Pensacola flights hit with delays after American Airlines system-wide technical outage

PENSACOLA, Fla. – American Airlines had some major technical issues Tuesday morning delaying flights and preventing travelers from boarding flights.

American Airlines halted all of its flights across the country around 6:30. The company says a “supplier technology issue” was behind the outage.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued a nationwide ground stop for American Airlines flights at the company’s request.

“We were supposed to leave at 11:09 and now it’s noon,” said traveler Abby. “It’s 12:23. That just means we have lunch here too.”

The problem was resolved and flights resumed soon after, but not without delays.

According to data tracker FlightAware, 26 flights in and out of the US were canceled and more than a thousand flights were delayed.

Pensacola International Airport reported three arrival delays and three departure delays before 1 p.m. 10 Tuesday morning.

Matt Coughlin is director of Pensacola International Airport.

“It delayed some of our departures by about an hour on average,” Coughlin said.

He says that since the fallout was system-wide, there is a small silver lining.

“When you think about it, if you have a connection, those flights are probably delayed as well,” Coughlin said. “It gives you better odds of actually catching that connection, so if there’s a plus out of it, that’s one of them.”

Despite the delays, some travelers are keeping their spirits up.

“We celebrate Christmas and we’re all together, it doesn’t matter where we are,” said traveler Faith.

Seven flights at Destin Fort Walton Beach Airport were also delayed this morning.

Over at Mobile Regional Airport, 2 flights were delayed Tuesday afternoon.

Travelers flying out on Christmas Eve or Christmas may also experience delays due to weather depending on the region of the country they are flying to.

Coughlin says to stay updated on the weather and your flight status.