Air India software glitch causes flight delays at airport
NEW DELHI: Passengers flying Air India faced delays on Saturday afternoon after a “technical glitch” hit the airlines’ check-in software. As a result, hundreds of passengers were seen swarming at the waiting lobbies at Delhi airport, passengers said.
A total of 23 flights were delayed across the Air India network including those at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in the national Capital on Saturday afternoon, after the software the airline uses for check-in operations crashed, an Air India spokesperson said.
The airline said that it took around an hour-and-a-half to normalise operations, which led to an average delay of 15 to 30 minutes in all Air India flights across the airline network.
Airline officials said the delay was caused mainly because the boarding passes had to be issued manually during the hour-anda-half-long period.
“The software-related glitch affected operations from 1pm to 2.30pm in the afternoon during which period, check-in and other services needed to be handled manually. This caused delay in services,” the spokesperson said.
Air India’s software solution is managed by SITA, a global airlines IT services solution major, which provides its check-in, boarding and baggage tracking technology.
The same software is also used by airlines such as Oman Air, Air Arabia and Uzbekistan Airlines in their operations.
Meanwhile, the delays caused panic among fliers, many of whom took to social media websites to vent their frustrations. “Just reached Delhi Airport and found out that Air India servers are down for the last two hours. All domestic and international flights are grounded.
The airport looks like a mela of stranded passengers with hardly any space to even walk,” (sic) tweeted Akhilesh Mishra, a passenger.