UPDATED: Atlanta Power Outage Affects Delta Flights Worldwide

Photo: Ryan Ewing
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Key Takeaways:

At approximately 5:05 am ET, Delta announced that their system was undergoing a power outage. The source of the outage occurred in Atlanta at approximately 2:30 am ET.

Initially, the outage only delayed flights awaiting departure. Aircraft already in the air continued to operator as normal.

The outage has affected computer systems and Delta operations worldwide. Delays and cancellations are expected to last through the day. Flights that originated prior to the initial outage are still operating as normal. In addition, Delta’s app, website, and flight monitors are displaying inaccurate information in various situations. Delta has stated that teams are on site working to resolve the issue.

As of 8:40 am ET, the ground stop on all Delta flights was lifted but delays are continuing. Delta is telling passengers to expect delays if they are headed to the airport. The power outage has cancelled approximately 300 flights.

Additionally, Delta has issued a travel waiver for customers traveling through August 12th.

Update 8/9/16: After cancelling approximately 1,000 flights on Monday, Delta’s global operations are slowly recovering. As of Tuesday morning, the airline said they have cancelled more than 300 flights to help get crews and aircraft back into place for customers. Delays and cancellations are expected to continue through the day.

Delta has extended their travel waiver following the outage. Additionally, unaccompanied minors that have not already started their travels will not be accepted until Wednesday.

Delta CEO Ed Bastian issued the following video message:

Ryan Ewing

Ryan founded AirlineGeeks.com in February 2013 and has spent more than a decade covering the airline business. His work has been featured by CNN, WJLA, CNET, and Business Insider. His aviation experience spans airport operations, Part 135 regulatory compliance, and airline crew workforce planning, along with time behind the yoke of a Cessna 172 and interviews with airline executives. Ryan now serves as Group President of Firecrown Media’s Aviation Group. He holds a B.S. in Air Transportation Management and an MBA from Arizona State University and teaches Airline Management at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
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