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The FAA grounded all Alaska Airlines flights on Wednesday morning due to problems with a computer system upgrade. The ground stop lasted for an hour before flights resumed but delays are expected throughout the day.
Alaska Airlines responded to GlobalAir.com, confirming that Wednesday morning during an upgrade to the system that calculates weight and balance there was an issue. The airline requested a ground stop for all Alaska and Horizon flights "out of an abundance of caution" and this was instituted at 7:30 a.m. PT. The issue was mitigated and the airline said the ground stop for Alaska and Horizon flights expired at 8:30 a.m. PT."We have begun releasing flights," Alaska Airlines said in its statement to GlobalAir.com. "Residual delays are expected throughout the day. We apologize for the inconvenience and encourage guests to check the status of their flights on alaskaair.com or the Alaska App prior to heading to the airport."The FAA told GlobalAir.com that operations were normal after Alaska Airlines had asked the agency to pause departures nationwide.
During the ground stop Alaska Airlines was responding to customer complaints on X (formerly Twitter), apologizing for the delay and letting customers know the issue was being resolved. Following the lift of the ground stop the airline told a customer on X that flights were not cancelled but they might be delayed.RELATED STORIES:Boeing 737 MAX 9 was missing bolts before depressurization eventLatest on 737 MAX 9 Alaska Airlines emergency - aircraft had prior issues before panel ripped off mid-flight
The ground stop lasted only an hour and was a cautionary decision following a tumultuous start to the year for the airline. On Jan. 5 on Alaska Airlines flight 1282 in a Boeing 737 MAX-9 (N704AL) a door plug was blown off the plane at 16,000 feet, leading to a rapid decompression event. The crew was able to return to the airport and land safely but the aftermath has resulted in a series of highly scrutinized issues for Boeing. Following the event, Alaska Airlines and United, two airlines with a high number of affected aircraft, grounded the problem planes and reported finding loose parts.
The NTSB later found that bolts were missing from the door plug before the depressurization event. The MED plug was removed for maintenance months before the incident and the NTSB found no evidence it was opened after leaving Boeing's facility. The event has thrust Boeing into the public eye once again, following the deadly 737 MAX crashes that claimed the lives of 346 people. Alaska Airlines has since returned the inspected planes back into service in accordance with FAA guidelines.