Alaska Airlines IT Outage Grounds Flights Over 200 Canceled

Alaska Airlines experienced a major disruption on October 23, 2025, when a significant IT outage forced the airline to ground all its flights nationwide, including those operated by its regional subsidiary, Horizon Air. The outage began in the afternoon due to a failure at the airline's primary data center, prompting the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to issue a mandatory ground stop around 7:00 pm Pacific Time. This ground halt was a precautionary measure to ensure flight safety while technicians worked to resolve the issue.

The impact was substantial, with over 229 flights canceled and numerous others delayed. Alaska Airlines advised passengers to check their flight status before traveling to airports, as ongoing disruptions were expected while efforts were made to reposition aircraft and crews throughout the network. Despite these challenges, Hawaiian Airlines, also part of the Alaska Air Group, maintained normal operations without disruption.

Alaska Airlines was quick to clarify that the IT outage was not related to any cybersecurity threat and flight safety was never in jeopardy. This outage was the second major IT failure for the airline in 2025, following a similar event in July that grounded flights for about three hours after a hardware failure.

Passengers expressed frustration across social platforms, with reports of long hold times and criticisms of the airline’s response to repeated technical issues in recent months. Alaska Airlines acknowledged the inconvenience and committed to working swiftly to restore normal operations, emphasizing flexible travel policies to assist those affected.

Such IT outages are part of an ongoing challenge faced by many in the airline industry as increasing reliance on technology means any disruption can have wide-ranging effects. Alaska Airlines remains focused on ensuring safe and efficient travel while addressing these technological vulnerabilities to minimize future impacts.