Hawaiian Airlines, along with other companies in Hawaii, faced a significant internet outage that had a direct impact on their operations.
Passengers on a Hawaiian Airlines flight from Kauaʻi to Oʻahu experienced a prolonged travel day instead of the expected 35-minute flight.
The confusion arose during the Mother’s Day weekend when Hawaiian Airlines encountered dozens of delayed and grounded flights due to the internet outage.
The disruption caused frustration among passengers, who were left waiting for hours at the airport without any answers.
Some passengers reported spending over three and a half hours on the plane, witnessing other planes unable to take off from the runways.
Safety instructions were given, but the passengers were eventually informed about the grounding of flights.
At Kahului Airport in Maui, some noon flights were delayed until 3:30 PM.
Hawaiian Airlines attributed the issues to an outage with their third-party internet provider and assured that they were working diligently to restore normal operations.
As a result of the outage, flights were placed on a ground hold, and some aircraft had to be diverted from Maui to Honolulu to allow passengers to disembark.
Additional Hawaiian Airlines employees were dispatched to Honolulu’s airport to assist affected guests.
The impact of the internet outage extended beyond Hawaiian Airlines, affecting other companies as well.
Hawaii Pacific Health and Bank of Hawaii reported experiencing the same issue with their IT systems due to the outage from the shared internet provider.
However, both companies had contingency plans in place to ensure uninterrupted services.
Hawaiian Airlines acknowledged the inconvenience caused to their guests and announced that travel credits would be issued to those who experienced delays.
They recognized the significance of the timing, as it was the Friday before graduations and Mother’s Day, and assured that they were working tirelessly to accommodate passengers’ travel needs.
The internet provider responsible for the outage, D-R Fortress, explained that a maintenance issue during their expansion work resulted in the disruption.
They expressed their apologies for the inconvenience caused to major customers such as Hawaiian Airlines and Bank of Hawaii.
In an unrelated incident, a man lost his life following a standoff situation on Oahu’s North Shore earlier in the morning.
Further details regarding this incident were not provided in the available information.
