US regulators are investigating Delta Airline’s handling of flight cancellations and customer service following a major global technology outage.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced this investigation on Tuesday through X. He insisted on the necessity of the passengers’ fair treatment during the disruption period.
“All passengers flying on an airline have the right to be treated equally, and I will ensure that this right is protected.”
According to FlightAware, around two-thirds of the total US flight cancellations were recorded on Tuesday alone. The company and its partners canceled nearly 500 flights. The problem arose from a botched software update by the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike.
This faulty software update impacted more than 8 million Microsoft computers worldwide. Since the outage started late Thursday night, Delta has canceled 6600 flights, more than any of its competitors.
Delta has also shown its willingness to assist in the investigation. The airline spokesperson said, “We have remained very much committed to regaining our normalcy after IT systems at the global cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike provided a problematic Windows update.” The airline is working hard to address the customer needs and restore reliable service.
Focus on passenger rights and refunds
After observing Delta’s continued disruptions and receiving several customer complaints, the transportation department began investigating. The researchers will study whether Delta complies with federal standards and offers timely reimbursements to customers.
A few customers complained that instead of getting their money back, they were given eCredits for the canceled flights.
It resembles the case with Southwest Airlines, which announced the cancellation of about 16728 flights between December 22, 2022, and January 6, 2023, due to a winter storm.
The company’s inability to recover quickly compared to its rivals, suffering from the same winter storm, resulted in a $35 million fine.
Consumer advocates compare Southwest Airlines’ situation to Delta’s current situation. This is because other airlines have been able to bounce back quickly from the CrowdStrike outage while Delta is still struggling. William McGee, a consumer advocate at the American Economic Liberties Project, said:
“This is not about what caused the problem; it’s about how you fix the problem, and that is the test of an airline.”
