By Rajesh Kumar Singh
CHICAGO (Reuters) – Microsoft on Tuesday blamed Delta Air Lines (NYSE:) for its days-long struggle to recover from a global cyber glitch that led it to cancel more than 6,000 flights.
Last month, a software update by global cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike (NASDAQ:) caused system problems for Microsoft (NASDAQ:) customers, including many airlines. However, the outages calmed down the next day at other major U.S. airlines, while they persisted at Delta.
Microsoft said its preliminary review suggested that Delta, unlike its competitors, had apparently failed to modernize its IT infrastructure.
Delta, however, said it has invested billions of dollars in IT capital expenditures since 2016, on top of the billions it spends each year on IT operating costs.
“Delta has a long history of investing in safe, reliable and high-quality service for our customers and employees,” a company spokesperson said.
The flight disruptions stranded hundreds of thousands of travelers and are estimated to have cost the Atlanta-based carrier $500 million. Delta is also facing an investigation by the U.S. Department of Transportation over the disruptions.
It has hired prominent litigator David Boies of Boies Schiller Flexner, known for high-stakes commercial cases, to seek damages from both CrowdStrike and Microsoft.
Last week, Delta CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC that while the airline relies heavily on the two tech companies, they had failed to deliver “exceptional service.” In the interview, he also said Microsoft had the “most fragile platform.”
In a letter, Microsoft attorney Mark Cheffo called the airline's comments “incomplete, false, misleading and damaging to Microsoft and its reputation.”
Cheffo said Microsoft software did not cause the CrowdStrike incident, but the tech giant immediately offered to help Delta at no charge. Its chief executive, Satya Nadella, sent an email to Bastian but never received a response, he added.
Microsoft said its employees repeatedly offered to help Delta after the outage, but the US airline turned them down. It accused the airline of using the services of other technology providers for its crew tracking and scheduling system and claimed that was a possible reason for refusing its help.
Cheffo said Microsoft would “vigorously” defend itself if Delta files a lawsuit.
CrowdStrike has also rejected Delta’s claim that it should be blamed for the flight disruptions. The cybersecurity firm said its chief executive had personally reached out to Bastian to offer on-site assistance, but received no response.
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