Cranky on the Web: How Airline Systems Work, Delta Questions, Handling Tight Connections, Cranky’s Adventure

Cranky on the Web, Technology

Cranky on the Web

How do airline computer systems work?CNN Money
I am no expert on IT, but CNN still wanted to get a better, basic understanding of how airline systems work in light of the Delta mess. I was happy to chime in with that.

Questions Abound as Delta Power Outage Should Have Been PreventableThe Street
Here’s a long article on Delta’s issues. I was asked specifically about whether this would have a long-lasting impact on demand. I doubt it. Read the article for more.

4 Tips for Handling a Tight Flight ConnectionCondé Nast Traveler
Finally something NOT about Delta. (I must have received 10 different Delta inquiries this week.) CNT was looking for some advice on tight connections. As you can imagine, I have plenty. The one they quoted here was to get airline apps (I said you can also just use airline mobile sites) to get the most up-to-date gate info so you can run once you get off the airplane. I agree with all the other suggestions as well.

Blogger flies to 8 airports in one dayThe Burbank Leader/LA Times
Well, the headline writer got it wrong (it was 9 airports), but the story was right. The Burbank Leader caught wind of my Tuesday adventure and decided to write it up.

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4 comments on “Cranky on the Web: How Airline Systems Work, Delta Questions, Handling Tight Connections, Cranky’s Adventure

  1. The Street article is nothing but fluff, and pretty inaccurate.

    “Most computer systems are protected from losing power by what is known as an uninterrupted power supply (UPS). The apparatus provides emergency power to a system that loses power, as Delta’s system did when the small fire caused an electrical system breakdown and the subsequent power outage. ”

    Thats true for a desktop workstation, and thats about it.

    In a Datacenter, best practices are to have servers with dual power supplies, each going to a seperate PDU, which goes to a seperate circuit, which is powered by a generator, and cleaned by a UPS.

    So many things can go wrong, from sysadmins plugging the dual power supplies into the same PDU, to the generator failing to kick on.

  2. With Southwests multi flights between cities, I wonder how many people are just flying back and forth between two cities to get this companion pass. Now that would be an interesting stat to know.

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