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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 8, 2016 | 6:47 am
  #121  
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Considering Anderson's love of old but proven technology, the DL computer running on Cobol 1.0 must have run into a snag when one (or more) of the triode tubes burned out at the punchcard mainframe.
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 6:51 am
  #122  
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Originally Posted by wrp96
Hope DL handles the recovery better than Southwest.
I think that's one thing we can count on. Delta's systems will automatically rebook passengers, something Southwest can't do, and it has a good track record of speedy recoveries from cancellations. Sure, today will be messy, but I doubt we'll see the scale of cancellations Southwest did especially into the next few days.
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 6:53 am
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Originally Posted by FlyerGuy10
I'm sure many on FT are considering this right now but what do you guys think about grabbing a refundable ticket and heading to the airport for a possible VDB?
Sounds like completely immoral activity that borders on fraudulent. Is it at the VDB you tell DL how valuable of a flyer you are?
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 6:55 am
  #124  
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Originally Posted by bubbashow
Sounds like completely immoral activity that borders on fraudulent. Is it at the VDB you tell DL how valuable of a flyer you are?
^
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 6:56 am
  #125  
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Originally Posted by bubbashow
Sounds like completely immoral activity that borders on fraudulent. Is it at the VDB you tell DL how valuable of a flyer you are?
Yeah, anyone who does this should have their accounts cancelled. A certain blogger out there was banned from United Airlines for similar activity.
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 6:59 am
  #126  
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Originally Posted by bubbashow
Sounds like completely immoral activity that borders on fraudulent. Is it at the VDB you tell DL how valuable of a flyer you are?
Let's not moralize here, lots of people on this forum have openly discussed doing this in the past
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 6:59 am
  #127  
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Originally Posted by FlyerGuy10
I'm sure many on FT are considering this right now but what do you guys think about grabbing a refundable ticket and heading to the airport for a possible VDB?
That's disgusting.

It takes seats from inventory so that they're not available for those who are stuck and need that space. Plus you tie up GA time as they're trying to get delayed flights out ASAP.
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 6:59 am
  #128  
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Originally Posted by raehl311
These systems are never supposed to just lose power ever, and they are never supposed to all just be off at the same time ever.

So yeah, totally plausible... They have to bring the systems back up, probably in a certain order, and make sure they're talking to each other right.

This sort of thing is just never supposed to happen so recovery is likely very manual and slow.
If you design the system right, it doesn't matter. If you don't pay your tech debt and have systems that are 30 years old but "proven", then yes, a lot of down time when something "unexpected" happens is a given. If you can't account for a "never supposed to happen" you need to fire your IT heads because their disaster recovery plan is junk.

Which is why it's a shame that they will never be transparent about what really happened. Those of us in the trade would love to learn from their mistakes.
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 7:00 am
  #129  
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Originally Posted by MSPeconomist
That's disgusting.
Well, this is the Delta forum.
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 7:00 am
  #130  
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On TPA-ATL - pilot said ground stop in ATL extended until 9:15am EST - we are sitting off runway waiting for takeoff. This is the 5am flight - boarded at 8:15am
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 7:01 am
  #131  
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Originally Posted by bubbashow
Sounds like completely immoral activity that borders on fraudulent. Is it at the VDB you tell DL how valuable of a flyer you are?
You nailed it. ^ ^

Though I would think about most flights would be zeroed out while everything gets sorted.

Fortunately, I am not flying today, but I am sure the cleanup will continue into tomorrow when I am flying.

David
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 7:02 am
  #132  
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Originally Posted by mbwmbw
I just purchased 5 tickets and called in and they are sending me $300 per a ticket since I am delayed. $1,500 nice
It's fraudulent ticketing if you didn't intend to fly or if the tickets are inconsistent (contradict each other). If audited, your FF account could be nuked for this.
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 7:02 am
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Network radio says system is back up --- lots of bumping opportunities today???

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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 7:04 am
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Originally Posted by mbwmbw
I just purchased 5 tickets and called in and they are sending me $300 per a ticket since I am delayed. $1,500 nice
Hope thats a joke, pretty underhanded...
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Old Aug 8, 2016 | 7:06 am
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According to the flight captain of JFK-SLC this morning, a routine scheduled switch to the backup generator this morning at 2:30am caused a fire that destroyed both the backup and the primary. Firefighters took a while to extinguish the fire. Power is now back up and 400 out of the 500 servers rebooted, still waiting for the last 100 to have the whole system fully functional.
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