Alaska Airlines operations returned to normal Tuesday after a system-wide outage caused Alaska Airlines and Horizon more than 50 flight cancellations and a number of flight delays Monday.
According to a statement on Alaska Airlines' website, the airlines' internet provider, Sprint, experienced system-wide outage about 7:30 a.m. Monday after a fiber network cable in the Seattle area was cut. The outage affected the airlines' network system used for reservation, check-in and purchasing tickets.
Horizon Air and Alaska had canceled 78 flights, affecting more than 6,000 passengers, by Monday afternoon. The outage also delayed a number of flights, and passengers still experienced hold ups late in the afternoon.
Travelers such as Kerry Zurier grew frustrated as long lines clogged SeaTac airport.
"Im recovering from a broken leg so I have to go sit down in a minute because I can't stand for very long," Zurier said.
Alaska Airlines representatives said rolling delays persisted through Monday. Flights returned to normal Monday night, and no delays or cancellations were planned for Tuesday.
According to the airline, changes could be made to reservations as soon as the ticket system was back up. The airlines encouraged fliers to check the status of their flight online before heading to the airport.
Customers traveling Oct. 8 or 9 could change their ticket or request a refund by Oct. 9 and reschedule their travel.
Glenn Johnson, the president of Horizon Air, apologized for the delay.
"it was a terrible inconvenience and I should start off apologizing to our customers," Johnson said. "We take this very seriously."
A complete list of canceled flights can be found on www.alaskaair.com.
