aa

A technical glitch in the iPads software used by pilots of American Airlines led to the delay of several flights in the US.

The airlines confirmed the issue and blamed an error with the digital map used by pilots in the cockpit for the incident that prevented many flights from taking off.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Related Company Profiles

View all

While no flights were said to be cancelled, several had to be delayed.

"We are working to have them on the way to their destination as soon as possible."

In 2013, the American Airlines was the first company to replace paper based reference materials and manuals that pilots have to carry with iPads for flight plans and navigation.

Following an approval by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the airlines had started using the iPads on all of its current fleet types including Boeing 777, 767, 757, 737 and MD-80.

This move is said to have helped the company save roughly 400,000 gallons of fuel worth $1.2m annually. A total of 8,000 iPads were distributed to replace close to 24 million pages of documents.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

The Verge reported that the flights to be affected included AA2413, AA2276, AA1654, AA235, and AA128.

The airlines said in a statement: "Some flights are experiencing an issue with a software application on pilot iPads. In some cases, the flight has had to return to the gate to access a WiFi connection to fix the issue.

"We apologize for the inconvenience to our customers. We are working to have them on the way to their destination as soon as possible."

The airlines, however, did not reveal which app was experiencing a problem.

Image: The American Airlines was the first to start using iPads in 2013. Photo: courtesy of American Airlines.