Passengers faced significant travel chaos on Friday morning after a major technical failure led to all Delta Air Lines flights being grounded at Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
System Failure Halts Operations
The disruption began on Friday 5 December 2025 when a computer outage struck the McNamara Terminal, which is primarily used by Delta. The connectivity issue brought check-in processes to a complete standstill, forcing the airline to implement a ground stop for all its flights departing from DTW.
Airport and airline officials confirmed the problem was an isolated IT failure affecting only Delta's systems. Operations for other carriers using the airport continued without interruption. Teams were immediately deployed to work on resolving the technical fault, with a clear priority placed on passenger and operational safety.
Passenger Inconvenience and Response
The ground stop and check-in halt sparked considerable inconvenience for travellers. Long, snaking queues formed throughout the terminal as passengers were unable to proceed with their journeys. In response to the growing disruption, airport officials distributed concession vouchers to those impacted by the delays and cancellations.
Maintenance crews were reportedly on-site and working throughout the morning to address the system failure. The situation highlighted the vulnerability of modern air travel to technical glitches, even when issues are confined to a single airline within a major hub.
Isolated Incident at a Key Hub
Detroit Metro Airport (DTW) serves as a crucial hub for Delta, making the localised outage particularly disruptive for the carrier's network. The airport's swift communication clarified that the root cause was internal to Delta's systems and did not represent a wider airport or security issue.
While the full scale of the disruption in terms of cancelled and delayed flights was being assessed, the event underscored the reliance of airline operations on seamless digital connectivity and the rapid impact when such systems fail.
