The U.S. aviation industry encounters the "millennium bug": the 4-digit flight number is exhausted, the system from 60 years ago is still used, and the upgrade cost is too high.
According to news on August 7, technology media viewfromthewing reported this month,American AirlinesThe industry has encountered a new "millennium bug" problem,Flight numbers are up to 4 digits, meaning up to 9999 flights, but it's difficult to upgrade。
Dating back to the 1960s
Take American Airlines $American Airlines (AAL.US)$ as an example. The number of flights operated every day reaches 6,700. Theoretically, there are plenty of flight numbers to use, but it faces many challenges in the actual operation process.
During American Airlines' Q2 earnings call, Brian Znotins, senior vice president of network planning, laid out the challenges:
There are more than 9,999 flights wishing to mark their flight numbers
Partners will share flight numbers: for example, flights from Doha to India and Pakistan will be sold to partners, and some flights will be sold to Alaska Airlines.
Note: The flight number system of American Airlines was built on the system 60 years ago, similar to the "Millennium Bug". For storage and processing reasons, the old system saved data size. The first two letters represent the airline, and the last four digits represent the flight number.
Too expensive to upgrade
American Airlines,Delta Air Lines $Delta Air Lines (DAL.US)$ And United Airlines $United Airlines (UAL.US)$ are running out of flight numbers, but these giants can't do anything about upgrading.
If you want to upgrade the existing system, it is very difficult to expand the flight number by 1 digit to 5 digits, and if you want to rebuild a new system, the cost is too high.
The airline's temporary solution is to assign the same flight number to multiple flights, but ensure that the planes are not flying in the sky at the same time.
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Kevin Matte : Did you know that the big giant numbers painted at the beginning and end of the runway need to be changed because of the shift in magnetic North. Around the world, runways are designated by a number from 1 to 36 (as in 360 degrees) depending on their orientation relative to magnetic North, the one that moves compasses. However, this magnetic North is moving closer and closer to the true North Pole, at a rate of about forty kilometers per year. Which ends up affecting the degrees. The light modules on the edge and the nearby posters have also been renewed.
The paperwork and computer tools, operating manuals, plans, and piloting instructions also need to be updated.