Flights, car rentals at Myrtle Beach International Airport impacted by global tech outage

MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF/AP) - A worldwide technology outage impacted multiple operations at the Myrtle Beach International Airport.

Hours after WMBF News first reached out about the outage Friday, the Myrtle Beach International Airport released a statement on the matter, saying various arriving and departing flights have been delayed or canceled.

Just before 12:30 p.m., WMBF News Reporter Ashley Listrom also confirmed that rental cars for walk-ups were sold out at the airport. Those with previous reservations can still pick up their vehicles.

“As the morning progresses, flight operations are beginning to resume with some of the affected airlines, but lingering impacts are likely to continue throughout the day,” the statement reads.

MYR officials suggested travelers check their airline’s website or mobile app for any changes or updates to their flights before getting to the airport.

If your flight is affected, MYR said to contact your airline directly for changes or rebooking.

WMBF News’ Makayla Evans went to MYR Friday morning and saw large lines of people at the airport.

Some travelers, like Equana Galloway, are still left waiting.

Galloway is trying to make it back home from her vacation. She said her Thursday afternoon flight was canceled, and she’s been at the airport since.

“This is frustrating,” Galloway said. “Still, no one has talked to us. I stood in line to ask to speak to the supervisor. The lady told me she’s too busy; she can’t speak to me like, what are we gonna do?”

Galloway was able to rebook with American Airlines, but her new flight doesn’t leave until Friday evening.

“We’re just sitting here playing the waiting game, and it’s not fair; it’s just not fair; I want to go home,” Galloway said.

Davida Fincher also had her flight canceled and claimed she was also left in the dark.

“They can’t even tell us when the next flight will go out,” Fincher said. “We don’t know if we’re leaving tomorrow [Saturday], the next day, we don’t know.”

Hannah Williams also felt stuck after her flight got canceled.

“I was just really frustrated because I already missed work today [Friday], and you know I don’t really have anywhere to go here; I don’t really know anyone here in the city,” Williams said.

WMBF News saw the airport trying to find solutions to some of the tech issues, including handwriting boarding passes as a workaround.

MYR’s spokesperson, Ryan Betcher, told us he wasn’t sure how long they would have to do handwritten boarding passes or manual loading.

Betcher emphasized that the outage impacted each airline carrier differently and that the runway is still open, with planes coming and going.

It’s not just MYR experiencing these issues.

Major delays reported at airports across the nation grew on Friday morning, with most attributing the problems to the booking systems of individual airlines.

Airlines United, American and Delta said that at least some U.S. flights were resuming after severe disruptions, though delays would persist.

Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike said the issue believed to be behind the outage was not a security incident or cyberattack — and that a fix was on the way. The company said the problem occurred when it deployed a faulty update to computers running Microsoft Windows.

The outage has grounded flights, knocked banks and hospital systems offline and media outlets off air across the globe.

RELATED COVERAGE: Widespread technology outage disrupts flights, banks, media outlets and companies around the world

Here locally, counties and cities across the Grand Strand and Pee Dee said they did not feel impacted by the outage.

WMBF News also contacted several hospitals in the Grand Strand. The hospitals told us patient care was not impacted by the outage.

If you’re flying, airport officials encourage you to monitor your flight through their website or app, and arrive several hours before departure.

Stay with WMBF News for updates.

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