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Delta CEO Apologizes to Fliers for Massive Outage

By
Michal Addady
Michal Addady
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By
Michal Addady
Michal Addady
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 11, 2016, 12:33 PM ET
After Delta Outage in Canada
TORONTO, CANADA - AUGUST 8, 2016 : People mill around while passengers await updates from Delta airline employees at Pearson International airport, in Toronto, Canada on August 8, 2016. Passengers were left stranded, some for several hours, after a computer issue left the American air carrier's flights grounded across the globe. (Photo by Giordano Ciampini/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)Photo by Giordano Ciampini—Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Delta Air Lines continues to investigate the cause of a power outage on Monday that left planes grounded and thousands of fliers stranded. In the aftermath, the airline’s CEO wants its customers to know that this is an isolated incident.

“This isn’t who we are. This isn’t the quality of service and the reliability you’ve come to expect from Delta Air Lines,” CEO Ed Bastian said in a video to customers on Tuesday, apologizing for the unfortunate event.

In the incident, the company’s system crashed and failed to reboot as seamlessly as it should have. As a result, more than 2,100 flights were canceled in the course of three days.

This Is Every CEO’s Worst Nightmare

Bastian told the Wall Street Journal that he expects the airline “to be fully back” by Thursday. According to a company update on Thursday morning, 25 flights have already been canceled. Some cancellations are a direct result of the ongoing recovery while others are unrelated and have been explained by bad weather.

“It’s not clear the priorities in our investment have been in the right place,” Bastian told the Journal. “It has caused us to ask a lot of questions which candidly we don’t have a lot of answers for.”

Bastian added that in recent years the company has put “hundreds of millions” into technology infrastructure, with $150 million going into upgrades and systems just this year.

For fliers who were delayed by at least three hours, Delta (DAL) is offering vouchers in the amount of $200 to compensate for the inconvenience.

Delta could not immediately be reached for comment.

About the Author
By Michal Addady
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