Microsoft outage forces IndiGo to cancel almost 200 flights; Rebooking and refund options temporarily suspended
IT outage affecting Microsoft's Azure cloud platform has caused major disruptions in the aviation sector, leading to the cancellation of over 200 flights by IndiGo. This global incident, which began on July 19, 2024, has had a cascading effect on travel systems worldwide, severely impacting airline operations.
IndiGo’s Operational Challenges
IndiGo, one of India’s largest carriers, has reported substantial operational disruptions. The airline announced on X, «Flights are cancelled due to the cascading effect of the worldwide travel system outage, beyond our control. The option to rebook/claim a refund is temporarily unavailable.» The outage has impacted IndiGo's flight operations, check-in systems, and baggage handling.
«IndiGo is currently experiencing delays and cancellations due to global outages faced by its cloud server software and software provider. This outage, which began on July 19, 2024, has severely disrupted airline operations by impacting critical systems used for flight operations, passenger check-in, and baggage handling. Airlines, airports and other transport systems across the world are facing similar issues,» IndiGo said in a statement.
To mitigate the situation, IndiGo has activated manual and backup systems at major Indian airports including Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore. The airline has set up ‘war rooms’ at four metro airports to manage operations. IndiGo is prioritizing passengers with departures in the next 120 minutes and is advising those on cancelled flights to avoid the airports. The
