Updated May 29, 2024 - Business

Southwest power outage causes widespread flight delays

Rebecca Falconer

A Southwest Airlines plane sits on tarmac in Austin, Texas, Feb. 16, 2023. — A Southwest Airlines plane in Austin, Texas, in February 2023. Photo: Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Numerous Southwest Airlines flights were delayed as the company reported a power outage hit its data centers in the Dallas area on Wednesday.

Why it matters: While a Southwest Airlines spokesperson said it had "resolved a brief technology issue" that was caused by Wednesday afternoon's outage, the airline has been in the spotlight after thousands of flights were delayed in late 2022 and again in early 2023 due to severe weather and exacerbated by tech issues.

The Southwest spokesperson said the latest issue "was an isolated incident and not related to any previous events," nor was it connected to the recent severe weather that's hit north Texas.

By the numbers: Nearly 1,400 Southwest flights were listed as being delayed on FlightAware as of Wednesday evening.

What they're saying: "While we were able to continue overall operations, some flights across the system were delayed while our Teams addressed the outage and restarted systems," the spokesperson said in an emailed statement Wednesday night.

"We apologize to our Customers and appreciate their patience as we work to get them to their destinations as quickly and safely as possible," they added.
"The situation is resolved and we don't anticipate any further disruption."

Flashback: Southwest Airlines cancellations, delays ramp up again

Editor's note: This article has been updated with further comment from a Southwest spokesperson on this being an isolated incident not connected to previous events, nor the weather.

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Southwest power outage causes widespread flight delays

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