A global Microsoft outage disrupted IT systems around the world on Friday, canceling over a thousand US flights and delaying hundreds more. As a result, major US airlines including American Airlines, United, and Delta requested global ground stops on all flights Friday morning, per the FAA. As of 11 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, there were 1,692 canceled flights from US origins, out of 3,861 flights cancelled globally, according to data from Cirium, an aviation analytics company.
The outage was linked to a CrowdStrike update for Microsoft Windows hosts. “This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed,” CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz said Friday morning on X. While some airlines have resumed normal operations, travelers should expect additional delays and cancelations throughout Friday and even into the weekend.
“It will take these airlines a couple of days to reset their schedules—probably into Sunday. If you’re traveling today or tomorrow, there is a risk for both delays and cancellations,” Mike Arnot, an airline industry analyst, tells Condé Nast Traveler. “Planes aren’t where they are supposed to be, and already today there are more than 1,000 flights canceled. The airlines will try to stem the impact on flights later in the day the best they can, and that means proactively canceling flights as early as they can to minimize disruption to customers and crew alike.”
Even if your flight wasn’t disrupted by the Microsoft outage, all passengers traveling Friday should plan for longer wait times at the airport, including at check-in and boarding, as hundreds of fliers attempt to rebook their flights.
Airlines affected by Microsoft outage
Airlines including United, Delta, and American Airlines are waiving change fees for passengers whose flights were impacted by the outage at certain airports. “In these circumstances, it’s crucial for passengers to understand their rights and know their options during disruptions,” says Tomasz Pawliszyn, CEO of AirHelp, an air passenger rights company. “Although this incident is beyond the control of airlines and airports, passengers still have certain rights under US Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations. ”
Passengers, especially those who are dealing with overnight delays or cancellations, should “retain all boarding passes and receipts for any expenses incurred during the delay, such as food, drink, and accommodation, to facilitate any potential reimbursement claims,” Pawliszyn suggests. Below, see the US airlines affected by the Microsoft outage and the reimbursement policies currently being offered to passengers.
United
As of 10 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, United Airlines canceled 221 flights and delayed an additional 434 more, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website. The airline has resumed some flights but expects “schedule disruptions to continue throughout Friday,” United said in a statement shared with Traveler. United is waiving change fees and fare differences for customers whose flights were disrupted by the outage—as long as the new flight is a United flight departing between July 18, 2024 and July 25, 2024. Tickets must be in the same cabin and between the same cities as originally booked.
