A significant disruption occurred with Alaska Airlines as a tech systems outage led to the cancellation of numerous flights on Thursday night and early Friday morning. The incident prompted a nationwide ground stop for the airline’s flights, reminiscent of a previous outage that affected operations earlier this year.
In an announcement issued on Thursday evening, Alaska Airlines revealed it was dealing with an IT outage that was impacting its operational capabilities. The airline implemented a temporary ground stop while efforts were made to resolve the issue. Passengers were advised to verify their flight statuses before heading to the airport to avoid unnecessary travel.
Sources at the airline disclosed to various news outlets that the outage stemmed from a failure in its primary data center, causing cascading effects across its operations. The ground stop also extended to Horizon Air, the regional carrier owned by Alaska Airlines.
The airline reassured travelers that it was diligently working on restoring normal operations. However, the ramifications of the IT failure were evident in a follow-up statement on X, as Alaska Airlines acknowledged that the outage had resulted in the cancellation of several flights extending into the following day.
Flight tracking service FlightAware reported that at least 73 Alaska Airlines flights had been canceled, alongside 12 from Horizon Air, as of early Friday morning. The busiest hub affected was Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, where 32 outbound flights were among those canceled. This incident highlights the challenges airlines face with technology reliance, as operational disruptions can have widespread consequences for travelers.
