirAsia said its “core booking and check-in systems” were affected by the technical issue.
Aviation analytics firm Cirium said about 110,000 commercial flights were scheduled for Friday. By 3 p.m. ET, Cirium said more than 5,000 flights had been canceled worldwide.
Many airports around the world have also reported technology-related issues. Dubai Airports reported problems on Friday morning, but the airport said in a post on X that normal operations had resumed.
Passenger William Sikora III told CNN on Friday morning that the situation at Philadelphia International Airport is “totally crazy right now” following the chaos.
Airports across the US advised travelers to expect delays and to check flight status before going to the airport.
In Europe, London’s Gatwick Airport said it was “affected by a global Microsoft issue” and passengers may experience delays at check-in and security. London’s Heathrow Airport was “working with airport colleagues to minimise the impact” and encouraged passengers to check their airlines for the latest flight information. Berlin airport said it was experiencing delays to check-in, and Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport said it was “investigating” the impact on the airport.
Edinburgh Airport in Scotland said the outage would “cause longer than normal waiting times at the airport.” Spain’s Airports Authority (AENA), which oversees Madrid, Barcelona and other airports in the country, said the technical issues “may cause delays” and that staff were working to resolve the problem.
Airports and airlines in Asia and Latin America also reported disruptions due to IT outages.
This is not a complete list, so we recommend checking the status of any airports you may be connecting through this weekend before traveling.
Additionally, the situation will change rapidly throughout Friday evening and into the weekend, so if you’re planning on flying, we recommend keeping an eye on your chosen airline’s social media channels, apps and websites for the latest updates. If possible, check the status of your flight before heading to the airport.
Even if the power outages are resolved, it will be a while before travel gets back on track. The grounding of flights means thousands of planes around the world are grounded and potentially stranded at the wrong airports.
Crews have limited working hours, which creates cascading staffing issues along with flight delays.
Getting schedules back on track is a complicated process that may take days to fully resolve, so your best course of action is to keep an eye on airline announcements and know your rights as a consumer.
First, if possible, check the status of your flight before you leave for the airport. It’s better to find out your flight has been cancelled from the comfort of your home or hotel room and then make new arrangements from there, if possible.
If you’re already at the airport, head to the airline’s help desk. While you’re waiting in line, you could also try calling the airline’s help number or contacting the company via social media or email. If you’re a member of the airline’s executive club and have access to a special phone number, now is the time to use it.
If the airline can’t get you a flight until the next day, ask for a hotel room or hotel voucher — there are fewer consumer protections in situations outside the airline’s control, but it’s worth asking. Also, if your airline seems affected but another airline is still operating, ask about flights on other airlines.
“If your flight is canceled, many airlines have interline agreements so you have the option to get on another airline’s flight,” Louison Smith, product operations specialist at Going.com, told CNN Travel in its guide to flight cancellations, which you can read here.
“That means, for example, if Delta is down but American Airlines is still flying to your destination, you may be able to get on that flight.”
If you’re more likely to be able to catch a train rather than a flight (for example, if you’re heading from the UK to mainland Europe), it might be worth checking last-minute ticket availability.
It depends on your departure and arrival points. For example, in the United States, passengers are entitled to refunds for cancelled flights, but additional compensation and actions for delays and cancellations outside the airline’s control are up to each airline.
For flights to and from EU countries, the laws are different: if your departure airport is within the EU, or if you’re arriving in the EU on an EU airline, you’re entitled to a refund for delays of more than five hours, and additional compensation for shorter delays.
No matter where you’re traveling, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the airline’s terms and conditions relevant to your booking.
If you have travel insurance, check your rights there too.
It all depends on the type of ticket you have, the airline you’re flying with, and whether you have travel insurance (which is a good idea). Insurance covers the cancellation of your departing flight and/or connecting flights. If your flight is delayed, your airline may be able to help you change your travel plans, but if your flight isn’t affected but you want to cancel your trip, you’re unlikely to get a refund.
Check to see if the airline is offering passengers the opportunity to cancel or change dates. There may be more flexibility as the situation worsens and airlines reroute passengers on canceled flights. At the time of writing, American Airlines is offering free changes to passengers scheduled to fly through eight major hubs on July 19 (though there are caveats to the rebooking dates).
British Airways has announced increased flexibility for customers travelling on short-haul flights over the weekend.
Delta, United and American have all announced waivers for affected customers.
Marriott International has announced that some of its hotel systems are affected by an ongoing global IT outage.
“We are actively working with our vendor to resolve the issue impacting certain hotel systems and apologize to our guests for any inconvenience caused,” the company said in a statement to CNN on Friday afternoon.
CNN has reached out to the Hilton Hotel for more information about the outage.
An employee at the Hilton Phoenix Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix, Arizona, told CNN that guests had to wait for a bellboy to open their rooms because the software the hotel uses to generate key cards had malfunctioned.
Hertz, Dollar and Thrifty stores remain open, according to a statement from Hertz.
“Our call centre volumes are increasing with sustained demand for bookings, rebookings and one-way rentals. Some customers may experience longer than expected wait times and we are working diligently to get customers on their way as soon as possible,” the statement said.
Will trains and other public transport be affected?
Aaron Chong/PA Wire
In the UK, National Rail reported a “widespread IT issue across the rail network” on Friday. Pictured are travellers at Victoria station in London on Friday.
Some rail systems have reported issues related to technical glitches. In the UK, National Rail reported “widespread IT issues across the rail network” on Friday. National Rail said train operators in the UK were unable to access driver diagrams in certain locations, which could lead to train cancellations at short notice.
Italy’s transport ministry said the Trenitalia and Italo rail networks were halted after their systems went offline. Passengers endured delays of up to 140 minutes before calling emergency services and requesting to be removed from trains due to the extreme heat. Some trains on Italy’s regional railways have been suspended due to the extreme heat.
In the US, Washington DC’s transit agency said Friday’s suspension affected the city’s trains and buses.
In New York, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) customer information system was briefly taken offline on Friday morning, according to officials, but the MTA said “train and bus service was unaffected.”
Again, this is not a complete list, and if you are planning on traveling in the near future, wherever you are in the world, we recommend you double-check individual travel conditions before traveling.
