Airline Reservation Systems Up After Glitch Shut Them Down

Aug. 06--A technology problem Monday night shut down reservation systems at several major airlines, including American Airlines, but was resolved Tuesday morning.

The data processing system used by about 400 airlines, including American, Alaska, JetBlue and Virgin America, among others, began to experience problems around 9:30 p.m. Monday night.

Texas-based Sabre Travel Network, which operates the so-called global distribution system used by the airlines, sent out a Twitter notice early Tuesday morning, saying the system was restored and back online.

Airlines experiencing problems with their reservation systems began sending out Twitter notices Monday night, telling passengers to be patient.

Sabre sent out a Twitter message around 4 a.m., saying the system was restored, but did not offer an explanation for the problem.

Sabre operates one of the three largest global distribution systems that airlines, hotels and car rental companies rely on to manage reservations and purchases made through third-party vendors such as online travel agents.

[Update Aug. 6, 11:07 a.m.: American Airlines said the glitch delayed 38 flights, mostly European departures and a couple of flights from Seattle.

A spokeswoman for Flightstats.com, a company that monitors flight cancellations and delays, said the number of delays Monday night were not unusually high.]

TSA 'PreCheck' expansion expected to enroll 88,000 in six months

Copyright 2013 - Los Angeles Times