BA hit by systems failure again

[Mike Flynn]

Here we go again.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7708931/Chaos-computer-glitch-grounds-BA-flights.html

[Ian W]

BA the Spanish LCC has a set of elderly computer systems from the past and from acquisitions all kludged together. As a money saving measure all the orginal IT staff who knew how these systems worked and interlinked and could keep them reliably operating were sacked and replaced en-masse by an Indian IT company that thought they would be able to do everything. They have found out that they can't as they are repeatedly demonstrating with these system crashes. But the Indian IT staff are cheaper and beancounters' budgets are not affected by passenger delays. Nobody in management cares about passenger delays either as long as the bottom line and share price of IAG are not affected.
We are hearing this theme repeatedly

[SteveHobson]

Ian, you are making a very simplistic error by saying
'But the Indian IT staff are cheaper and beancounters' budgets are not affected by passenger delays. Nobody in management cares about passenger delays either as long as the bottom line and share price of IAG are not affected. '

When flights, hence passengers, are delayed of course it adds cost to the 'bottom line'.
Passenger claims for meals and accommodation, not to mention knock on effects of planes schedules being disrupted.
This all has a negative impact on results.

[Thistle42]

Ian, you are making a very simplistic error by saying
'But the Indian IT staff are cheaper and beancounters' budgets are not affected by passenger delays. Nobody in management cares about passenger delays either as long as the bottom line and share price of IAG are not affected. '

When flights, hence passengers, are delayed of course it adds cost to the 'bottom line'.
Passenger claims for meals and accommodation, not to mention knock on effects of planes schedules being disrupted.
This all has a negative impact on results.
You would think that was the case wouldn't you but for example, we were abandoned by EasyJet in Pisa at just gone midnight after being told the flight was simply delayed and we were waiting in the departure lounge. A whole planeload of passengers was put up for several nights, some folk hired cars etc so it must have cost a fair amount.

One thing I found from this experience was that there was (and may still be) a policy to fob off any claims for expenses with excuses such as 'we lost your details'. I eventually got most of the money back only after someone on Facebook discovered an executive contact who would actually progress any claims.

[DaveReidUK]

Passenger claims for meals and accommodation, not to mention knock on effects of planes schedules being disrupted.
This all has a negative impact on results.

True, but irrelevant, given that the costs you mention are probably several orders of magnitude less than the savings resulting from outsourcing IT.

[flight_mode]

One cost the bean counters never recognise is the reputational cost these events have.

[Triple7jfo]

I sometimes wonder if all the “technological advancement” is actually any better....

[Douglas Bahada]

If it's any consolation the orange ones IT is as problematic but mainly inconveniences the crew.

[Dorf]

One cost the bean counters never recognise is the reputational cost these events have.

No column on the spreadsheet for that, so the answer - is -"no".

[Rarife]

Altea Departure Control, Fly and everything related to that was ok in the afternoon. We had some problems with messages to stations and there was like one minute long outage for Fly amnd some lags during the afternoon. They were delayed and it took a minute or two. We did flew flights over the phone but everything was fine later. I was at home already but the biggest problem was Flight Planning going down at night. I do not know exactly what the problem was but as far as I know they could not make flight plans. Or very slowly. There are rummors that they were doing them manualy.

[dixi188]

My daughter is booked to come back from Orlando tonight on BA2036. Yesterday's flight was cancelled and today's is showing 19 hrs 50 mins delay. Will she have priority over yesterday's passengers?

[Fenestron8]

Simple - never fly BA...

Ever tried to jump on a Virgin Atlantic to Orlando? You will struggle - its because other than those that have a million Avios miles and have to, nobody chooses to fly this joke airline called BA

I have ALWAYs been stuck in the US or other random country when I have the misfortune of not getting on another airline.

Will your daughter get to the front of the queue? Simple answer.... nope.. and don't expect an apology from the Orlando BA staff... they see it is she is lucky to fly at all.

Sat in business class and had pieces of plastic from the fittings of the 777 fall on my head. My wife has been served 2 packs of raisins for dinner as a low calorie alternative meal, hot nuts being served soon after the announcement that no passenger can eat nuts due to somebody onboard having an allergy

Standing for hours waiting to get on the crappy plane being told the crew are carrying out a security inspection of the aircraft only to see the crew appear laughing and smiling with a starbucks tray from the terminal - not even on the plane.

My daughter once said "dad.. this is like flying in a yellow plastic dustbin"... and she was not wrong.

If that is front of house.. just pause for a minute and think of the shambles that is behind the scenes.

I am proud to call myself British and about as proud of BA as Prince Andrew right now. They are a joke only the joke is on us.

[Astir 511]

Ian, you are making a very simplistic error by saying
'But the Indian IT staff are cheaper and beancounters' budgets are not affected by passenger delays. Nobody in management cares about passenger delays either as long as the bottom line and share price of IAG are not affected. '

When flights, hence passengers, are delayed of course it adds cost to the 'bottom line'.
Passenger claims for meals and accommodation, not to mention knock on effects of planes schedules being disrupted.
This all has a negative impact on results.

EU261 means Passenger Delays should be impacting Beancounters budgets I should know I have claimed the compensation enough times to pay for a small holiday!

[wiggy]

My daughter is booked to come back from Orlando tonight on BA2036. Yesterday's flight was cancelled and today's is showing 19 hrs 50 mins delay.

Do you mean a delay until 19:50 local (approx) or a delay of 19:50.

I only ask because from a couple of sources ( only one of which is BA.com) it appears tonight's (Friday's) BA 2036 ORL-LGW is rescheduled to to depart at 1939 LT instead of 1825LT...

Will she have priority over yesterday's passengers?

No idea, but normally if there is a cancellation like this operators will have usually tried to make sure as many of those passengers on the original flight travel as soon as reasonably possible by booking through other carriers/routes/airports (e.g; for BA transferring some onto the MIA services) rather than simply rolling everybody back onto the next day's flight..

Hope it works out OK for her.

[dixi188]

[QUOTE=wiggy;10624198]Do you mean a delay until 19:50 local (approx) or a delay of 19:50.

I only ask because from a couple of sources ( only one of which is BA.com) it appears tonight's (Friday's) BA 2036 ORL-LGW is rescheduled to to depart at 1939 LT instead of 1825LT...

At 1400z the BA system showed a 19 hr 50 min delay, but now it shows just 80 min delay so not too bad. I see the outbound flight departed 92 mins late.
Actually, the small delay means I don't have to get up so early to collect her from Gatwick so a plus really.

[sceh]

The buck stops somewhere and outsourcing to an IT company or anything less is an excuse. The IT manager and IT Director should be sacked since they are clearly incompetent. There is NO excuse for this. How manyy times can you crash a plane before losing your job?

[AviatorDave]

I sometimes wonder if all the “technological advancement” is actually any better....

It sure is if done right. And there‘s the problem.

[zed3]

sceh... You are wholly correct, unfortunately logic doesn't play a role in life today. Who knows where it will end... I'll be in the madhouse anyway.

[PAXboy]

In all the IT probs - since that catastrophic one in (?) 2016? the IT Director has kep his bum warm and, it seems, has no fear of being made accountable.

What we see is a classic Death Of A Thousand Cuts. A company looks viable - right up until the moment that it isn't. This is why so many companies go 'bang' when they appear to be doing OK. But they are only doing OK on paper ...

[Weapons Grade]

[QUOTE=wiggy;10624198]Do you mean a delay until 19:50 local (approx) or a delay of 19:50.

I only ask because from a couple of sources ( only one of which is BA.com) it appears tonight's (Friday's) BA 2036 ORL-LGW is rescheduled to to depart at 1939 LT instead of 1825LT...

At 1400z the BA system showed a 19 hr 50 min delay, but now it shows just 80 min delay so not too bad. I see the outbound flight departed 92 mins late.
Actually, the small delay means I don't have to get up so early to collect her from Gatwick so a plus really.

Are you sure the departure is from MCO (Orlando International) and not ORL (Orlando Executive) - heck of a difference?

[wiggy]

Are you sure the departure is from MCO (Orlando International) and not ORL (Orlando Executive) - heck of a difference?

Guilty as charged to the error in the IATA code I typed :ouch:, (I'm blaming a senior moment plus domestic distractions) but because of the sources I was looking at ( FWIW I was looking also looking data tied to the flight number, not just the airport :ooh:) I'm absolutely certain that made no difference to the timing info.

FWIW returning to the subject of that particular flight it looks like it arrived at Gatwick :bored: 1 hr 10 min late..hopefully dixi188's daughter was OK.

[Twiglet1]

The buck stops somewhere and outsourcing to an IT company or anything less is an excuse. The IT manager and IT Director should be sacked since they are clearly incompetent. There is NO excuse for this. How manyy times can you crash a plane before losing your job?

As far as I understand BA outsources its I.T. to IAG. Not sure if that helps with the answer but from my own personal experience the bigger the Company the worse it gets. A good example of this is GDPR regs (privacy) where the I.T. top brass decide data cannot be sent electronically so Airlines just send it the good old fashioned way taking ten times as long.
In my gaff the I.T. guys on the shop floor are great. The big picture though is SHI.T.