When Upgrades Go Wrong

The idea was to improve the reservation and airport check-in software for AirTran. But like the Hal 2000 computer on board the Jupiter-bound Discovery in Stanley Kubrick’s "2001: A Space Oddessy," the AirTran system apparently developed a mind of its own Monday night.

The problems that resulted caused massive delays for the low-cost carrier well into Tuesday afternoon. Passengers stood in long lines at AirTran’s hub in Atlanta, as well as at airports in other cities around the country.

"This is an unfortunate situation for our customers and certainly not what we anticipated," AirTran spokeswoman Judy Graham-Weaver told Reuters.

"We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience and appreciate their patience and understanding," Graham-Weaver added. "Our crew members made every effort to accommodate passengers as quickly as possible and used manual processes to board flights. Our dispatch systems have not been impacted at any time."

The upgrade was scheduled to take place from 2000 EDT Monday until 0430 EDT Tuesday. But something went very wrong. No, life support for hibernating astronauts wasn’t terminated... but you can bet a lot of those stranded passengers were asleep on their feet, waiting hours to get on their flights.

But look on the bright side. AirTran says the upgrades will bring long-term benefits to its customers.

Daisy... Daisy... give me your answer, do...

FMI: www.airtran.com