Air travelers flying with Alaska Airlines should expect to wait a little longer than usual for their flights following a disruption.
Flight tracking website FlightAware stated Alaska Airlines had 81 canceled flights and 137 delayed flights as of 8:30 a.m. Monday, July 21. That tally includes two cancellations and six delays at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Alaska Airlines posted this message on its website for travelers flying on Monday: “If you are traveling today, please check your flight status before leaving for the airport. We appreciate your patience as service returns to normal after an IT outage.”
Here’s what we know about the Alaska Airlines grounding and flight delays.
Why did Alaska Airlines ground all flights?
Alaska Airlines grounded all of its flights, including flights with its regional affiliate Horizon Air, because of an IT outage that halted operations for about three hours.
The airline told USA TODAY that the outage occurred because of a “critical piece of multi-redundant hardware” at its data centers that was manufactured by a third party.
Is PHX experiencing delays?
At Sky Harbor, six Alaska Airlines flights were delayed Monday and another two were canceled, according to FlightAware.
What does a ground stop mean when flying?
The Federal Aviation Administration can order a ground stop when it’s not safe for flights to take off or land at an airport.
It can also order a ground delay, which is when flights destined for an airport experiencing adverse conditions must delay their takeoffs, according to the FAA.
The FAA can order a ground delay or ground stop, but it does not cancel flights.
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Michael Salerno is an award-winning journalist who’s covered travel and tourism since 2014. His work as The Arizona Republic’s consumer travel reporter aims to help readers navigate the stresses of traveling and get the best value for their money on their vacations.
