Delta To Sue CloudStrike Over $500 Million In Losses

July 31, 2024 Business, Travel

Delta Air Lines has hired famed attorney David Boies to seek potential damages following days of canceled flights related to a CrowdStrike bug that disabled Microsoft programs, taking down the airline’s internal systems and causing chaos for travelers.

Boies’ firm, Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, is evaluating claims against CrowdStrike and Microsoft, CBS News has confirmed.

Boies previously represented the U.S. government in an antitrust case against Microsoft, as well as disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.

CBNC reports:

Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said the massive IT outage earlier this month that stranded thousands of customers will cost it $500 million.

Bastian said the figure is representative of not just the lost revenue, but “the tens of millions of dollars per day in compensation and hotels” over a period of five days.

The airline canceled more than 4,000 flights in the wake of the outage, which was caused by a botched CrowdStrike software update and took thousands of Microsoft systems around the world offline. The company had to manually reset 40,000 servers, Bastian said.

David Boies is probably best known here as part of the team that successfully sued to overturn California’s Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage.

NEW: In his first public comments, Delta CEO Ed Bastian says its meltdown will cost the airline $500 million – but places the blame squarely on CrowdStrike. Delta is preparing to sue for damages.

(Interview was in Paris, where he flew last Tuesday)https://t.co/c18vn2s5Ds

— Kyle Potter (@kpottermn) July 31, 2024