Indian Airports Resume Normal Operations Following Microsoft Outage Fallout
News Mania Desk/Agnibeena Ghosh/20th July 2024
In the aftermath of a global Microsoft outage that disrupted flight operations worldwide, the Ministry of Civil Aviation reported on Saturday that air travel in India had returned to normal. The outage, which affected Microsoft 365 and Azure services, led to significant delays and cancellations at various airports, causing chaos for travelers. However, by Saturday morning, the situation had improved significantly, with airline systems functioning smoothly once again.
Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu reassured the public that all travel-related issues, including adjustments and refunds, were being addressed promptly. “Since 3 AM on Saturday, airline systems across airports have resumed normal operations. Flight activities are running smoothly now,” he stated. The disruption on Friday had led to numerous flight cancellations and delays as airlines struggled with manual check-in processes and operational challenges.
Murlidhar Mahol, the Minister of State for Civil Aviation, echoed these sentiments, confirming that the issues caused by the outage had been resolved. “Today, Microsoft has fixed the problem, and flight operations are back to normal. While passengers faced difficulties yesterday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has reported that operations have stabilized today,” he said.
Despite the widespread impact of the outage, Air India reported no flight cancellations on Saturday due to the global IT issues. An Air India spokesperson clarified, “We confirm that none of Air India’s flights on July 19 were cancelled as a result of the worldwide outage. However, there were some delays due to the impact on airport services. Our resilient IT infrastructure remained unaffected and continues to function normally.”
The global disruption had a notable impact on several airlines, including IndiGo, SpiceJet, and Akasa Air. At Delhi Airport, over 400 flights were delayed, with some passengers sharing images of handwritten boarding passes on social media as a result of the manual processing.
Major airports across India provided updates on the situation. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport issued a passenger advisory, acknowledging potential knock-on effects from the previous day’s IT outage. “Following the global IT outage, airlines may experience delays and cancellations. For the latest flight updates, passengers should contact their airlines directly before heading to the airport,” the advisory stated.
Chennai Airport also addressed the disruptions, noting that the Microsoft outage, which began at 10:40 IST on Friday, had a severe impact on flight schedules and passenger check-ins. The airport reported that 27 domestic flights were cancelled and many others experienced delays ranging from 30 minutes to an hour. Manual boarding passes were issued to help mitigate the disruptions.
For passengers seeking rebooking or refund information, the airport recommended contacting airlines directly and monitoring social media channels for real-time updates. The Chennai International Airport’s customer service staff were available to assist with any queries related to the ongoing situation.
As the effects of the global outage wane, the aviation industry is working to ensure that normal operations continue smoothly. The quick resolution of the issue highlights the resilience of India’s air travel infrastructure amidst global IT challenges.
