(UPDATED: 7:30 P.M. ET)
Air cargo shipments are being delayed Friday by a widespread software outage that has crippled technology systems worldwide, including at airlines and airports.
The outage appears to stem from a software update for Microsoft Windows operating systems issued by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, which is causing computers at companies and institutions to crash. The company says the issue has been identified and a fix has been deployed.
FedEx and UPS said they have activated contingency plans to mitigate impacts from the global IT outage but warned of potential delays for packages scheduled for delivery Friday.
Freight forwarders are alerting customers that shipments may be delayed because of IT problems passenger and cargo airlines are facing. About a dozen members of the Airforwarders Association said in a flash survey the outage caused moderate to major operational disruption, especially to freight movement.
About 3,600 flights around the world have been canceled or delayed, according to FlightAware. Several U.S. airlines, including Delta, United, American and Spirit, asked the Federal Aviation Administration to delay departures. American Airlines said it was able to reestablish operations at 5 a.m. ET and that flights have resumed. United and Delta said they have started flying again but warned of ripple effects as they try to line up personnel and equipment where needed.
United Cargo said in a customer bulletin that it expected continued disruptions throughout the day.
Frontier Airlines began experiencing problems Thursday evening but was able to resolve the software problem later that night. The airline canceled 131 flights and delayed 223 others.
The outage makes it difficult for airlines to schedule crews, communicate and carry out other functions.
Lufthansa Cargo said technical disruptions have mostly been resolved and operations at hubs in Munich and Frankfurt, Germany, are returning to normal. Individual delays or rebookings are still possible because some vendors are still dealing with significant problems.
Several ground handling agents in Europe, for example, have reported system problems that are impacting their ability to board passengers, load cargo or service aircraft.
Swiss International Airlines said the IT glitch didn’t affect its systems, but 69 regional flights were canceled due to disruptions at partner companies and air traffic control. Operations are returning to normal, it said.
Latam Airlines and Copa Airlines said some flights could be delayed.
“While some operators have been able to resume operations following the outages, it remains unclear how long it will take local ocean and air cargo operators to clear the backlog that accumulated due to the technical issues. Localized increases in port and airport congestion as well as cargo processing delays at these facilities should be anticipated in the coming days as well,” said Everstream Analytics, a supply chain risk management platform.
Businesses are facing tight capacity on key trade lanes because demand is up 13% year over year and aircraft supply hasn’t kept up.
“Available capacity in the market is already limited so airlines are going to struggle to move cargo tomorrow that should have been moved today,” Xeneta Chief Airfreight Officer Niall van de Wouw said in a news release.
Everstream Analytics said production at some major manufacturers has also slowed because of the technical issues. Mercedes-Benz announced a partial reduction in production in the morning at its Baden-Wurttemberg plant in Germany and a production halt at a plant in Vitoria, Spain.
Major seaports are also being disrupted, with extended wait times for container pickups and delivery. The APM Terminals facility at the Port of Valencia, Spain, for example, is unable to open gate doors for trucks.
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