News / IAG Cargo grounded as computers go down at British Airways

Cargo failed to escape the chaos over the weekend as British Airways flights to and from the UK were grounded after a power surge caused a global computer outage.

Problems first struck on Saturday, and while there were some flights on Sunday, it was not until today that a full schedule was resumed.

A spokesperson for IAG Cargo told The Loadstar  IT systems were back up and running and it was operating a full flight schedule at Heathrow and Gatwick.

“During Saturday’s IT outage we were unable to move customers’ bookings as planned,” said the spokesperson. “Customers were able to collect freight from LHR throughout the weekend.”

The spokesperson added that flights for bookings under 50kg were opened on Sunday, with more opened on Monday.

“With the reopening of flights from Sunday, we have made good progress in flying customer bookings affected by the disruption and we will be ensuring that any outstanding freight is dispatched as a priority.

“We have lifted all operational restrictions and will be accepting bookings, deliveries and collections as per usual.”

The carrier blamed the IT fault on a power outage but one IT expert quoted by the BBC said such and event should not have caused “even a flicker of the lights”.

“An uninterruptible power supply should have kicked in immediately,” added the expert. “The only issue should have been making sure the back-up generator was kept fuelled.”