Global computer outage causes thousands of flights to be cancelled

A persistent computer glitch is impacting airline operations around the world on Friday. As of 8 a.m. ET, nearly 2,700 flights have been canceled worldwide, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.

In the United States, airlines have canceled 1,017 flights, or 4.2% of their scheduled schedule, so far. American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines said they had resumed some flights, while Southwest Airlines was unaffected by the outage.

Other non-U.S.-based carriers, including Air France, KLM and Singapore Airlines, also reported IT problems Friday.

The FAA said it was “closely monitoring” the issue in a statement.

“Several airlines have requested FAA assistance in grounding their fleets until the issue is resolved,” the agency added. “For more information, visit fly.faa.gov for updates.”

U.S. airlines were scheduled to operate 27,000 flights on Friday, carrying up to 3.7 million passengers.

What is happening?

Airlines around the world are facing major IT issues, leading to widespread flight disruptions. The problems are believed to be caused by a software update released by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike that has caused computers running Microsoft Windows to crash.

CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz announced on social media that the issue had been identified and isolated, and that engineers had deployed a fix. However, the outage has already impacted airlines, airports, banks, media companies and other institutions around the world.

CrowdStrike is actively working with customers affected by a flaw found in a single content update for Windows hosts. Mac and Linux hosts are not affected. This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been deployed. We…

— George Kurtz (@George_Kurtz) July 19, 2024

The situation is still evolving and it remains to be seen how quickly the patch will resolve the issues.

Ryan founded AirlineGeeks.com in February 2013 and has amassed significant experience in the aviation industry. His work has been featured in several publications and media outlets including CNN, WJLA, CNET, and Business Insider. Throughout his career in the industry, he has held roles in airport and airline operations while earning a bachelor’s degree in air transportation management from Arizona State University and an MBA. Ryan has experience in many facets of the industry, from flying a Cessna 172 to interviewing airline executives. Ryan works for FLYING Media, the owner of AirlineGeeks, and spearheads coverage of the commercial aviation industry.