Christmas travel: American Airlines resumes ground operations after temporary halt

Posted by author December 24, 2024 Travel

American Airlines flights in Louisville and across the country are experiencing delays Tuesday morning after planes were briefly grounded due to an unspecified technical issue.

Though normal flight operations resumed, delayed departures may persist while American Airlines catches up from the pause, according to USA TODAY.

The Federal Aviation Administration posted and later canceled a nationwide groundstop for all American Airlines flights, according to an advisory issued around 8 a.m. Tuesday.

A few American Airlines flights out of Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport were showing delayed departure times Tuesday morning, including an afternoon flight to Charlotte that was expected to be delayed nearly two hours, according to a flight status tracker.

What you’re entitled to if your flight is delayed or canceled

If your flight was affected by the American Airlines outage, you may be entitled to a refund. Recently-finalized rules from the Department of Transportation require airlines to refund your ticket in full, even if you purchased a non-refundable fare, if your flight is canceled and you choose not to travel.

The DOT also requires airlines to provide a refund if your flight is delayed by more than three hours for a domestic itinerary, or six hours for an international one, and you choose not to travel.

Reach reporter Leo Bertucci at lbertucci@gannett.com or @leober2chee on X, formerly known as Twitter