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Old Aug 9, 2016, 1:04 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: TheLifeOfA_NKCM
As most of us ...well, all of us, know, there was a power failure at ground ops in ATL on Monday (2016-08-08) at 2:39AM which lead to mass-cancellations and delays and rebookings spanning as far as next Sunday (2016-08-21) as of Aug 9. Passengers didn't hesitate to display their dissapointment, Twitter, ACS, and DL phone lines were ambushed with customers. In an effort to keep our fellow flyers informed on the incoming changes and information, this Wiki was formed.

You may all feel free to edit it as your leisure as we continue to watch this develop..

If you are currently at an airport right now, your information on the ongoing events and current situation there is equally as valuable. Thanks for your input.

If you have part of an article in your post, please cite it with a URL to it's
origin.

Airport & Support Situation.
.
NRT: Foam or Blowup Pad, Crackers, and water given out to customers for sleeping prior to hotel voucher last night
MSP: "Security Lines best since reconfiguration"
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Note:
Some passengers are reporting long waiting queues on DL phone lines. If possible avoid contacting DL CSR by phone (DM and medallion lines are also expected to have a notably longer wait as well) and instead redirect att'n to Twitter which has been said to be notably quicker than other means of assistance, including Need Help Centers and Gate Agents. Fly Delta and Delta.com should also be permitting rebooking on to other flights at this time. If you are unable to take advantage of any of these methods, express add'l patience

Delta Related Updates:
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August 11th, 2016 // 11:00AM ET - Flights OPs Return to Normal

Flight operations have returned to normal following Mondays outage, airline officials said at noon today. Delta started the day with roughly 25 mainline flights canceledsome due to bad weather in the Midwestand no additional cancellations are anticipated.

The airline is back on its feet, moving past this weeks disruption and operating normally, said Dave Holtz, S.V.P. - Operations and Customer Center. Running a reliable operation is something we pride ourselves on and frankly, that didnt happen this week. But our teams have worked tirelessly to bring back the dependable airline our customers have known us to be and have come to expect from us.

SLC.jpgWith the impact of the power loss is in the rearview mirror, the airline is carefully monitoring the development of a weather system that may hit the eastern third of the U.S. later today, with the possibility of air traffic control-related delays possible in the Northeast. No additional cancellations as a result of weather are expected, however.

The airline plans to fly more than 610,000 people today. By noon Thursday, nearly 2,200 flights had departed with more than 85 percent departing within 15 minutes of the scheduled departure time.

Even so, customers traveling today should check the status of their flight at delta.com or the Fly Delta App. Delta's travel waiver has been extended through Thursday.

Monday morning an uninterrupted power source switch experienced a small fire which resulted in a massive failure at Deltas Technology Command Center. This caused the power control module to malfunction, sending a surge to a transformer outside of Delta, resulting in the loss of power. The power was stabilized and power was restored quickly. But when this happened, critical systems and network equipment didnt switch over to backups. Around 300 of about 7,000 data center components were discovered to not have been configured appropriately to avail back-up power. In addition to restoring Deltas systems to normal operations, Delta teams this week have been working to ensure reliable redundancies of electrical power as well as network connectivity and applications are in place.
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August 10th, 2016
Travel waiver impacted dates now extended to include August 11th
https://www.delta.com/content/www/en...em-outage.html
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4:30PM ET // August 10th, 2016 - Delta has canceled 317 flights today, none in the last hour. Of 3,100 flights that have departed during the day, about 2/3 left within 30 minutes of their scheduled departure time.

Delta's travel waiver has been extended. The airline has extended its offer of compensation to customers significantly affected by lengthy delays or cancellations. Many customers have already been contacted by Delta.

Delta CEO Bastian: 'This isn't who we are'
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2:30PM ET // August 10th, 2016 - Delta has canceled 311 flights today. About 2,540 flights have departed, 70 percent of those within 30 minutes of the scheduled departure time. Delta operates nearly 6,000 flights a day this time of year.

Delta's travel waiver has been extended. The airline has extended its offer of compensation to customers significantly affected by lengthy delays or cancellations. Many customers have already been contacted by Delta.
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12:30 PM ET // August 10th, 2016 - Delta has added a few more cancellations, bringing the number today to 278. About 1,950 flights have departed, 75 percent of those within 30 minutes of scheduled departure time. Delta operates nearly 6,000 flights a day this time of year.

Delta also extended its offer of compensation to customers significantly affected by delays or lengthy cancellations. Many customers have already been contacted by Delta.
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11:00AM EDT // August 10th, 2016 - Delta officials anticipate returning to a normal operation by afternoon Wednesday following an outage Monday that disrupted the flight schedule, though scattered thunderstorms expected in the eastern U.S. may slow the recovery.

By late morning, Delta had canceled 255 flights while 1,500 flights departed. About 80 percent of those flights departed within 30 minutes of their scheduled time.

Technology systems that allow airport customer service agents to process check-ins, conduct boarding and dispatch aircraft are functioning normally with the bulk of delays and cancellations coming as a result of flight crews displaced or running up against their maximum allowed duty period following the outage.

Were in the final hours of bouncing back from the disruption, said Bill Lentsch, Deltas Senior Vice President Airport Customer Service and Airline Operations. Delta employees have been working around the clock and are committed to bringing the airline back to full strength. We know this has been a rough couple of days for our customers and apologize to those who have experienced our less-than-stellar operation.

Leaders and employees continue to focus on promptly moving departures at the airline's Atlanta hub, the world's busiest. Delta sent reservations personnel from the corporate headquarters in Atlanta to help customer service agents process customers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. A cadre of additional employees were also positioned throughout the Atlanta airport to help customers get to their flights.

Customers traveling today should check the status of their flight at delta.com or the Fly Delta App. Customers can rebook their flight via the website.

Delta's travel waiver has been extended and the airline continued to provide hotel vouchers to several thousand customers, including more than 2,300 Tuesday night in Atlanta. Delta extended its offer of compensation to customers significantly affected by delays or cancellations. Many customers have already been contacted by Delta.
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7:00AM ET // August, 10th, 2016 - Delta officials anticipate returning to a normal operation by mid-to-late afternoon Wednesday following an outage Monday that disrupted the airlines flight schedule, though a chance of scattered thunderstorms expected in the eastern U.S. may have the potential to slow the recovery.

Teams across the airline continued work during the overnight hours to bring an end to the impact of Mondays outage that disrupted operations. Delta will start the Wednesday operation with a little over 150 system-wide cancellations after roughly 800 flights were canceled Tuesday.

Technology systems that allow airport customer service agents to process check-ins, conduct boarding and dispatch aircraft are functioning normally with the bulk of delays and cancellations coming as a result of flight crews displaced or running up against their maximum allowed duty period following the outage.

Were in the final hours of bouncing back from the disruption, said Bill Lentsch, Deltas Senior Vice President Airport Customer Service and Airline Operations. Delta employees have been working around the clock and are committed to bringing the airline back to full strength. We know this has been a rough couple of days for our customers and apologize to those who have experienced our less-than-stellar operation.

Delta CEO Bastian: 'This isn't who we are'

Leaders and employees continue to focus on promptly moving departures at the airline's Atlanta hub, the world's busiest. Delta sent reservations personnel from the corporate headquarters in Atlanta to help customer service agents process customers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. A cadre of additional employees were also positioned throughout the Atlanta Airport to help customers get to their flights.

Customers traveling today should check the status of their flight at delta.com or the Fly Delta App. Customers can rebook their flight via the website.

Delta's travel waiver has been extended and the airline continued to provide hotel vouchers to several thousand customers, including more than 2,300 Tuesday night in Atlanta. Through noon ET, Delta will extend its offer of compensation to customers significantly affected by delays or cancellations to cover Tuesday. Many customers have already been contacted by Delta agents.

Unaccompanied minors will again be allowed to travel on Delta Wednesday following a temporary stay during the height of the disruption.
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August 9th, 2016 // 6:00 PM EST - Rebooking, Refunds, and Compensation: What Customers Need to Know:

Delta people worldwide are working around the clock to take care of customers affected by the disruption of airline operations. Below are updates to assist customers with questions regarding rebooking a flight, the current travel waiver and compensation Delta is offering affected customers:

Q: What does Delta's travel waiver offer customers?

If a customer's flight is cancelled or significantly delayed, he or she entitled to a refund. Even if the flight is not canceled, a one-time change to the ticket may be made without a fee. See full details here.

Q. Has Delta's travel waiver been extended?

Yes, to offer additional flexibility to customers who wish to make changes to their travel plans, Delta's travel waiver has been extended. For the latest information, see full details here.

Q. Is Delta offering travel vouchers to impacted customers?

Yes. Delta will provide $200 in travel vouchers to all customers who experienced a delay of greater than three hours or a cancelled flight as a result of the impact to operations systemwide. The vouchers are available for travel on all Delta and Delta Connection-operated flights.

Customers affected by the outage and who have provided their email address will be contacted via email and will receive their voucher in seven to 10 business days. Customers who have not been contacted can complete a Customer Care form on www.delta.com/wecare to receive their voucher. All travel must be booked by one year from the date the voucher was issued.

Q. Do the travel vouchers also apply to customers who are entitled to a refund?

Yes. Delta will provide $200 in travel vouchers to all customers who experienced a delay of greater than three hours or a cancelled flight as a result of the impact to operations systemwide. ​
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August 9th, 2016 - Delta CEO Ed Bastian Releases Another Statement
Today Ed released another statement regarding the ongoing system reset and outage. Claiming "This isn't who we are". It can be found here.
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Nonrev Travel Discouraged; Buddy Passes embargoed
Delta employees and family with nonrev flight privileges are discouraged at this time from making any personal travel until further notice. Additionally, during this time travelling via the use of a buddy pass will be embargoed. An end date to this travel suspension has not been decided upon and will be released in future updates.
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Travel Waiver in effect:
All Delta flights
August 8-10, 2016
Ticket must be Reissued On or Before, and Rebooked Travel must begin no later than:
August 21, 2016

Note: This also has been extended to include hotel rooms and other accommodations for those customers who may need to take an add'l night stay due to a flight cancellation.
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August 9th, 2016 // 11:00 PM EST -
Delta canceled about 775 flights Tuesday as the airline worked to establish normal operations after Mondays outage that disrupted the flight schedule. The outlook for Wednesdays operation is positive, Delta officials said, with about 90 cancellations expected at the beginning of the day leading to normal operations later.

Delta continues to recover from events earlier this week and expect to be back to normal operations by mid-day Wed, with some cancellations in the morning. -summarized; news.delta.com
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August 9th, 2016 // 2:00 PM EST - Cause of Outage Identified:
"a critical power control module at our Technology Command Center malfunctioned, causing a surge to the transformer and a loss of power. The universal power was stabilized and power was restored quickly. But when this happened, critical systems and network equipment didn't switch over to backups. Other syste​ms did. And now we're seeing instability in these systems."

Power was restored quickly however, due to some critical systems and network equipment didn't switch over to the backups leading to the outage; DL still in recovery. ACS systems are still catching up and have been reported to be running slow -summarized; news.delta.com
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August 9th, 2016 // 12:30 PM EST - Delta has canceled about 530 flights today while more than 1,600 have departed as the airline works diligently to normalize operations after Monday's outage that disrupted the flight schedule. Leaders and employees continue to focus on promptly moving departures at the airline's Atlanta hub, the world's busiest.

Customers traveling today should check the status of their flight at delta.com or the Fly Delta App. Customers can rebook their flight via the website.

Delta's travel waiver has been extended to customers traveling on Aug. 9. Also, unaccompanied minors that have not yet begun travel will not be accepted until Wednesday. Those customers will be able to book without fee at a later date.

Delta offered compensation to customers significantly affected by delays or cancellations.​ -news.delta.com
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August 9th, 2016 // 8:30 AM EST - What Customers Need to Know for Tuesday:
​​​Delta is cancelling more than 300 flights Tuesday morning as it works to reset the operation and get crews, aircraft and other operational elements in place to take care of customers. The airline experienced a loss of power Monday morning that impacted operations systemwide.

​Here are some things to know today:

1. Customers traveling Tuesday should check the status of their flight at delta.com or the Fly Delta App. Customers can rebook their flight via the website.

2. Delays continue. Customers heading to the airport should expect delays and cancellations. While inquiries are high and wait times are long, our customer service agents are doing everything they can to assist.

3. Delta's travel waiver has been extended to customers traveling on Tuesday.

4. Delta extended its offer of compensation to customers significantly affected by delays or cancellations to cover today.​ ​

5​. Unaccompanied minors that have not yet begun travel will not be accepted until Wednesday. Those customers will be able to book without fee at a later date.-news.delta.com
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 2:10 am
  #496  
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Originally Posted by veezer
Anyone else's trip not showing up right now in the app or online? Got an email saying my flight departing Bwi at 6am was delayed but now my trip is missing from my account.
This happened to me yesterday; however, once I got on my flights, the information on my app returned.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 2:17 am
  #497  
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Originally Posted by ND76
This happened to me yesterday; however, once I got on my flights, the information on my app returned.
I also had a period yesterday when check in opened for my next flight (on a different itinerary) and the earlier itinerary (for yesterday, ha ha ha) disappeared. This meant that I could no longer see the upgrade and standby lists and numbers--or seat maps, although I could go to EF for those.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 4:33 am
  #498  
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Originally Posted by MrAndy1369

I guess we shall see if displaced passengers will get hotels tonight. I hope ATL won't be filled to the brim with passengers on cots.
It was and I was one of them
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 4:40 am
  #499  
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Originally Posted by jrkmsp
Delta extended the travel waiver to tomorrow — and says 100 cancellations and 200+ delays for the first departures of the day.

http://news.delta.com/ceo-apologizes...very-continues
Heck, first 3 a.m. flights out of HSV all canceled.

The only arrivals into HSV from ATL yesterday were all Delta Connection flights.

David

Last edited by DiverDave; Aug 9, 2016 at 4:53 am
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:00 am
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Originally Posted by MrAndy1369
I agree that $200 is a slap in the face, especially for longer delays/cancellations. DL should have done staggered voucher amounts. Like: 1-2 hours, $150; 2-3 hours, $200; 3-5 hours, $300-350; 5-7 hours, $500; 7+ hours/cancellation, $700 or something like that. Disappointing.

On the other hand, SWA only gave a discounted fare sale, that's it. DL, at least, was proactive by handing out snacks, having the CEO do a video, and quickly communicative.

I guess we shall see if displaced passengers will get hotels tonight. I hope ATL won't be filled to the brim with passengers on cots.
This was obviously an act of god

FORCE MAJEURE EVENT

Delta Air Lines defines a force majeure event as:

Any conditions beyond Delta Air Lines' control, including weather, acts of God, civil commotion, wars, hostilities, strikes, labor-related disputes, government regulation, shortage of labor or fuel, or other facts not foreseen by Delta Air Lines.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:16 am
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Looks like it's time for a new law, perhaps the Consumer Airline Response to Exigencies (CARE) act that will mandate minimum compensation and standards of care to consumers for delays due to an airline's operational error and malfunction.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:23 am
  #502  
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Originally Posted by Zamees
Any conditions beyond Delta Air Lines' control, including weather, acts of God, civil commotion, wars, hostilities, strikes, labor-related disputes, government regulation, shortage of labor or fuel, or other facts not foreseen by Delta Air Lines.
Sounds like an open invitation not to foresee a lot of stuff and then get away with it.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:27 am
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I got fairly lucky today.... well that's how the day began. Route MSY-ATL-LHR.

Got to the airport in MSY, all fights on time. I was very dubious by this. After an hour in the lounge my app alerted be that my 17:15 flight was delayed until 22:00. This would have meant missing my connection in ATL.

I managed to get re-ticketed onto a 13:10 flight which was delayed until scheduled 16:45 take off, so that was lucky haha. Sadly I got issued this ticket while boarding had commenced. So I have got back to London missing a bag, which is apparently still in MSY somehow, even though it has been over 10 hours since I left. I would have expected it to at least be in Atlanta! Oh well. At least I don't have to do washing tonight.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:31 am
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MSP-DCA 7AM canceled and rebooked on the 10AM flight which I did not like. Now booked to IAD and I will drive. Only 2 hours late. not bad
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:32 am
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Originally Posted by hazelrah
Looks like it's time for a new law, perhaps the Consumer Airline Response to Exigencies (CARE) act that will mandate minimum compensation and standards of care to consumers for delays due to an airline's operational error and malfunction.
please no. having more govt involved in how airlines operate isn't going to help make them more efficient, friendlier, or provide better service. it will raise costs and likely raise pricing as a result.

if you don't like the comp an airline gives you, go to another airline. i happen to think $200 is chinsy and is a factor in me choosing a different airline.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:39 am
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I got a notification at 2AM I was upgraded to F ^

Then at 3AM they cancelled my flight. Then I couldn't login into delta.com Delta had already rebooked me according to the message for a flight that got into DCA at 1130PM instead of the 1PM of my original flight.
I spent 45 minutes on hold at 5AM to cancel my flight. Customer service was excellent as usual though.:-:^

I had to catch a flight on American...where I am sitting at the terminal typing this.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:56 am
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Originally Posted by iflyuaaa
please no. having more govt involved in how airlines operate isn't going to help make them more efficient, friendlier, or provide better service. it will raise costs and likely raise pricing as a result.

if you don't like the comp an airline gives you, go to another airline. i happen to think $200 is chinsy and is a factor in me choosing a different airline.
I am reminded of the airlines playing chicken-little with the tarmac rule that is now law.

We agree on one thing in that $200 is chintzy, and IMO not adequate compensation for airline error.

Last edited by hazelrah; Aug 9, 2016 at 6:03 am
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 5:56 am
  #508  
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Things are looking grim for the near-hourly DCA-ATL flights. They've canceled five of the first seven flights, and the other two are projecting multi-hour delays. I don't fly out until 6 but I'm anticipating a 2-4 hour delay. And DCA is awful for delays, it's crowded in the terminal under the best of circumstances and when flights are delayed, it's packed to the gills!

Also got a text from my boss at 1:15am (which luckily I didn't hear), he was scheduled on the 7:30pm ATL-DCA flight and after being strung along with delays for 5-6 hours they ended up canceling it. He still has to get here, I'm guessing he booked another airline for this morning.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 6:31 am
  #509  
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I see several news stories now that are saying this is (another) glaring example of the need for data and power redundancy and proper planning, and putting the blame on DL.

Saw a report also saying that the power company said it was more than just an electrical equipment failure, but a computer glitch on DL's part that contributed as well.
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Old Aug 9, 2016 | 6:34 am
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I am sure that DL expects to offer more than $200 to some PAX, esp. those who spent the night in airports or who need to reimbursed for hotels. I think the $200 to everyone impacted was a quick way of attempting to calm nerves. My guess is that they will spend weeks if not months responding to individual cases and offering more.
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