BERLIN: A serious computer system error on Wednesday paralysed flights of German flag carrier Lufthansa worldwide, leaving an unknown number of flights delayed or cancelled, reported Anadolu Agency.
Affected are the systems for check-in as well as for boarding. According to German TV channel RTL, paper and pen are currently being used in some cases while the news channel n-tv said no aircraft can currently be handled.
According to reports, aircraft, as well as passengers, are jammed at Frankfurt Airport in central Germany. They are working intensively on a solution, a spokeswoman in Frankfurt said Wednesday morning. In the afternoon, Lufthansa will meet for a crisis meeting, according to media reports.
Numerous flights were already delayed or even cancelled Wednesday morning, according to data from the Flightradar24 portal. It is still unclear what caused the IT problems.
Meanwhile, in Frankfurt, German news agency dpa reported that construction work on a rail line in Frankfurt was to blame for a massive IT failure that has disrupted operations around the world.
German air traffic controllers are diverting all planes away from Frankfurt Airport.
Air traffic control closed Frankfurt to landings to prevent the hub from maxing out its capacity amid a raft of delays and cancellations.
They are being sent to land at airports in Nuremberg, Cologne and Dusseldorf. Take-offs, however, were still possible in Frankfurt.
Munich, the other major hub for Lufthansa, is still allowing planes to land for the time being.
All of Lufthansa’s domestic flights in Germany were cancelled on Wednesday morning and passengers were asked to switch to trains. -Bernama
