The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has launched an investigation into Delta Air Lines’ handling of widespread flight cancellations and disruptions caused by the recent CrowdStrike software update failure. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced the investigation, emphasizing the need to ensure Delta complies with the law and properly cares for affected passengers.Delta has canceled over 6,600 flights since the outage began last Friday, with ongoing issues persisting four days after the initial incident. The airline attributes the delays and cancellations to manual repairs and synchronization issues in its complex system. Delta CEO Ed Bastian stated that it would take “another couple of days” before the worst is behind them.The DOT investigation will focus on whether Delta is complying with federal rules, offering prompt refunds to passengers, and honoring its customer service commitments. Consumer advocates have criticized Delta’s response, with some comparing it to Southwest Airlines’ meltdown in 2022, which resulted in a $35 million fine.Meanwhile, Microsoft has blamed the European Union for preventing security changes that could have mitigated the outage. The company claims that a 2009 agreement with the European Commission prevented them from making kernel-level changes to Windows, which could have blocked the faulty update.As the situation continues to unfold, Delta is offering various alternatives to affected passengers, including refunds, rebooking, and mileage compensation. The airline has stated that it is cooperating with the DOT investigation and working tirelessly to restore its operations.
Key points
- The US Department of Transportation has launched an investigation into Delta Air Lines’ handling of flight cancellations and disruptions.
- Delta has canceled over 6,600 flights since the CrowdStrike outage began, with ongoing issues four days after the initial incident.
- Microsoft blames a 2009 agreement with the European Union for preventing security changes that could have mitigated the outage.
Contradictions👾There are slight discrepancies in the reported number of flight cancellations, with some sources citing over 6,600 and others mentioning over 5,500.
