United Airlines Grounded Flights for an Hour on Tuesday. What’s Going on?
Key Takeaways
- United Airlines had to ground its flights due to computer issues on Tuesday
- The delay was brief and didn’t impact any flights already en route
- This issue is another spot of drama for the airline after a delay-filled summer
United Airlines flights were grounded because of computer issues on Tuesday. All has been resolved, but the news was unsettling for travelers and investors alike. Will this hiccup be a significant setback for the airline? We’ll explore that below.
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What happened with United flights?
United summed it up in a statement: “Earlier today a software update caused a widespread slowdown in United’s technology systems.” The technical issue meant all fights were grounded for about an hour. Flights already in the air were not impacted, but flights on the ground were held at their origin airport.
There were 330 delayed flights as of 3 pm EST on Tuesday, which is about 12% of United’s operations. FlightAware showed only 14 United flights were canceled on Tuesday.
“We have identified a fix for the technology issue and flights have resumed. We’re working with impacted customers to help them reach their destinations as soon as possible,” United Airlines posted its social media.
At this point, United doesn’t believe the issue was related to any sort of cybersecurity problem or hack.
Will this have a bigger impact on the business?
This has been a season of highs and lows for United Airlines. Summer travel reached record highs, but that also made for high stakes when hurricanes, storms, and subsequent backups derailed travel plans. United passengers were hit especially hard.
The airline saw hundreds of cancellations and thousands of delays this summer — something to the tune of 400,000 United passengers on canceled flights during a busy travel season.
The airline has certainly come under scrutiny in recent months, and the industry has been
By mid-summer, United was still trading below the S&P 500’s 19.1 multiple and below the industry’s average. After Tuesday’s hiccup, United Stock dipped a bit. This morning, airline stocks were mixed across the board as major carriers warned of higher fuel costs.
The bottom line
The third quarter might break some travel records and will likely give airlines stocks a boost. But rising fuel costs, traveler frustration, and a slower fall season might cause turbulence for United and its peers in the coming months. So many factors influence travel, so while we’re bracing for a slowdown on United stock, we’re not counting them out just yet.
