Hawaiian Airlines can’t seem to catch a break regarding customer service and various technology-related problems. We were first alerted to the problem yesterday when Steph commented:

“Computer issues (or audit issues?) caused check-in delays, and all planes were grounded for an estimated 3+ hours (no telling if this will be longer at the time this comment is posted).

Customer service/gate agents made no efforts to make timely announcements, resulting in curious passengers filing at the gate to ask questions. Instead of making a clear announcement, airline staff rudely snapped at everyone for asking the same question and closed off access to the gate. Only then was a vague announcement made throughout the entire airport (Kona).

Our day is completely wasted due to this, and Hawaiian Airlines needs to take responsibility for the cost they’ve caused their customer to incur.”

Other online comments included, “Don’t trust Hawaiian Airlines. My son is right now stuck at an Oahu terminal, supposed to leave at 10:30, got lied to for several hours as to why the delay, now 4 other Hawaiian flights delayed and now has to stand in a line with over 60 people ahead of him either to be lied to some more or finally put on another airline to get home. I called Hawaiian to see how they are going to compensate…. We’ll never fly Hawaiian again. Getting rid of all c c.”

We’ve heard from other people too, personally and in things too vicious to publish. One such individual started a now-deleted Facebook post with, “F!*! Hawaiian Airlines.” His experience was similar to the other comments above. A regular customer of Hawaiian Airlines, he became disgruntled with the lack of transparency. Then he waited many hours to get on a plane after returning to the islands from New York.

Friday, Hawaiian Airlines canceled 46 flights, while 259 were delayed.

Flight cancellations and delays quickly mounted on Friday after first appearing late on Thursday. It’s too early to know how Saturday will pan out regarding the resumption of normal operations.

• Honolulu had 22 Hawaiian Airlines flights canceled and 123 delayed.
• Maui had 9 Hawaiian Airlines flights canceled and 55 delayed.
• Kauai had 6 Hawaiian Airlines flights canceled and 35 delayed.
• Kona had 7 Hawaiian Airlines flights canceled and 27 delayed.
• Hilo had 2 Hawaiian Airlines flights canceled and 19 delayed.

What does Hawaiian Airlines say caused yesterday’s meltdown, the second in recent days?

Hawaiian said DRFortress, a third-party vendor, had a “power blip” yesterday that caused incredible delays and other problems. It was reportedly during that vendor’s scheduled maintenance that the internet outage inexplicably occurred. These issues impacted several other companies, including Hawaii Pacific Health. They indicated they had planned alternate technology for problems like this that allowed them to continue operations.

In the case of Hawaiian Airlines, it sounds like there was a single point of failure and no adequate alternatives to allow the airline to continue operating during the third-party’s service outage. As a result, Hawaiian Airlines had an extraordinary virtual ground stop in effect from 9 AM for at least three hours. But that wasn’t the end of it.

Flights were also diverted, including multiple Maui-bound flights that had to go to Honolulu Airport instead.

Hawaii Airlines said that “About 9 a.m. (Friday) we experienced a temporary internet outage in Hawaii due to a power disruption at our third-party data vendor during scheduled maintenance. The outage, impacting our Hawaii systems and headquarters, has been resolved, but we are experiencing flight delays as a result of the temporary outage. We’re working with affected guests and sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.”

Hawaiian quickly pointed out that there was no relationship between yesterday and the horrible reservation system upgrade issues that have haunted it and its customers for weeks already. In that occurrence, more than 800 flights were delayed. It was far more severe and long-lasting since visitors reported still having problems booking reservations online using the Hawaiian Airlines app.

Who is DRFortress anyway?

The vendor, DRFortress, says it provides “Comprehensive Data Center Solutions for Your Mission-Critical IT Systems.
DRFortress is the largest and the only carrier-neutral data center and cloud marketplace operating in Hawaii. Experience the operational reliability, scalability, and security that DRFortress provides for all your mission-critical IT systems.” The company has experienced huge growth based on demand for its services.

The company website also said it offers “services designed to provide 100% uptime.”

BOH: For us, however, the issue isn’t their lack of ability to provide 100% uptime as their website suggests, but Hawaiian Airlines’ reliance on that assurance without necessary redundancy, which resulted in the untold loss of money and, more importantly, customer goodwill.

Did you get stuck in the meltdown?