U.S. airlines were hit by system-wide computer outages on Monday related to problems with the Aerodata planning weight and balance program, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
After reporting problems along with several major peers, however, Southwest Airlines Co said on Twitter that it had received word that the problem had already been resolved and that systems would be back up soon. Southwest said that flights were delayed and planes that were taxiing had to return to their gates.
Earlier, carriers had reported problems through their social media accounts, with United Airlines saying it was unable to create paperwork as a result.
American Airlines said the outage was affecting regional carriers nationwide. Canada’s Alaska Air Group Inc also said on its social media account that it was experiencing a system-wide outage.
“AeroData is currently experiencing a technical issue that is impacting multiple carriers. They’re working on a fix as quickly as they can,” American tweeted.
Southwest said in a statement that it has “lifted an internal ground stop implemented for about 40 minutes this morning during an outage with a vendor that services multiple carriers with data used in flight planning. Scattered flight delays are anticipated and Customers should check Southwest.com for the latest updates on specific flights.”
“We’re working with Customers on any impacts to their travel plans and we appreciate their understanding as we place nothing higher than the safe operation of every flight,” the Southwest statement said.
Last week, several airlines reported problems after Sabre, a company airlines use for printing tickets and making reservations, had technical issues.
“We are currently experiencing a System-Wide Outage we are working diligently to get it back up and running. We do not have a specific time as yet,” Delta tweeted.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.
