Hong Kong carriers such as HK Express and Cathay Pacific, along with the Airport Authority, urged travelers to reach the airport at least three hours before the flight to account for the technical difficulties caused by the global Microsoft outage.
This came after Microsoft users worldwide, including banks and airlines, reported widespread outages on Friday, hours after the technology company said it was gradually fixing an issue affecting access to Microsoft 365 apps and services.
According to photos posted online today (Fri), long queues can be seen at various counters at the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA), with many travelers waiting to conduct their check-in procedures.
Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) announced that the affected airlines have switched to manual check-ins to continue serving passengers.
But it added that flight operations at HKIA have not been affected, and they have activated their emergency response mechanism.
AAHK advises travelers to allow sufficient time to travel to the airport for check-in procedures and to stay alert for any updates.
Cathay Pacific released a statement apologizing for the unforeseen technical issues and stated that they are aiming to fix the issue as soon as possible.
The flight carrier stated that the flight booking and redemption services on their website are unavailable, urging them to use the Cathay Pacific mobile app instead and also advises travelers to allow sufficient time to travel to the airport and continue to check for updates.
HK Express released a statement saying that its app and website have been impacted by the outage and are currently conducting manual check-ins at the airport, advising them to arrive at the airport three hours before to ensure that they have enough time to complete the process.
The budget carrier of Cathay Pacific also reminds passengers to refer to media channels for the latest flight status and information.
