Alaska Airlines Grounds All Flights Amid Major IT Outage

Alaska Airlines experienced a major IT outage late Sunday that forced the airline to request a temporary, system-wide ground stop for all its mainline and Horizon Air flights, affecting operations across all destinations. The outage began around 8 p.m. Pacific Time and caused significant disruptions, with residual impacts expected throughout the evening. This is the second major IT-related grounding for Alaska Airlines in just over a year, following a previous incident related to system calculations for aircraft weight and balance. Passengers faced long waits and delays, with some being held on the tarmac for hours before having to disembark. The airline apologized for the inconvenience and advised travelers to check flight status before heading to airports, but did not provide a timeline for resuming normal operations. The incident underscores growing cybersecurity concerns in the aviation sector, with recent warnings about hacking threats highlighting the critical need for robust IT defenses among airlines worldwide.