A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Delta Air Lines must face parts of a proposed class-action lawsuit filed by passengers who accused the airline of refusing full refunds after massive flight delays and cancellations caused by a computer outage in July 2024.
U.S. District Judge Mark Cohen in Atlanta allowed five of nine plaintiffs to move forward with breach of contract claims, citing Delta’s alleged failure to provide proper refunds. He also allowed a separate group of international travelers to pursue claims under the Montreal Convention, a global treaty covering air travel disruptions.
The outage, which began July 19, 2024, was triggered by a flawed software update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, affecting over 8 million devices and causing significant disruptions to Microsoft clients, including major airlines. While many U.S. carriers resumed operations within a day, Delta’s systems remained down longer, resulting in about 7,000 canceled flights.
Judge Cohen dismissed several other claims, including those he said were preempted by federal law. Still, the ruling is being hailed by passengers’ attorneys as a victory for accountability.
“This ruling is a major step forward for Delta passengers seeking accountability,” said Joseph Sauder, a lawyer representing some of the plaintiffs.
Passengers said Delta failed to issue automatic refunds and allegedly required travelers to waive legal claims in exchange for partial compensation.
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One plaintiff, John Brennan of Florida, missed a $10,000 anniversary cruise after being stranded in Atlanta and was offered only $219.45.
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Another, Vittorio Muzzi of the Netherlands, said his 5,000-euro trip was disrupted, his luggage delayed 15 days, and he received just €588 in compensation.
Delta, which had sought to dismiss most of the claims, has not responded publicly to the ruling. The airline previously estimated the outage cost $550 million in revenue losses and added expenses.
The case is Bajra et al v. Delta Air Lines, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia, No. 24-03477.