Huge warning for Aussies as tech outage causes travel chaos

Australian travellers have been warned there may “flow-on effects” for days after a global tech outage caused flight delays and cancellations across the country and world.

In Australia, all Jetstar flights have been cancelled until 2am on Saturday.

Earlier, pictures at Sydney Airport showed the airline’s check-in computers taken over by what has become known as “the blue screen of death”.

The airport’s arrival and departure boards also turned blue.

The IT issue has affected multiple countries including New Zealand, Japan, India, the US and the United Kingdom.

In the US, “several airlines” requested Federal Aviation Administration assistance “with ground stops until the issue is resolved”.

The Australian Government’s Smartraveller took to social media at 9pm on Friday – about six hours after computers began shutting down – to tell Aussies it “cannot organise alternative travel arrangements for you”.

Instead, Smartraveller, which is a part of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, instructed Aussies to contact their airline or travel insurer for alternative travel arrangements if their flights are affected.

“A major IT outage is causing significant disruption to airlines and international travel. Many flights have been cancelled or delayed. There may be flow-on effects for travel over the next few days,” Smartraveller said.

“Other services such as banking, shopping and healthcare may also be impacted. Follow the advice of local authorities and check local media for updates.”

Australian budget airline Jetstar confirmed on Friday night it had been force to cancel all flights until 2am Saturday, July 20 “as a result of the outage”.

“The IT outage is impacting multiple Jetstar systems, including the system we use to contact customers and we sincerely apologise for the frustration this is causing,” a statement provided to news.com.au said.

“Our teams are working on recovery options and we will contact customers with updates as soon as our systems are back online.”

Jetstar customers who are due to travel Friday or Saturday and no longer wish to travel are being offered free moves 7 days from date of travel, or voucher refunds. Jetstar can be contacted via LiveChat on its website to discuss options.

At Melbourne Airport alone, Jetstar has cancelled 27 departures and 26 arrivals, as well as eight international arrivals and one international departure.

The airport said United Airlines had also cancelled one international arrival and one international departure.

Melbourne Airport has warned passengers to expect busy terminals on Saturday.

“The global technology issue has affected check-in procedures for some airlines at Melbourne Airport,” an advisory said. “While most passengers have been able to depart on Friday night, there will be an increase in passenger congestion on Saturday while the affected airlines assist delayed passengers. Please allow a little extra time to check-in and thank you for your patience.”

A Melbourne Airport spokesman told news.com.au the airport and its airline partners “will be working through the night to return operations to normal”.

Sydney Airport said earlier it had activated contingency plans and deployed additional staff to terminals.

“If you’re travelling today make sure you leave plenty of time to come to the airport and check with your airline regarding the status of your flight,” it advised.

A Virgin Australia spokeswoman told news.com.au earlier on Friday that they were aware of the issue impacting flights.

“Virgin Australia operations are continuing following a large-scale IT outage impacting multiple airlines and other businesses, however some cancellations and delays are expected,” a spokeswoman said. “We are working to resolve any delays and get our guests on their way as quickly as possible.”