LAX returning to normal after global tech outage

In the aftermath of a global technology outage that snarled flights, Los Angeles International Airport was beginning to return to normal Saturday, despite some continued delays.

As of Saturday morning, the tracking website FlightAware was reporting that for outgoing flights from LAX, 69 were delayed — 8% of the total at the time — and 34 outgoing flights had been canceled. For incoming flights, more than 90 had been delayed and more than 30 canceled.

“We are seeing some delays and a few cancellations as our airline partners continue to return to normal operations following the global technology issues, but overall headed into a much better day at LAX,” said Dae Levine, a spokesperson for Los Angeles World Airports.

“We look forward to helping our passengers get to their destinations smoothly and safely and we urge passengers to confirm flight information with their airlines before leaving for the airport,” Levine said.

The tech outage disrupted operations Friday not only at airports such as LAX, but banks, healthcare systems and government agencies. It was the result of a defective update from CrowdStrike, a Texas company that provides cybersecurity software to a range of customers across the globe.

In a statement Friday, CrowdStrike founder and chief executive George Kurtz apologized and said the company had moved quickly to fix the issue, “allowing us to focus diligently on restoring customer systems as our highest priority.” The problem did not stem from a cyberattack, Kurtz said.

Beyond LAX, others were also continuing to grapple with the fallout. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center said in a statement Friday that although its facilities had remained open, “our teams will be working actively through the weekend as we continue to resolve remaining issues in preparation for the start of the work week.”