Global IT Outage Causes Chaos in Transport Networks Worldwide
Transport networks around the world have been thrown into chaos due to a global IT outage that has impacted major airports and train services. The IT outage, which was caused by a shutdown of online systems run by Microsoft, has led to flight cancellations, delays, and disruptions in check-ins and security.
As of 11am (UK-time) Friday morning, 1,167 flights have been cancelled worldwide, according to data from aviation analysts Cirium. This number is expected to rise as the IT outage continues to affect major airports, including London Heathrow, Singapore’s Changi Airport, Schipol Airport in Amsterdam, and Melbourne Airport in Australia.
In the United States, major airlines such as American Airlines, Delta Airlines, and United Airlines have grounded all flights due to communication issues. Meanwhile, in Europe, Amsterdam’s Schipol Airport – the busiest airport on the continent – is experiencing average delays of 78 minutes.
The IT outage has forced many airports to resort to manual systems, including Belfast International Airport, where whiteboards are being used to provide flight information. In the UK, passengers at Edinburgh Airport and Gatwick Airport have faced long queues and delays, with staff even unpacking boxes of bottled water to provide to waiting passengers.
Meanwhile, on the railway, 14 companies run by industry body Rail Delivery Group have been affected. This includes Avanti, c2c, Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Great Western Railway, Hull Trains, London Northwestern Railway, Lumo, Merseyrail, Northern, Southern, Thameslink, Transport for Wales, TransPennine Express, and West Midlands.
The IT outage has caused issues “across the entire network,” according to Sky News’ business correspondent, Paul Kelso. This has led to potential short-notice train cancellations and disruptions in key systems such as real-time customer information platforms and ticket machines at certain stations.
Despite these challenges, Network Rail has assured customers that the “vast majority” of the rail network is still open. Affected customers are also able to use their tickets on other services, including the London Underground and London buses, at no extra cost.
The IT outage comes at a time when Friday is expected to be the busiest day for UK flight departures, with over 3,214 departures alone – the highest number since October 2019, according to Cirium. UK air traffic control provider Nats has stated that its systems are “operating normally,” and there are no known security issues at present, according to Transport Secretary Louise Haigh.
The cause of the global IT outage has not been confirmed yet, but it is a major blow to both Microsoft and Crowdstrike, the two companies responsible for the affected online systems. The disruption has also caused a financial shock to these companies.
The UK government and industry leaders are working together to resolve the IT outage and minimize the impact on travelers. However, the chaos is expected to continue throughout the day, causing significant disruptions to transport networks around the world.
