Alaska Airlines Resumes Flights After Major It Outage Causes Widespread Disruptions And Cancellations Across U.s. Network

Published on October 24, 2025

Alaska Airlines has resumed formation operations aft a important IT outage caused wide disruptions and formation cancellations for respective hours connected Thursday, October 24, 2025. The crushed stop, which lasted for astir 8 hours, led to astatine slightest 229 flights being canceled, stranding passengers crossed respective U.S. airports, peculiarly astatine Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SeaTac). While nan hose has confirmed that flights are now backmost successful operation, further disruptions are expected arsenic nan hose useful to reposition its craft and crews.

The IT outage, which began astatine astir 3:30 PM section time, triggered a system-wide crushed stop, halting each Alaska Airlines flights. In a connection released connected Friday morning, nan hose assured nan nationalist that nan incident was not a cybersecurity onslaught and was not connected to immoderate different security-related events. Instead, nan rumor stemmed from a nonaccomplishment astatine Alaska Airlines’ superior information center, which temporarily crippled nan airline’s operational systems. Despite nan inconvenience caused by nan outage, nan hose emphasized that nan information of flights was ne'er compromised.

Flight Cancellations and Delays

The IT nonaccomplishment caused terrible disruption to nan airline’s formation schedules, pinch astatine slightest 229 flights being canceled, including some departures and arrivals. As nan hose worked to resoluteness nan issue, it warned passengers that further formation delays and cancellations could beryllium expected. Repositioning craft and crews crossed its web has been a analyzable task, requiring a observant and coordinated effort to reconstruct afloat operations.

For passengers, nan outage caused frustration, peculiarly astatine SeaTac Airport, wherever agelong queues and overcrowded waiting areas were reported. Many passengers took to societal media to definitive their dissatisfaction, pinch immoderate complaining astir a deficiency of connection from nan airline. One Twitter personification posted a photograph of a packed terminal astatine SeaTac, captioned, “Everyone everyplace astatine SeaTac. No boarding, nary patient updates.” These reports highlighted nan trouble passengers had successful obtaining timely accusation astir nan position of their flights during nan outage.

Alaska Airlines stated that its customer work teams were moving diligently to supply accusation to stranded passengers, though nan sheer standard of nan rumor resulted successful connection delays. The hose advised travelers to show their formation position and beryllium prepared for imaginable changes to their schedules.

FAA Removes Advisory

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had issued an advisory earlier successful nan evening, indicating that Alaska Airlines’ flights were suspended owed to nan IT outage. However, by early Friday, nan FAA lifted nan advisory aft confirming that nan airline’s operations had resumed. The crushed stop, which affected not only Alaska Airlines but besides its subsidiary Horizon Air, lasted for respective hours earlier being lifted. The FAA’s removal of nan advisory confirmed that normal operations had resumed, though nan hose continued to look disruptions owed to nan request for craft repositioning.

A History of IT Challenges for Alaska Airlines

This outage follows a akin incident that occurred conscionable a fewer months ago, successful July 2025, erstwhile a nonaccomplishment successful nan airline’s IT systems led to different impermanent grounding of flights. On that occasion, Alaska Airlines attributed nan disruption to a captious nonaccomplishment of multi-redundant hardware successful its information centers. This past July outage lasted for astir 3 hours, affecting respective 100 passengers and causing delays astatine aggregate airports.

Alaska Airlines has besides faced a bid of IT disruptions complete nan past fewer years. In January 2024, a much superior incident involving nan Boeing 737 Max 9 craft resulted successful a impermanent grounding of respective jets aft a doorway plug conception of a caller craft blew retired mid-flight. While nary passengers were injured, nan arena led to heightened scrutiny of nan airline’s operational and information protocols. The FAA later ordered a impermanent grounding of respective Boeing 737-9 jets utilized by U.S. airlines, including Alaska Airlines, while investigations were conducted.

While nan hose has worked to reside erstwhile IT issues, this caller outage underscores nan continued vulnerability of airlines to technological failures. Given nan captious domiciled that information centers play successful modern aviation operations, including formation scheduling, unit management, and baggage handling, nan manufacture is progressively reliant connected robust IT systems. Alaska Airlines’ ongoing efforts to amended its IT infrastructure will apt attraction connected preventing specified outages successful nan future.

Passenger Impact and Outlook

Although Alaska Airlines has resumed formation operations, travelers are still advised to cheque their formation statuses regularly, arsenic immoderate disruptions and delays stay successful effect. The hose is moving to return its web to afloat capacity, but nan task is expected to return immoderate time. In nan meantime, passengers affected by cancellations are being provided pinch options to rebook connected different flights aliases person afloat refunds.

For predominant travelers, nan outage whitethorn besides person affected predominant flyer programs and nan expertise to redeem miles. Alaska Airlines’ rewards programme allows passengers to gain and redeem miles for flights, edifice stays, and car rentals. While nan hose has not reported immoderate wide issues pinch nan predominant flyer system, passengers are encouraged to scope retired to customer work if they brushwood immoderate difficulties related to their accounts.

Conclusion

Alaska Airlines’ caller IT outage highlights nan challenges that airlines look successful maintaining reliable and businesslike exertion systems, particularly arsenic rider expectations and operational demands proceed to grow. Although nan hose has resumed operations, passengers should expect immoderate lingering disruptions arsenic crews and craft are repositioned. The hose has assured nan nationalist that it is taking steps to amended its systems and forestall early incidents. Travelers are urged to enactment updated connected their formation position and stay elastic arsenic nan hose useful to reconstruct afloat work crossed its network.

The incident serves arsenic a reminder of nan captious domiciled that exertion plays successful modern aviation, and really moreover a azygous method rumor tin person wide-reaching consequences for hose operations and passengers alike.