United Airlines Flights Delayed Across U.S. Following Technology Glitch
On Wednesday evening, United Airlines experienced widespread delays across its network due to a technology issue that prompted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to impose ground stops at several major U.S. airports. The disruption affected more than 1,000 United flights, representing roughly 35% of the airline’s scheduled service, leading to significant delays for hundreds of travelers.
Details of the Disruption
The incident began at 6:12 p.m. Eastern Time, when United Airlines announced it was holding its mainline flights at their departure airports as the airline addressed an internal technology problem. Affected hubs included major airports in Chicago, Washington D.C., Denver, Houston, Newark (New Jersey), and San Francisco.
Despite the hold on departing flights, United confirmed that all planes already in the air continued to their destinations without interruption, and regional express flights were not impacted during the outage.
By approximately 10 p.m. ET, United declared that the "underlying technology issue" had been resolved. However, the airline warned passengers that "residual delays" were expected as its team worked to restore normal operations.
Cause of the Issue
United clarified that the outage was linked to a failure in the Unimatic system, a critical internal tool responsible for managing flight information such as weight and balance calculations. This system failure was not the result of a cyberattack but rather a technical glitch within the airline’s operational infrastructure.
Response from Authorities
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy took to social media to provide updates, noting that United’s CEO Scott Kirby had briefed him on the situation. FAA officials maintained close coordination with United’s system operations team, offering support to help alleviate the backlog of delayed flights.
Secretary Duffy emphasized that the problem was specific to United Airlines’ internal operations and was unrelated to the broader air traffic control system or any external cyber threats.
Outlook for Passengers
The airline continues to work towards normalizing its schedule amid lingering delays. Passengers affected by the disruptions are advised to check their flight status frequently and coordinate with United Airlines for the latest travel information.
As United navigates the aftermath of this technology outage, the incident underscores the critical role of digital systems in modern airline operations and the broader aviation sector. Further updates are expected as the airline provides continued support to travelers and resumes full operational capacity.
