Last Updated:July 21, 2025, 14:54 IST

The airline said it experienced an “IT Outage” that resulted in a temporary, system-wide ground stop” for all flights. It was resolved, but not before leaving passengers stranded.

Alaska Airlines was hit by an “IT outage” on Monday, forcing the airline to ground all aircraft till operations went back to normal. The airline apologised for the disruption and urged travellers to check their flight status.

The airline said that around 11 pm ET (8:30 am Indian time), it experienced an “IT Outage that resulted in a temporary, system-wide ground stop for Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air flights.” Horizon Air is the Alaska Air Group’s subsidiary serving mainly the Pacific Northwest and Alaska.

Alaska Airlines later resumed operations, saying that it will take some time for overall operations to get back to normal. The ground stop was lifted at 2 am (11:30 am IST), but not before leaving several passengers stranded.

A ground stop is an air traffic control measure that restricts certain planes from taking off and requires them to remain on the ground, according to the FAA, causing potential travel disruptions and delays.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) status page showed all destinations affected by the halt of Alaska’s mainline aircraft. “We apologise for the inconvenience,” Alaska Airlines said. “As we reposition our aircraft and crews, there will most likely be residual impacts to our flights.”

Backlash From Passengers

The ground stop drew a fierce backlash from passengers who were stranded for hours. “This is brutal. We’ve been sitting at the airport for two hours,” wrote a user on X. “It’s 10:20 pm, people are tired, hungry, etc. This is not okay.”

Video from a passenger aboard a grounded flight at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport shows travellers waiting to deplane as a crew member is heard apologising on the PA system and calling it a “very, very frustrating night”.

“As soon as we landed, we moved to the middle traffic lane, and they let us know there was a malfunction in the computer system,” Chris Fabregas, a passenger who had flown in from Nashville, told CNN.

Last year, Alaska Airlines had experienced a similar IT outage that caused significant disruption to its operations, including delayed flights. Multiple users had complained that they were facing difficulties accessing its app and website.

The incident also comes more than a year after a door plug section of a newly delivered Boeing 737 Max 9 blew out during an Alaska Airlines flight between Portland, Oregon and Ontario, California in January last year, which caused several Boeing aircraft operated by US airlines to be grounded.

(with agency inputs)

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