A power cut in the world’s largest airport, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, has caused major delays for over a thousand flights. Passengers were left stranded in the dark or on-board aircrafts yesterday afternoon.
It is thought the cause of the power outage was a fire at the underground electrical facility, Georgia Power – the airports electricity supplier.
The power went out at 1pm local time and was restored late Sunday night, during this time over 30,000 people were affected. Planes that were due to land at the airport were diverted elsewhere.
Those who have been affected by the delays should speak to their airline as it is their responsibility to reschedule the flight; if a flight is not available, some airlines will provide compensation for refreshments and accommodation but this will differ between companies.
If you have taken out travel insurance, check your policy wording carefully as you may be entitled to compensation for trip disruption. Generally speaking, trip disruption will cover a small amount of compensation for each block of set time you are delayed (usually every full 12 hours you are delayed, although you can also get policies which will pay out for every full 6 hours) – provided you were able to check in on time and are flying with an EU airline. This compensation is designed to cover expenses for food and refreshments.
If you have missed your connecting flight as a result of the power outage and have booked both your departure and connecting flight as a ‘through ticket’ (where you pay one price to the same airline for both flights) then it is your airlines responsibility to re-schedule your flight.
Those who have booked their departure flight and connecting flight with two different airlines and paid two premiums will need to check if they are covered for missed connecting flights under their travel insurance. There are some policies that will offer to re-in burse the cost of an alternative flight or the transport required for you to catch up with your itinerary if you missed your connecting flight. Not all policies will cover this so be sure to check your policy wording carefully.