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Delta cancels more flights Monday as fallout from CrowdStrike outage persists
Delta Air Lines canceled flights for a third straight day Monday, as it struggles to recover from a global software outage that took down Microsoft systems around the world. The global outage, related to a faulty update from cybersecurity company CrowdStrike, also hindered operations at shipping and logistics companies, retailers and banks.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in a public letter Sunday that it paused flying after the outage occurred on Friday, resulting in 3,500 canceled flights through Saturday, and continuing through Sunday. The outage hit on what was the airline’s “busiest travel weekend of the summer,” according to Bastian.
On Monday, when most other airlines’ schedules were mostly restored to normal, another 1,120 Delta flights within, into or out of the U.S. were canceled or delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. United by contrast canceled 17 flights, while another 112 of the carrier’s flights were delayed.
Flight applications inoperable
Bastian said many Delta applications run on Microsoft Windows, which was affected by the CrowdStrike issue. Most crucially, one of the airline’s crew tracking tools was rendered inoperable, making it impossible for Delta to “effectively process the unprecedented number of changes triggered by the system shutdown,” Bastian said. “Our teams have been working around the clock to recover and restore full functionality.”
Bastian said Delta would offer travel waivers to customers on affected flights, allowing them to change their itineraries and rebook flights without a fee. “I encourage you to take advantage of that flexibility if possible,” Bastian said in his letter.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg took aim at Delta on X, calling the way the airline was treating customers during the business interruption “unacceptable.”
“We have received reports of continued disruptions and unacceptable customer service conditions at Delta Air Lines, including hundreds of complaints filed with @USDOT. I have made clear to Delta that we will hold them to all applicable passenger protections,” he wrote.
He also made clear that under federal regulations, customers are not obligated to accept travel credit to rebook their flights, rather they are entitled to immediate refunds.
“Delta must provide prompt refunds to consumers who choose not to take rebooking, free rebooking for those who do, and timely reimbursements for food and hotel stays to consumers affected by these delays and cancellations, as well as adequate customer service assistance,” Buttigieg said.
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Phil Lesh, bassist and founding member of The Grateful Dead, dies at 84
Phil Lesh, bassist and founding member of The Grateful Dead, died Friday, a producer who worked with him confirmed to CBS News. He was 84 years old.
A post on his Instagram account said Lesh “passed peacefully this morning.”
“He was surrounded by his family and full of love. Phil brought immense joy to everyone around him and leaves behind a legacy of music and love. We request that you respect the Lesh family’s privacy at this time,” the post said.
One of America’s most enduring musical groups, The Grateful Dead was formed as a quintet in California in 1965, according to their official website. Jerry Garcia, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, Bob Weir Bill Kreutzmann and Phil Lesh made up the original band members. The band signed to Warner Brothers in late 1966, releasing their self-titled debut later that spring.
The band went on to tour for the next half-decade — an era, the band said was their most creatively fertile. Somea members left, some died, and others were added, but the original magic of Phil Lesh and Jerry Garcia stayed intact through some of their most tumultuous years. Garcia died in 1995.
The Grateful Dead toured extensively garnering legions of fans around the world for their ability to play music and “jam.”
In 2007, the band received the Lifetime Achievement award from the Recording Academy.
The band broke the record for the most Top 40 albums to chart on the Billboard 200 in 2024. Even though the band disbanded in 1995 following the death of singer Jerry Garcia, its archival albums’ popularity pushed the music into the Top 40. Forty-one of the band’s 59 entries in the Top 40 have happened since 2012.