An IT breakdown at the Swiss air traffic control company Skyguide had a significant impact on operations in Zurich-Kloten on Monday afternoon. No planes could take off between 14:30 p.m. and 16:30 p.m.
According to Zurich Airport, around 60 flights were affected, which were delayed by between 20 and 100 minutes. However, there should not have been any deletions. Landings were said to have been possible at any time. However, it is to be expected that delays may continue to occur due to machine rotation.
“As a result of a technical malfunction at Skyguide air traffic control, no aircraft were able to take off from Zurich Airport for around 1,5 hours this afternoon. Skyguide's IT systems are now recovering and launches are possible again. The IT failure also caused numerous delays at SWISS. SWISS has not had to cancel any flights so far. Customers affected by flight irregularities who provided their telephone number or email address when booking have already been contacted or are being contacted. We also ask passengers who are traveling from Zurich today to check the current flight status at www.Swiss.com. For affected customers who may miss a connecting flight, we are looking for solutions, for example in the form of rebooking. These passengers also receive care services. We are doing everything we can to keep any potential impact and inconvenience as low as possible,” said Swiss airline.