Alaska Airlines announced on Friday that it had fully restored its flight operations after a major technology outage caused widespread disruption across U.S. airports, grounding its fleet and forcing the cancellation of over 229 flights. The airline’s shares fell nearly 5% in early trading as investors reacted to the operational chaos and uncertainty about its financial impact.
In a public statement, Alaska Airlines said it was working “to get operations back on track as quickly and safely as possible” but warned passengers to expect further delays and disruptions as schedules were realigned. The company, which operates through its parent organization Alaska Air Group, confirmed it has not yet determined the financial effect of the outage on its fourth-quarter performance.
According to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) advisory, the airline had requested a temporary ground stop on Thursday evening that also affected flights operated by its regional subsidiary, Horizon Air. The halt was lifted around 11:30 p.m. local time (0630 GMT), after technicians restored the systems that had caused the shutdown.
Alaska Airlines did not disclose the cause of the outage, sparking speculation among travelers and analysts about whether it stemmed from internal software failures or third-party system dependencies. The airline’s IT division responded to numerous passenger complaints on social media, acknowledging “an error in our system” and assuring customers that the issue was being fixed “as soon as possible.”
The disruption came just a day after Alaska Air Group forecast lower-than-expected profits for the fourth quarter, citing higher fuel prices and recent operational challenges. Analysts said the back-to-back problems could further pressure the airline’s performance heading into the year-end travel season.
The company also postponed its quarterly earnings call, which was originally scheduled for October 24, as management continues to assess the fallout from the system failure. The latest outage follows a similar incident in July, when Alaska Airlines grounded all its flights for about three hours due to another IT problem—an event that reduced its third-quarter earnings by roughly 10 cents per share.
Industry observers noted that the recurrence of such outages highlights the growing vulnerability of major airlines to software disruptions, given their reliance on interconnected reservation, scheduling, and maintenance systems. With peak holiday travel approaching, the latest breakdown underscores the urgent need for airlines to modernize and secure their digital infrastructure to avoid costly interruptions and reputational damage.
