The CrowdStrike and Microsoft IT outage that began on July 19 had a significant impact on the aviation industry, causing disruptions and delays that led to notable decreases in on-time performance scores for airlines in regions most affected by the outage. According to aviation analytics company Cirium, North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific were particularly hard hit by the outage, with North American carriers experiencing the most significant declines in on-time performance.
In North America, nine out of the 10 carriers included in Cirium’s monthly report saw declines in their on-time performance scores. Frontier Airlines was the only carrier to see an improvement, with a 1.1 percentage point increase to 65.3 percent. On the other hand, WestJet experienced the largest drop, down 11.1 percentage points to 60.9 percent.
Delta Air Lines, one of the most affected carriers in North America, lost its position as the leader in on-time performance for the first time since July 2023. Instead, Alaska Airlines emerged as the top performer with an on-time performance of 77.5 percent, just slightly below its June average of 77.8 percent. United Airlines followed closely behind at 73.1 percent, while Delta came in third at 72.4 percent, down 7.7 percentage points from June.
Despite facing thousands of canceled and delayed flights and taking longer than other carriers to recover, Delta managed to maintain a relatively high on-time performance score. However, none of the North American carriers made it to the global list of top performing airlines for July, indicating the widespread impact of the outage on the region’s aviation industry.
The effects of the outage were also reflected in the number of canceled flights in July, with North American carriers canceling nearly 23,400 flights, almost double the number of cancellations in June. Southwest Airlines had the highest completion factor for July at 99.43 percent, followed by Alaska Airlines at 99.40 percent, and JetBlue at 98.73 percent.
In the aviation industry, a flight is considered on time if the aircraft arrives at the gate within 15 minutes of its scheduled arrival time. The CrowdStrike and Microsoft IT outage not only disrupted operations for airlines but also had a lasting impact on their on-time performance and overall efficiency in July.
Overall, the outage served as a stark reminder of the vulnerability of the aviation industry to technical disruptions and highlighted the importance of robust IT systems and contingency plans to minimize the impact of such incidents in the future. As airlines continue to navigate the challenges posed by the ongoing pandemic and other external factors, maintaining high levels of operational efficiency and on-time performance remains crucial for ensuring a positive travel experience for passengers.
