Last night, United Airlines' computer system crashed—"a network connectivity issue" supposedly (whoever unplugged the Cat 5 cable is probably in trouble)—which resulted in complete chaos for its passengers. Planes couldn't depart, flights were canceled, and reservations and ticket processing systems were down. As one resigned passenger Tweeted, "Cutting losses: after 15 hrs (9 @ LAX), 2 cancelled flights, 3hrs on phone & $200 in cab fare, I gave up on @United & cancelled all flights."
United told CNN that the issue "was resolved through troubleshooting procedures and restored at midnight. The airline issued a waiver policy permitting customers on affected flights to cancel or rebook their itineraries without penalty. United apologizes for the disruption caused to travelers at affected airports and is re-accommodating travelers where necessary."
Okay, that's the solution—but one passenger on a flight departing O'Hare recounted, "We were on the runway when the pilot came on the P.A. and said they had lost contact with the company computer system which measured the weight of the plane." The plane "taxied around for nearly an hour and then returned to the gate for additional fuel. But passengers were not allowed to get off." Another passenger at Denver told the Chicago Sun-Times he saw, "A hundred yards of kiosks, and every one of them close. Workers were trying to answer questions. They have no ability to do anything manually. They can’t check baggage. You can’t get baggage. You are really stuck."
While United's computers seem to be up now, the delays will continue for a while. An airline analyst points out that United's flights are already pretty crowded, "There’s literally nowhere to put them. There are already very few empty seats on the flights that operate."
