Airlines stocks fell across the board in premarket trade Wednesday, after the Federal Aviation Administration said a computer outage had led to all U.S. fights being grounded. The agency said on its website that its “Notice to Air Missions” system has been activated “to address the equipment outage issues for the U.S.
system.” A is a notice for workers engaged in flight operations. There was no indication of when service might be restored. Southwest Airlines Co. LUV, +1.68% led the decliners, falling 2.5%. American Airlines Group Inc. AAL, +3.97% was down 1.6%, United Airlines Holdings Inc. UAL, +5.54% was down 0.8%, JetBlue Airways Corp.
was down 0.7% and Delta Air Lines Inc. DAL, +3.59% was down 0.7%. The U.S. Global Jets ETF JETS, +2.40% was down 0.7% and has fallen 14% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 SPX, +0.70% has fallen 17%.
Yes, it can probably be patched together to avoid a major crisis but this is a WARNING that outmoded systems need to be upgraded.