Christmas Eve flights have been thrown into doubt by the sudden disruption, leaving thousands of passengers unsure if they can get home for Christmas due to the technical issue.
American Airlines grounded all flights to the UK, leaving Christmas travellers stranded.
Christmas Eve flights have been thrown into doubt by the sudden disruption, leaving thousands of passengers unsure if they can get home for Christmas due to the technical issue.
“We’re currently experiencing a technical issue with all American Airlines flights,” a statement from the airline read.
The US Federal Aviation Administration announced that there has been a “nationwide groundstop for American Airlines”, meaning no planes flying out of the country, including to airports in the UK. The grounding order applies to all airports, according to the message.
“An estimated timeframe has not been provided, but they’re trying to fix it in the shortest possible time,” the airline said on social media. On one of the busiest travel days of the year, passengers reported having their flights stuck on the runway at various airports and being sent back to the gate.
American operates thousands of flights daily to more than 350 destinations in more than 60 countries.
“Captain says @AmericanAir software outage preventing weight & balance calculations ‘company-wide’ with no estimate on resolution. Flights unable to depart as a result. Not a good start to Christmas Eve travel!,” one person posted on X.
David Myers, a 62-year-old disaster consultant traveling from from Salisbury, Maryland to New Orleans said he first learned of the problem at 6am local time. He had been flying to see his children.
“It’s Christmas Eve, so complaining doesn’t seem quite right,” Myers told CNN. “And safety always comes first. But more information at the gate would be helpful.”
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