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Alaska Airlines resumes operations after equipment failure at a data center grounds all flights

FILE - Alaska Airlines aircraft sits in the airline's hangar at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Jan. 10, 2024, in SeaTac, Wash. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)
FILE – Alaska Airlines aircraft sits in the airline’s hangar at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Jan. 10, 2024, in SeaTac, Wash. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)

AP- Alaska Airlines has resumed operations after the failure of a critical piece of hardware forced the airline to ground all its flights for approximately three hours, but the effects will linger into Monday, the company announced.

The carrier issued a system-wide ground stop for Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air flights around 8 p.m. Pacific time Sunday. The stop was lifted at 11 p.m., the Seattle-based company said in a social media post. More than 150 flights have been canceled since Sunday evening, including 64 Monday.

The airline said “a critical piece of multi-redundant hardware at our data centers, manufactured by a third-party, experienced an unexpected failure.” That affected several of the airlines key systems, but hacking was not involved, and the airline said the incident was not related to any other events like the attack involving Microsoft’s servers over the weekend or the recent cybersecurity event at its Hawaiian Airlines subsidiary in June.

“We appreciate the patience of our guests whose travel plans have been disrupted. We’re working to get them to their destinations as quickly as we can,” the airline said in a statement.

The airline also said it is working with its vendor to replace the hardware at the data center.

Alaska Airlines led all airlines in cancellations Monday, according to the FlightAware website. Many of the cancellations were at the airline’s major hub of Seattle, but it also canceled flights at airports all over the country.

The Federal Aviation Administration website had confirmed a ground stop for all Alaska Airlines mainline and Horizon aircraft, referring to an Alaska Airlines subsidiary. But the FAA referred all questions to the airline Monday.

The National Transportation Board last month credited the crew of Alaska Airlines flight 1282 with the survival of passengers when a door plug panel flew off the plane shortly after takeoff on Jan. 5, 2024, leaving a hole that sucked objects out of the cabin.

In September, Alaska Airlines said it grounded its flights in Seattle briefly due to “significant disruptions” from an unspecified technology problem that was resolved within hours.

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New Alaska law establishes quick deadlines for insurers’ decisions on medical care

Health care costs. Stethoscope and calculator symbol for health care costs or medical insurance

By: Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon

Health care costs. Stethoscope and calculator symbol for health care costs or medical insurance (Photo by Valeriya, provided by Alaska Beacon and Getty Images)

Health insurers must provide speedier responses to prior authorization requests for certain medical treatments and services, under a bill that went into law on Monday without Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s signature.

The measure, Senate Bill 133, requires insurers to notify patients within 72 hours whether the requested services are authorized in cases when requests are sent by fax or by other routine means. In cases of expedited requests, the insurer must provide answers within 24 hours, under the bill.

The bill, which passed unanimously in both the Senate and House, is intended to prevent delays in patient treatment, said the main sponsor, Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski.

“Alaskans should not have to fight with their insurance company to get the care they need,” Bjorkman said in a statement. “This bill makes the process quicker, clearer, and fairer for everyone.”

The bill was officially sponsored by the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee, which Bjorkman chairs.

It was supported by medical organizations, including the Alaska Hospital and Healthcare Association, the Alaska State Medical Association and the Alaska Native Health Board.

It also got some qualified support from Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska, the state’s largest health insurer.

In a March 25 letter to Bjorkman and members of the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee, Premera said that the version that emerged through the committee process had “some reasonable sideboards as well as incentives that will help plans modernize and improve their prior authorization systems so that these systems optimally serve providers, patients and plans alike.”

Premera said in its letter that it requires prior authorizations for care in only about 2% of cases, unlike insurers that “have been exceedingly aggressive in this space,” requiring prior authorization for up to 20% of all claims.

The bill has some exceptions, caveats and special provisions. For example, it does not prevent insurers from requiring generic versions of medicines prescribed by providers. It also has a section giving guidelines for insurers to grant exceptions for cancer patients who are covered by “step therapy” protocols. Those protocols provide patients with the least expensive medications first before advancing to more expensive medications.

Additionally, the bill gives insurers up to 14 working days to obtain more information from providers if they determine that there is a lack of sufficient information for decisions on prior authorization requests.

The new law goes into effect on Jan. 1, except for a portion that directs the state Division of Insurance to start drafting regulations. That portion went into effect immediately.

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Murkowski, Senate colleagues urge release of education funds

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, center, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, arrives for a closed-door Republican meeting to advance President Donald Trump's sweeping domestic policy bill, at the Capitol in Washington, Friday, June 27, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, center, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, arrives for a closed-door Republican meeting to advance President Donald Trump’s sweeping domestic policy bill, at the Capitol in Washington, Friday, June 27, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, has joined a group of Republican senators urging the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to release federal education funds already approved by Congress for the 2025 fiscal year.

In a letter sent to OMB Director Russell Vought, the senators asked the agency to fully implement the Fiscal Year 2025 Full-Year Continuing Resolution Act, which includes funding for several education programs supporting students, educators and adult learners.

“The decision to withhold this funding is directly contrary to President Trump’s goal of returning K-12 education to the states,” the senators wrote. “This funding goes directly to states and local school districts, where local leaders decide how this funding is spent, because as we know, local communities know how to best serve students and families. Withholding this funding denies states and communities the opportunity to pursue localized initiatives to support students and their families.”

The funding in question includes grants for Supporting Effective Instruction, 21st Century Community Learning Centers, Student Support and Academic Enrichment, English Language Acquisition, Migrant Education, and Adult Basic and Literacy Education, including integrated civics and language programs.

Murkowski and her colleagues argue the funds are essential for local school districts and adult education providers, especially those that support English learners, workforce training, and after-school care. They also emphasized the bipartisan nature of these programs, writing, ” We share your concern about taxpayer money going to fund radical left-wing programs. However, we do not believe that is happening with these funds. These funds go to support programs that enjoy longstanding, bipartisan support like after-school and summer programs that provide learning and enrichment opportunities for school aged children which also enables their parents to work and contribute to local economies.”

The letter was also signed by Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Susan Collins (R-ME), John Boozman (R-AR), Katie Boyd Britt (R-AL), Deb Fischer (R-NE), John Hoeven (R-ND), Jim Justice (R-WV), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), and M. Michael Rounds (R-SD).

The senators said they welcome further collaboration with OMB and Education Secretary Linda McMahon, writing, ” We want to see students in our states and across the country thrive, whether they are adult learners, students who speak English as a second language, or students who need after-school care so that their parents can work. We believe you share the same goal.”
They urged Vought to reverse the decision and release the congressionally approved funding without further delay.

A full copy of the letter is available on Sen. Murkowski’s official website, or on her Facebook page.

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Alaskans Now Have Clearer Path to Request Government Investigations

Wooden gavel with books in background. Law and justice concept
Wooden gavel with books in background. Law and justice concept

If you’re an Alaskan and believe a government agency or public official is doing something seriously wrong, something that puts public safety or welfare at risk, you now have a clear and official way to ask for an investigation.

Alaskan residents now have a more transparent process to request an Investigative Grand Jury to probe suspected systemic wrongdoing by public figures or public entities in Alaska. This effort aims to empower the community and ensure that public trust in government is maintained.

This Department of Law initiative formalizes a process that follows rules created by the Alaska Supreme Court by dedicating a new webpage, standing up policies and procedures, and assigning attorneys to examine criteria to facilitate the convening of an Investigative Grand Jury in situations where citizens present evidence on matters that jeopardize public welfare or safety.
 
“The Alaska Constitution guarantees that an Investigative Grand Jury will have the authority to investigate matters of public welfare or safety, and that this right shall never be suspended,” said Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor. “This new, transparent process ensures that every Alaskan’s voice can be heard when it comes to safeguarding our community and holding our government accountable.”

An investigative grand jury is a group of citizens that are tasked with investigating potential criminal activity or issues of public welfare and safety within a specific jurisdiction. Unlike a trial jury, its role is not to determine guilt or innocence, but rather to investigate potential wrongdoing and decide whether there is sufficient evidence to issue an indictment or make recommendations for action. 

Back in 2022, the Alaska Supreme Court updated the rules around Investigative Grand Juries. The Court gave the Attorney General and the Department of Law the responsibility of reviewing citizen requests and determining whether they should go forward. But until now, there wasn’t a public-facing process for how to do that.

If a citizen investigation involves actions, sections or offices within the Department of Law, a neutral prosecutor will be appointed to advise the Investigative Grand Jury.

The Department of Law says this is just phase one of a broader effort to make Alaska’s legal system more open and responsive to public concerns. More improvements and public input opportunities are expected to follow.

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Invasive Green Crab spotted in Ketchikan for the first time

News of the North- The invasive European green crab has been confirmed on beaches along the Ketchikan road system for the first time. The species was first detected in Alaska in July 2022 by the Metlakatla Indian Community on Annette Island, who have since spearheaded local and regional responses.

The green crab is considered one of the most invasive species in the marine environment. It has few predators, aggressively hunts and eats its prey, destroys seagrass, and outcompetes local species for food and habitat. It has been documented that green crab devour juvenile king crab as well as juvenile salmon. They also destroy eelgrass habitat that larval fish use to hide from predators, and outcompete Dungeness crabs for food and habitat. Green crab could potentially damage Alaska’s multi-billion dollar fisheries industries, especially for salmon, crab, and mariculture operations.

Southeast Alaska Tribal Ocean Research, Alaska Fish & Game, and Alaska Sea Grant provide public resources about European green crabs in Southeast Alaska including detection, identification, and impact information, The best way to identify green crab is to count the spines. There are 5 spines behind the eye on each side of the shell.

Green crabs live on rocky shores, cobble beaches, sandflats and tidal marshes. They can often be found near eelgrass beds or other shoreline vegetation. Green crabs tolerate a wide range of water salinity and temperature. They can also survive upstream of river mouths in some estuarine environments. 

Report your sightings via the ADF&G Invasive Species Reporter or by calling the Invasive Species Hotline: (877) INVASIV ((877) 468-2748). If you locate invasive green crab on Annette Islands Reserve, you can call (907) 886-FISH to make a report.

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