So the UAL passengers read the ads about how much finer UAL is than SWA on their way to the DEN airport and......
Computer glitch slows United
Check-in problems create long lines, some missed flights
January 4, 2006
A nationwide United Airlines computer glitch shut down the airline's check-in system at Denver International Airport Tuesday, forcing hundreds of its passengers to stand in line for nearly two hours and causing some to miss flights.
The massive malfunction affected airports across the country at which United operates, which meant flights from DIA and elsewhere also were delayed for at least an hour.
No other airline was affected by the glitch, Sally Covington, DIA's acting deputy manager of aviation, said.
DIA staff and Denver firefighters walked around handing out water bottles. United employees announced on bullhorns the reason for the delays and tried to direct passengers.
While some passengers were upset, United and DIA officials did not report any unruly behavior.
At the west terminal where United operates its ticket counters and kiosks, lines snaked around the terminal.
Many arriving passengers were stunned when they walked out of the elevators or through the open doors of the terminal and they saw the lines that resembled fans waiting to get tickets for a Rolling Stones concert.
Jerry Ruhland had dropped off his wife, Nina, and their two sons, Matthew, 8, and Jack, 7, at the airport while he returned a rental car.
Many passengers were heading back home after visiting Colorado for the holidays.
"I realized what was happening when I walked in the door and I couldn't find my wife anyplace," Ruh-land said. "We thought it was just busy."
Although United did not cancel flights, it did delay many scheduled departures, trying to give passengers as much time as possible to get to Concourse B, where the airline operates its gates.
Monica Serrano, the airlines manager of technology and process, said Concourse B was packed with passengers and it's likely some did not make their flights.
"We are operating all our flights," she said. "We're not canceling anything."
United staff members were working late Tuesday with IBM computer experts to try to resolve the systemwide malfunction, Serrano said.
A few passengers were given priority: Those who were flying internationally, and those who checked in on United's Web site within 24 hours of their scheduled departures and obtained their boarding passes.
The computer problems hit United's processors shortly before 5 p.m., Serrano said.
The airline scrambled to deploy many of its staff to the ticket counters to accommodate passengers.
With the screens blank and the computers down, United agents and employees were forced to manually write out the boarding passes for travelers.
After passengers stood in line for more than an hour and a half, the additional wait at the counters was about 10 to 15 minutes.
The airline said it hoped to get the system back into operation sometime Tuesday night. At one point, United officials thought the system was restarting, but it stalled and crashed again.
By 8 p.m. the lines had shrunk considerably. Nonetheless, United and DIA officials were calling hotels to book rooms for stranded passengers, Covington said.
Look we already added two new cities on the first day of the operation! Nothing like hot pie (out of the oven).
uke:
