IT Outage Delays Ticketing at San Diego Airport

The outage reportedly began at about 5:30 a.m., affecting primary airline computer networks at both terminals.
Airline staff were processing passengers manually with iPads and physical paper tickets after the primary systems went offline.
Witnesses reported that check-in lines extended through the concourses and out of the terminal doors, with thousands of passengers affected.
The airport issued a public update at approximately 8:30 a.m. identifying the disruption as an IT outage.
A major IT outage disrupted ticketing and check-in systems at San Diego International Airport early Tuesday morning, forcing airlines to process thousands of passengers manually with iPads and paper tickets. The Traveler reported that the technical failure began around 5:30 a.m., affecting both Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, while the airport remained open and flights continued to arrive and depart.
Check-in lines stretched through concourses and extended out of terminal doors as staff worked through backup procedures. The airport issued a public alert at approximately 8:30 a.m. to notify travelers of the disruption, though the underlying cause remained under investigation at the time of reporting.
When primary airline computer networks went offline, ground staff shifted to manual check-in procedures. The Traveler reported that airline employees used iPad devices and physical paper tickets to process passengers one by one. This slower method created severe bottlenecks throughout both affected terminals.
Thousands of travelers experienced delays as a result. The manual workaround, while necessary, could not match the speed of normal automated systems, leaving passengers scrambling to make their flights and adding significant wait times to the morning rush.
Airport officials advised all passengers to check their flight status directly with their airlines before heading to the terminal. The Traveler noted that arriving even earlier than usual was recommended to account for the slower manual check-in process. The guidance aimed to help travelers navigate the disruption and avoid missing their flights.
Despite the outage, the airport's overall operations continued. Flights kept arriving and departing on schedule according to their ticketing, though the passenger experience remained significantly impacted by the technical failure and resulting congestion.
Officials had not yet identified the root cause of the IT failure as of the initial airport alert. The Traveler reported that the investigation into what triggered the primary system failure was ongoing. The airport did not provide a timeline for when normal automated ticketing would be restored.
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