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Passengers wait for hours at SEA Airport due to global service outages

Some passengers arrived at the airport Thursday evening only to find out their flights had been canceled due to a global service outage.

SEATTLE — Some passengers at the Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA) were stuck for hours into Friday morning due to global service outages that grounded planes. 

The outage stems from a software update by the company CrowdStrike - a cybersecurity firm that provides services to Microsoft. The update included a "defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts," that knocked out access to computer networks all over the globe. 

United, Delta and American Airlines all grounded flights during the service outage. American has resumed service, Delta has resumed some flights, but still expects more delays, and United is currently offering customers a waiver to change their travel plans. 

Alaska Airlines, based in Seattle, was able to operate mostly as normal during the service outage. 

One passenger named Richard who spoke to KING 5 had been at SEA airport since 9 p.m. Thursday night. He boarded his flight at 11 p.m., and then the pilot told the cabin that they would pause while they waited for a software update. 

The plane sat on the tarmac until 3 a.m. At that point, passengers were notified their flight had been canceled. 

He has been rebooked on a flight for later Friday afternoon. 

The Department of Transportation posted on X that they are continuing to monitor technical issues impacting airlines. They advised passengers who are experiencing travel delays or cancellations to go to FlightRights.gov to find out what the airline's responsibilities are to meet passengers' needs. 

SEA Airport recommends that travelers who are hitting the road Friday morning check with their airline carriers ahead of time to learn the status of their flight. 

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