Southwest Operations Back To Normal After Major Glitch Leads To Delays
LANSDOWNE, Md. (WJZ) -- Southwest Airlines says its operations are returning to normal. A major computer glitch led to long lines at airports across the country, including here in Maryland.
Marcus Washington has reaction from passengers flying Southwest.
Long lines and frustrated passengers filled airports across the country when BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport's largest airline, Southwest, experienced a glitch in its system.
"Very frustrated. But we understand it was a glitch in the system," one traveler said.
Many Southwest travelers say they haven't experienced any delays Monday and their travel has been smooth. It's a different story from what they experienced Sunday as they tried to check-in.
"Oh, yesterday. We couldn't check-in because we kept getting an error saying the computer was down," said Preston McGee.
"They kept saying to call customer service," another traveler said.
"They were asking people to get to the airport like three or four hours ahead because they were doing everything manually," said McGee.
A Southwest Airlines spokesperson says the problem was caused by a failed software application that prevented people from using the airline's apps, phone lines, website and computers to check in travelers.
Washington: "Were people nervous that the same thing would happen today?"
McGee: "I think people were very nervous. I think people were also nervous that they wouldn't catch their flight because of the delays."
"This is the first time for our family to be going together, so there's like eight of us," said Mari Burns. "So it's a lot. We didn't want to make any mistakes. We definitely didn't want to wait too long in line with two little kids."
Southwest says 800 flights were delayed because of the issue Sunday. But, by Monday afternoon, things were back to normal.
"Everything turned out wonderful ," said Susan Drake. "So far, I like Baltimore."A Southwest Airline spokesperson says hackers are not responsible for the system's glitch.