Alaska Airlines grounded all Alaska and Horizon Air flights for nearly three hours on Sunday, July 20, due to an IT outage that crippled operations across the system. The airline initiated a temporary ground stop around 8 p.m. Pacific Time and lifted it by 11 p.m., according to a statement from the airline and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to FOX Business.
The exact cause of the outage remains unclear, and Alaska Airlines has not confirmed whether the disruption was related to any external cyber incidents.
How long did the disruption last and what’s the impact?
Flights resumed shortly after officials lifted the ground stop, but Alaska Airlines warned of likely residual delays as it repositioned aircraft and crews.
“It will take some time to get our overall operations back to normal,” Alaska Airlines said. The company advised travelers to verify flight status before heading to the airport and apologized for the inconvenience. Passengers reported packed terminals at Seattle-Tacoma and other airports as operations halted.
How did passengers experience the outage?
Airline staff told some travelers the airline would rebook them on Monday flights and instructed them to keep receipts for hotel and rental expenses to request reimbursement.
Jaclyn Martin, a passenger affected at Portland International Airport, said she sat on a boarded plane for about an hour before crew members told her to deplane. “I don’t fly a lot. So, you know, I guess we’ll see what happens,” she told KOIN 6 News.
Passenger Ben DeCarlow described confusion among Alaska staff. One employee suggested calling a 1-800 number with a wait time of over two hours.
Has Alaska Airlines faced similar disruptions before?
This marks Alaska Airlines’ second major system-wide disruption in just over a year. In April 2024, the airline grounded flights due to a problem with its aircraft weight and balance calculation system. In June 2025, Hawaiian Airlines, which is owned by Alaska Air Group, experienced IT system disruptions due to a hack. Alaska Air Group has yet to determine the financial impact of that breach.
Are airlines at higher risk of cyber incidents?
Alaska Airlines’ latest IT failure comes amid heightened concerns about cybersecurity threats in aviation. Tech firms, including Google and Palo Alto Networks, have recently warned that a hacker group known as “Scattered Spider” is targeting airlines.
While this outage has not been definitively linked to a cyberattack, other airlines recently reported cyber incidents, including Canada’s WestJet and Australia’s Qantas. Those breaches did not disrupt flight operations.
