Alaska Airlines working with global firm to complete comprehensive audit of tech systems

Alaska Airlines is working with global information technology and management consulting firm Accenture to conduct a comprehensive audit of its technology systems.

President and Chief Executive Officer Ben Minicucci explained Alaska Air Group is making the move to strengthen its infrastructure and ensure long-term system reliability following recent IT challenges.

Alaska Airlines experienced a major tech outage Oct. 24 because of a failure at its primary data center, grounding flights throughout the nation and forcing the airline to cancel more than 400 flights.

The travel plans for more than 49,000 passengers were disrupted.

Alaska Air Group said then it would act immediately to upgrade its IT systems to prevent future issues.

The Oct. 24 tech failure came about 3 months after an IT outage in July forced Alaska to ground all of its flights for about 3 hours.

“We spent more time waiting in line to try and figure out our canceled flight than it took to fly from China to Seattle,” a stranded passenger told Seattle news station KIRO 7 during one of those ground stops.

Hawaiian Airlines — a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group — warned customers Oct. 29 that a global outage of Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform was affecting its website, posting an online advisory saying portions of its website were disrupted and urging travelers to book flights and check in using direct links or its mobile app.

Alaska Airlines separately reported a disruption to key systems, including its website.

The new collaboration with Accenture will include a top-to-bottom review of Alaska’s technology environment — assessing standards, processes and overall system health — with the airline committed to quick implementation of recommended actions.

Alaska has increased investments in IT infrastructure by nearly 80% since 2019, investing in redundant data centers and moving many guest-facing systems to the cloud.

This initiative is a key milestone in the airline’s broader path to resiliency, as the company continues to invest in technology supporting improved operations and a world-class guest experience.

Alaska Air Group’s commitment to transparency remains steadfast.

It will provide updated guidance in early December for the fourth quarter — once the full financial impact of the recent IT disruptions is understood — and continues to give customers regular updates on its progress.

Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Horizon Air are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group; McGee Air Services is a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines.

The global airline has hubs in Seattle; Honolulu; Portland, Ore.; Anchorage, Alaska; Los Angeles; San Diego, Calif.; and San Francisco, flying guests to more than 140 destinations throughout North America, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific with service to Europe beginning in spring 2026.

Learn more about what’s happening at Alaska and Hawaiian online.