United Airlines experienced considerable disruption when a technology glitch prompted a ground stop for mainline flights, leading to delays at major airports nationwide. While the issue has been resolved, many travelers are still facing residual delays and frustration.
United Airlines Faces Widespread Delays Due to Technical Issues
United Airlines Faces Widespread Delays Due to Technical Issues
Passengers endure significant wait times as technology problems force flight halts across multiple U.S. airports.
Passengers of United Airlines encountered lengthy delays across the United States as the airline temporarily grounded flights due to a significant "technology issue." The disruption affected major airports, including those in Chicago, Denver, Houston, San Francisco, and New Jersey, leading to a nationwide ground stop for the airline's mainline operations.
Around 10:00 PM EDT on Wednesday (2:00 AM GMT Thursday), United notified travelers that flights were no longer stopped, yet ongoing disruptions continued. In a statement, the airline confirmed, "The underlying technology issue has been resolved, and while we expect residual delays, our team is working to restore our normal operations." As per flight data from FlightAware, over 700 United flights were delayed by 9:00 PM EDT (2:00 AM BST).
Flights already en route during the ground stop were allowed to complete their journeys. Regional flights were not directly affected, but the airline cautioned that they could experience delays due to the backup caused by the ground stop. Jessica Jeffers, a passenger in Denver waiting to fly to Newark, New Jersey, described the situation to CNN: "It's been pretty rough over here," having been stuck for two hours.
Other passengers expressed their frustrations on social media, recounting their experiences of being stranded on tarmacs for extended periods with little information. CBS News, United's partner network, reported that the airline acknowledged the incident as a preventable delay and would assist with certain passenger expenses incurred during the disruption.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy received updates regarding the situation and confirmed that the technical issue was "unrelated to the broader air traffic control system" in the US.
