Scoot’s check-in kiosks at Changi Airport Terminal 1 stopped working at about 2pm on July 19. - ST
SINGAPORE: Check-in processes for some airlines at Changi Airport, including the issuance of boarding passes, are being handled manually after a major technology outage hit organisations around the world on Friday (July 19).
Some of the affected airlines include Singapore Airlines’ (SIA) budget arm Scoot, Jetstar, AirAsia and Cebu Pacific, The Straits Times understands.
In a statement to ST, airport operator Changi Airport Group (CAG) said it is monitoring the situation closely.
In the meantime, airport ground staff are providing help to passengers, especially those with impending departure times, CAG said.
“We apologise for the inconvenience caused,” it added.
According to social media posts, Scoot’s check-in kiosks at Changi Airport Terminal 1 stopped working at about 2pm on July 19. Passengers with mobile boarding passes complained about being denied entry to their flights.
Scoot’s systems in Taipei’s Taoyuan International Airport in Taiwan and Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia appear to also be affected.
In response to queries, Scoot said it is experiencing disruptions to its flight reservation system and check-in process, with some flights delayed as a result.
Customers booking flights on its website and mobile app may experience slowness, the low-cost carrier added.
Scoot said it is working with its vendor to restore services as soon as possible, and it has also activated more people to staff its check-in counters at Changi Airport to support customers.
“During this time, customers departing on Scoot are advised to arrive at the airport at least three hours before their departure time,” the airline said.
SIA said on Facebook that its reservation hotlines and services at its service centre in Ion Orchard shopping mall are experiencing technical issues due to the global IT system outage.
But there has been no impact on the national carrier’s flights, which are operating as scheduled.
“We are working closely with our service partners to resolve the issue as soon as possible,” SIA said.
It advised customers who wish to make a new flight booking or amend an existing booking to do so via its website or app, and told those with non-urgent requests to contact the airline again at a later time.
“For all urgent servicing requests for flights departing in less than 72 hours, please reach out to us... and we will endeavour to assist you as soon as possible,” SIA added.
ST has contacted the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore for comment.
The global IT outage is said to be linked to a service disruption from cyber-security software provider CrowdStrike, following a software update that was rolled out globally, causing companies to be shut off from their computers.
Any machine running on the Windows operating system with CrowdStrike’s security software could potentially be affected.
Other airports worldwide, including several in Australia and the US, have also been hit by the disruption.
This is a developing story. - The Straits Times/ANN
