United Airlines passengers faced lengthy delays this week as the airline temporarily halted flights across several major airports due to a "technology issue." A ground stop was implemented for mainline flights departing from key locations including Chicago, Denver, Houston, San Francisco, and New Jersey, prompting widespread disruptions.
On Wednesday at approximately 10:00 PM EDT (02:00 GMT Thursday), United announced that flights had resumed, although ongoing disruptions were still expected. "The underlying technology issue has been resolved, and, while we expect residual delays, our team is working to restore our normal operations," the airline stated.
According to flight tracking service FlightAware, more than 700 United flights reported delays by 9:00 PM EDT (02:00 BST). Flights already in the air during this breakdown were able to proceed to their destinations without interruption. While regional flights remained unimpeded, United cautioned that they might face delays due to the accumulating traffic caused by the halted flights.
Passengers reported frustrating experiences, with Jessica Jeffers sharing her ordeal of being stuck for two hours on a plane in Denver awaiting departure to Newark, New Jersey. "It's been pretty rough over here," she recounted. Social media was rife with complaints from others similarly stranded on tarmacs for extended periods as they awaited updates.
The situation drew attention from government officials, with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy noting that he was briefed by United Airlines. He emphasized that this incident was not related to the broader air traffic control system in the United States.
In light of the disruption, CBS News, affiliated with the BBC in the US, reported that United Airlines is treating this incident as a preventable delay, indicating they would cover certain expenses incurred by affected passengers.
