BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Flights for Allegiant Air have been cancelled because of a third-party software system outage, the company announced online Friday morning, though they will offer customers options for rebooking or refunds.
Allegiant Air confirmed all flights set to depart prior to 2 p.m. Eastern Time and 11 a.m. Pacific Time Friday, July 19, have been cancelled, citing “a third-party software system outage is impacting computer systems around the world, including Allegiant’s.”
Just after 3 p.m., Allegiant’s official X account announced that as of 2 p.m., they had “started recovering our systems.”
The account confirmed its Customer Care team would email any affected customers over the next 48 hours with options to get a full refund or a rebooking of their flights.
If a customer does not take action within a 72-hour period, his or her reservation will automatically be cancelled and refunded to the original form of payment.
Allegiant also encouraged customers with flights booked throughout the afternoon to check the Allegiant app and their local airport website for updated details.
Warning to be cautious
Just before 5 p.m., the Allegiant account also advised customers to be cautious about any communication with any entity claiming to represent the airline.
“With the rise of fake accounts, we want to remind you that this is Allegiant’s ONLY account on this platform," an X post from Allegiant reads.
"We do not ever use any other accounts or third parties to assist our customers. We will never request personal information or payment details (i.e. credit card) when assisting our customers on social media.”
“We are working diligently with our provider to resolve the issue and apologize for the inconvenience this may cause our passengers."Allegiant Air on its X acount
Allegiant Air's Lehigh Valley International Airport site is currently blank outside of a statement: "Good deals come to those who wait... The Allegiant website is currently unavailable. Thanks for your patience. Please try again in a few minutes."
The issue likely is associated with a major tech outage linked to Microsoft that Texas-based cybersecurity company CrowdStrike associated with a “defect found in a single content update for Windows.”
CrowdStrike Chief Executive Officer George Kurtz said via his X account that “today was not a security or cyber incident.”
Airlines across the country have grounded flights, with expectations of global delays because of the issue.
The company said some customers may have experienced delays when booking, checking in or accessing boarding passes.
“We are working diligently with our provider to resolve the issue and apologize for the inconvenience this may cause our passengers,” Allegiant stated on its X account.
Don't come to the airport
Allegiant advised customers who booked a flight set to depart prior to 2 p.m. Eastern to not come to the airport.
It said they will get an email from their Customer Care team with options for a refund or rebook another flight once systems are restored.
The message also noted that Allegiant’s operations team may cancel additional flights on Friday, advising customers to check their social media as they will continue to provide updates.
“This is basically what we were all worried about with Y2K, except it's actually happened this time."IHJaveBeenPwned cybersecurity researcher Troy Hunt
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg appeared on CNBC Friday morning, stating he is tracking the impact of the tech issue which has also affected 911 service and other matters.
Buttigieg also called for airlines to accommodate passengers who have been impacted by the problem.
As of Friday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration stated it is aware of the issue and is working with other federal agencies to evaluate service disruptions and provide assistance if possible.
Some within the tech industry, including IHaveBeenPwned cybersecurity researcher Troy Hunt, have characterized the Microsoft problem as “the largest IT outage in history.”
“This is basically what we were all worried about with Y2K, except it's actually happened this time,” Hunt stated on his X account.
