SEATTLE, Washington: Alaska Airlines said late on October 23 that it had restarted operations after a major technology problem earlier in the evening forced it to ground all flights at every airport.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that the ground stop, which lasted almost three hours, also affected Horizon Air, Alaska’s regional subsidiary.
In a social media post, the airline said, “Alaska Airlines is experiencing an IT outage affecting operations. A temporary ground stop is in place. We apologize for the inconvenience.” Nearly three hours later, it updated passengers, saying, “We are actively restoring our operations following an IT outage.”
The company also replied to several customer complaints online, explaining that its systems were experiencing errors and that its IT team was working to fix the problem. Similar issues were reported on the airline’s app and website.
This is Alaska Airlines’ second major IT issue this year. In July, a similar outage disrupted hundreds of flights and left thousands of passengers stranded during the busy summer season.
Meanwhile, Alaska Airlines lowered its 2025 profit forecast, citing higher fuel prices and operational problems caused by bad weather and other challenges. Refinery outages on the U.S. West Coast have sharply reduced fuel supplies, pushing prices higher and adding more pressure on airlines already facing rising costs.
“Fuel is unpredictable, and it’s something we’re having to manage carefully while estimating our fourth-quarter earnings,” Chief Financial Officer Shane Tackett told Reuters.
The airline now expects to earn at least US$2.40 per share this year, down from its earlier forecast of more than $3.25. For the fourth quarter, it expects an adjusted profit of at least 40 cents per share—much lower than analysts’ forecast of 88 cents, according to data from LSEG.
Despite these challenges, Alaska Airlines said the airline industry is beginning to recover as companies reduce the number of available seats and cut back on heavy discounts after a slowdown in travel demand earlier in the year. “We expect to have positive unit revenues in the fourth quarter,” Tackett said.
The company’s pricing power, or “yield,” rose about 1.4 percent in the third quarter, while its unit costs excluding fuel increased by 8.6 percent. Tackett said costs should improve in the coming quarters.
Alaska Airlines reported a quarterly adjusted profit of $1.05 per share, slightly below analysts’ estimate of $1.13. Total third-quarter revenue rose 23 percent from last year to $3.77 billion, meeting market expectations.