Monday morning, flights all across the country were grounded or delayed due to a computer glitch.
Our CBS affiliate in New York City reported Southwest, United, JetBlue, Alaska, and Delta were affected by the outage, with Southwest temporarily stopping all flights nationwide.
BREAKING NEWS: A technical issue has grounded flights from a number of airlines across the country. @SouthwestAir and @Delta among the airlines confirming technical issues are impacting flights.
— Kelly Vaughen (@KellyVaughen) April 1, 2019
The problem is with a program called AeroData, used to calculate the weight and balance of flights.
— Kelly Vaughen (@KellyVaughen) April 1, 2019
Hi there, Torx. We're sorry for the return to the gate this morning. We're working through some Tech issues this morning, and will have you on your way as quickly as we can. -Rocky
— Southwest Airlines (@SouthwestAir) April 1, 2019
Southwest told passengers on Twitter they were working through some tech issues and will get passengers on the way as soon as they can.
Hi there. Apologies for the inconvenience this morning as we fought through some technology issues. We've received word that the problem has been resolved, though, so we'll have you on your way ASAP. Please speak to our Crew onboard for info. -Austin
— Southwest Airlines (@SouthwestAir) April 1, 2019
Around 6:15 a.m., Southwest tweeted an update saying the issue had been resolved.
Update: @SouthwestAir statement on flight issues Saying problem is fixed. @Delta @JetBlue @AmericanAir also affected. pic.twitter.com/TgxACjyGIQ
— Dan Mannarino (@DanMannarino) April 1, 2019
A reporter from our sister station in New York City tweeted a statement from Southwest, confirming their flights resumed around 6:05 a.m.
UPDATE: The issue has been resolved. Contact individual #airlines for information on specific delays. https://t.co/5irxFMwRu7
— The FAA (@FAANews) April 1, 2019
Around 7:30 a.m., the FAA tweeted confirmation the problem was resolved.
Some passengers took to Twitter to express their frustration.
Are there any better words to hear at an airport than "nationwide, all flights are ground"???
— Brenden Schaeffer (@bschaeffer12) April 1, 2019
One passenger tweeted, “Are there any better words to hear at an airport than ‘nationwide, all flights are grounded’??”
@SouthwestAir are you playing an #AprilFools joke on us? You gave us AN EXTRA LAYOVER on our flight from Grand Rapids to Vegas next month. We had plans now we have to cancel that evening. Please reply with 'Hahaha. We got you! APRIL FOOLS!'
— Sarah Uzarski Milano (@CarsGirlUM) April 1, 2019
Another asked Southwest if the airline was playing an April Fools joke on passengers.