Ever feel like your phone updates at the worst possible time? Imagine that, but for a giant metal bird you’re supposed to be flying in. That’s the vibe right now as Airbus is rolling out some mandatory software patches, and let’s just say it’s not exactly a smooth install for everyone’s travel plans.

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Basically, airlines have to take some of their Airbus planes offline to install these crucial updates. It’s like when your laptop forces a restart in the middle of a Zoom call, but instead of just you looking frozen, it’s hundreds of people stranded at the gate. The Reddit threads are filling up with tales of delayed flights and confused passengers, all because the planes need their version of a digital nap.

There’s something deeply funny about the fact that in 2024, our most advanced engineering can still be brought to a halt by the spinning wheel of doom. You can build a machine that soars at 500 miles per hour, but you still have to turn it off and on again. I’m just picturing a pilot leaning over to the co-pilot whispering, “Have you tried unplugging it and plugging it back in?”

The real kicker is the universal experience. We’ve all been that passenger, glaring at the departure board as our flight time gets later and later. We just never guessed the culprit might be “pending system updates.” It’s a whole new level of excuse. “Sorry for the delay, folks. The plane is currently downloading Service Pack 3. Please do not disturb it.”

So next time you’re stuck at the airport, maybe don’t blame the weather or air traffic control. Blame the IT department in the sky. At least until they finish installing and the plane asks if it can restart to apply the changes.