Oops, no pilots! Snafu puts thousands of American Airlines holiday flights in peril 
 
 CLOSE Just in time for the holidays, a computer glitch could cause 15,000 American Airlines flights to be pilotless. USA TODAY 
 
 UPDATE: The Grinch may not steal Christmas at American Airlines, after all. American says the staffing snafu caused by a glitch in its pilot scheduling system is nearly resolved. (More: Read the latest update to this story here) 
 
 ORIGINAL POST: American Airlines pilots are warning that as many as 15,000 holiday flights face staffing issues because of a scheduling snafu, which the carrier said has been fixed. 
 
 “On Friday, management disclosed a failure within the pilot schedule bidding system. As a result, thousands of flights currently do not have pilots assigned to fly them during the upcoming critical holiday period,” the Allied Pilots Association (APA) that represents American’s pilots said in a message to members via its website. 
 
 The glitch affected the system in which pilots modify their flight assignments, inadvertently allowing them to drop flights that needed to be staffed during the busy holiday period. 
 
 "The system went from responsibly scheduling everybody to becoming Santa Claus to everyone," APA spokesman Dennis Tajer said to CNBC. "The computer said, 'Hey ya'll. You want the days off? You got it.'" 
 
 American has said the problem has been fixed and that the company does not expect continued issues. 
 
 “We are working diligently to address the issue and expect to avoid cancellations this holiday season," American spokesman Matt Miller said to USA TODAY's Today in the Sky blog. "We have reserve pilots to help cover flying in December, and we are paying pilots who pick up certain open trips 150% of their hourly rate – as much as we are allowed to pay them per the contract." 
 
 However, the APA has already filed a grievance about that idea, saying the company’s proposed solution violates its contract because American “unilaterally invoked a solution for crewing affected flights.” The union added: "By not including APA in developing collaborative solutions to this critical holiday scheduling failure, management’s actions contrast with their handling of previous scheduling failures involving other work groups." 
 
 BY THE NUMBERS: The fleet and hubs of American Airlines, by the numbers (story continues below) 
 
 The pilots’ union estimated that when the problem was discovered late last week, about 19,000 cockpit seats were left empty. 
 
 “This is a potential crisis that we see well in advance,” Capt. Dennis Tajer, a spokesman for the union, said to The Associated Press. “This is very unusual.” 
 
 As a result of the glitch, the pilots’ union says about 15,000 flights were scheduled without a captain, a co-pilot or both. 
 
 The airline was seeking late-December pilot staffing at a number of its hubs, according to a scheduling memo sent by American to its pilots in the wake of the glitch. Dallas/Fort Worth, Charlotte, New York LaGuardia, Chicago O’Hare and Philadelphia were all among the airports where American was offering extra pay in the latter part of the month, according to a copy of the memo obtained by Today in the Sky. 
 
 American declined to confirm the number of flights initially affected, but spokesman Miller said the company was doing everything it could to get the staffing situation resolved. 
 
 "We will work with the APA to take care of our pilots and ensure we get our customers to where they need to go over the holidays," he said to Today in the Sky. 
 
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 Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2zBzOT1 ||||| A scheduling glitch that allowed American Airlines pilots to take vacation at the same time has left thousands of flights during the busy holiday travel period next month without pilots assigned to them. 
 
 American Airlines, the largest U.S. airline, is now offering pilots 150 percent of hourly pay to work those dates, an airline spokesman said. 
 
 The scheduling problem has left flights from some of American Airlines' biggest hubs without pilots including Miami, Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago's O'Hare and New York's LaGuardia Airport, without pilots, according to a memo from the airline to pilots, which was seen by CNBC. 
 
 The union estimates some 15,000 flights next month don't have pilots assigned to fly them. 
 
 Pilots loaded up their schedules with flights in early December but many opted to take days off around the holidays, after the system allowed it. 
 
 "The airline is a 24/7 op," said Dennis Tajer, an American Airlines captain and a spokesman for the pilot's union. "The system went from responsibly scheduling everybody to becoming Santa Claus to everyone. 
 
 "The computer said, 'Hey ya'll. You want the days off? You got it.'" 
 
 American Airlines spokesman Matt Miller said the airline's employees are "working diligently to address the issue and expect to avoid cancellations this holiday season. 
 
 "We have reserve pilots to help cover flying in December, and we are paying pilots who pick up certain open trips 150 percent of their hourly rate — as much as we are allowed to pay them per the contract," he said. "We will work with the APA to take care of our pilots and ensure we get our customers to where they need to go over the holidays." 
 
 The Allied Pilots Association, which represents some 15,000 American Airlines pilots, said the airline notified the union about a problem with the pilots' schedule bidding system last Friday. 
 
 The union has filed a grievance, saying the airline's solution violates the pilots' contract because of how the airline restricted overtime pay. 
 
 Budget airline Ryanair in September canceled some 2,000 flights, stranding thousands of travelers, due to pilot scheduling problems. 
 
 It was unclear how much the scheduling problem will cost American Airlines, if anything. But higher labor costs have concerned investors in the past. American Airlines shares tumbled after the airline announced pay raises for pilots and flight attendants earlier this year. 
 
 Shares of American Airlines gave up earlier gains after reports of the glitch, ending the day up less than 0.1 percent. Competitor United Airlines rose 3.2 percent, while Delta Air Lines added 3 percent. ||||| A scheduling glitch has left American Airlines without enough pilots and staff during the busy December travel period, the airline's pilot union said on Wednesday. 
 
 The Allied Pilots Association (APA) that represents pilots at the country's largest airline said in a statement that it was notified Friday by the carrier of "a failure within the pilot schedule bidding system. As a result, thousands of flights currently do not have pilots assigned to fly them during the upcoming critical holiday period.". 
 
 American Airlines said it is working diligently to address the issue and expects to "avoid cancellations this holiday season." 
 
 "We have reserve pilots to help cover flying in December, and we are paying pilots who pick up certain open trips 150 percent of their hourly rate -- as much as we are allowed to pay them per the contract. We will work with the APA to take care of our pilots and ensure we get our customers to where they need to go over the holidays," American Airlines (AAL) spokesman Matt Miller said in a statement. 
 
 But the pilots' union is urging crews not to take these assignments because they might violate the union contract. 
 
 "While the overtime is legal, the way they're doling out is not in compliance with our contract," said Capt. Dennis Tajer, spokesman for the APA in an interview with CNN. "The contract is important, but the most important of this is ensuring our passengers are taken care of...but this is going to require a partnership to solve it, regardless of what the rules are." 
 
 Miller said American's leadership spoke to the APA Wednesday afternoon to hammer out a resolution to the staffing shortage. 
 
 The airline declined to say how many flights might be impacted by the staff shortages. American has about 200,000 flights scheduled for December and operates on average 6,700 daily. The scheduling issues predominant affect the second half of December around the holidays when a computer system inadvertently gave pilots the opportunity to withdraw from flying. ||||| London (CNN) British Airways canceled all Saturday flights from London's two biggest airports after "a major IT system failure" caused severe disruption to flight operations worldwide, the airline said. 
 
 "Our IT teams are working tirelessly to fix the problems," British Airways CEO Alex Cruz said in a video posted on Twitter. 
 
 "We believe the root cause was a power supply issue and we have no evidence of any cyberattack." 
 
 The airline initially canceled only flights before 1 p.m. ET (6 p.m. BST) at Heathrow and Gatwick. 
 
 "We are working hard to get our customers who were due to fly today onto the next available flights over the course of the rest of the weekend," the airline said in a statement Saturday afternoon. "Those unable to fly will be offered a full refund." 
 
 The system outage -- on Britain's spring bank holiday weekend -- has "affected our call centers and our website but we will update customers as soon as we are able to," the airline said. 
 
 "We are extremely sorry for the huge inconvenience this is causing our customers and we understand how frustrating this must be, especially for families hoping to get away on holiday," Cruz said. 
 
 The airline posted a statement on its website on Sunday saying "although some of the IT systems have returned, there will be some knock-on disruption to our schedules as aircraft and crews are out of position around the world." 
 
 "At this stage we are aiming to operate a near normal schedule of flights from Gatwick and the majority of our Heathrow services," British Airways posted. 
 
 British Airways has not outlined how many flights were canceled Saturday, nor how many people were affected. 
 
 "Most long-haul flights due to land in London tomorrow (Sunday, May 28) are expected to arrive as normal, and we are working to restore our services from tomorrow, although some delays and disruption may continue into Sunday," the statement said. 
 
 In response to tweets from travelers, the airline said it was experiencing a "global system outage" affecting its website, online check-in, contact centers and baggage tracing. 
 
 "Working on this as a matter of priority, but if your flight is departing tomorrow you may have to complete check in at the airport," it tweeted to one customer. 
 
 Passengers wait Saturday at London's Heathrow Airport as British Airways experiences computer problems. 
 
 Airline workers 'totally crippled' 
 
 Travelers in the United Kingdom were already reporting disruptions, including baggage and flight delays, when the airline reported serious computer problems around midday. 
 
 We're working with @British_Airways following an issue with their IT system this morning that has caused some delays for passengers. 1/2 — Heathrow Airport (@HeathrowAirport) May 27, 2017 
 
 Paddy Anigbo, a Nigerian national visiting his wife in the United Kingdom on their wedding anniversary, said his plane sat on the tarmac at Heathrow for about four hours after landing. The plane's entertainment system and air conditioning were operating, and free snacks and drinks were served. 
 
 But, he told CNN by phone: "No alcohol, which is wise. You don't want that kind of chaos." 
 
 "There's no real frustration," Anigbo, an IT specialist, said while still on the tarmac. "I mean, the frustrations are there. We all want to get off the plane and go home." 
 
 Anigbo praised the flight crew and lamented that the pilot, at one point, announced that he would give hourly updates. 
 
 "What's pretty clear is that the situation in the terminal is quite serious and the IT systems are being worked on and this is going to take a while," he said. 
 
 When Anigbo's plane finally reached the gate, he described the scene as "chaos." 
 
 "We don't even know where to pick up our luggage," he said. 
 
 Finally packed at the gate and coming off soon. https://t.co/wUF2BjsTe4 — Paddy Anigbo (@dirosky) May 27, 2017 
 
 Gareth Ebenezer, who was on his way to Dublin to watch a rugby union final, told CNN he gave up and went home after getting caught up in the chaos at Heathrow. 
 
 Ebenezer saw lots of slow-moving lines, with some people asked to wait outside Terminal 5, he said. Most travelers seemed resigned, he said, though others appeared stressed and some children were crying. 
 
 Most people were being rebooked on Sunday flights, he said, but by then, he'd already have missed his match. 
 
 "BA staff were slow on announcements and updates, and were bringing out cordons and bottles of water to manage queues," Ebenezer said. "They seemed incapable of doing anything else, despite their best intentions, due to the system outage. They were totally crippled." 
 
 'Long line of planes' 
 
 Some stranded passengers took to Twitter to voice their frustrations. 
 
 Stuck at Heathrow Terminal 5. No updates or staff around. Have been stuck in a plane for 1 hour, and now at the airport for 2 #ba #heathrow — Wild Way Round (@wildwayround) May 27, 2017 
 
 "Stuck at Heathrow Terminal 5. No updates or staff around," travel writer and blogger @WildWayRound tweeted. "Have been stuck in a plane for 1 hour, and now at the airport for 2." 
 
 Staff couldn't find her baggage, including the gear she needs for a marathon Sunday, she said. 
 
 Another non-update update. I have only seen 1 plane leave terminal 5 in the last hour. Long line of planes on the tarmac. #BA #Heathrow — Don Bowman (@GadgetGuyNC) May 27, 2017 
 
 "Long line of planes on the tarmac," tweeted Don Bowman of North Carolina, adding that he'd seen only one plane leave Terminal 5 in the previous hour. 
 
 Sadly stuck on tarmac at Heathrow for at least an hour. No space for us to park. It continues... #britishairways #heathrowdelays — Philip Bloom (@PhilipBloom) May 27, 2017 
 
 Filmmaker Philip Bloom tweeted that he was stuck on the tarmac at Heathrow after his delayed flight from Belfast, Northern Ireland, finally landed because there was no space for the aircraft to park. 
 
 9 hours after checking in at Belfast airport we get home after the chaos of the British Airways IT crash. I docume... https://t.co/aYNq2qVvlo pic.twitter.com/HZ52FRbSjl — Philip Bloom (@PhilipBloom) May 27, 2017 
 
 Bloom later tweeted, "9 hours after checking in at Belfast airport we get home after the chaos of the British Airways IT crash." 
 
 Previous airline outages 
 
 Computer glitches and outages have plagued BA and other airlines in recent months. 
 
 In September, British Airways said a computer problem in its check-in systems caused delays and long lines at numerous airports.
– An airline pilots union says a computer glitch at American Airlines left approximately 15,000 scheduled flights during the busy December holiday travel season without a captain, co-pilot, or both, USA Today reports. The Allied Pilots Association tells CNN it learned about "a failure within the pilot scheduling bidding system" last Friday. "Thousands of flights currently do not have pilots assigned to fly them during the upcoming critical holiday period," the APA states. According to the Los Angeles Times, a computer error let too many pilots get time off for the holidays. Or as American Airlines Capt. Dennis Tajer puts it to CNBC: "The system went from responsibly scheduling everybody to becoming Santa Claus to everyone. The computer said, 'Hey ya'll. You want the days off? You got it.'" American Airlines, which isn't confirming the number of affected flights, says it has fixed the glitch and is working to avoid canceling holiday flights. "We have reserve pilots to help cover flying in December, and we are paying pilots who pick up certain open trips 150% of their hourly rate," an American Airlines spokesperson says. This December is expected to be one of the busiest holiday travel seasons in years. Thanksgiving already saw a 3% increase in travelers over 2016.