If you cast your mind back 10 years, you'll recall the various stories about the disasterous baggage handling system at Denver International Airport. Well, ComputerWorld reports this morning that the system is being retired, and DIA is returning to - wait for it - manual handling:

After more than a decade of trying to make Denver International Airport's computerized baggage system work as designed, United Air Lines Inc. is giving up on the technology and returning to manual handling procedures.

"It's never worked up to its potential," United spokesman Jeff Green said last week. He added that the airline has spent "enormous amounts of money" on the system over the past 10 years, but it's still used only for luggage heading out of Denver on United and some baggage transfers between flights. The system has never been able to process luggage from arriving flights.

Here's where I explain the title. The system has never worked properly, and yet it stayed online for a decade, causing who knows how many problems over that time. There were stories that first year advocating the action that they just took now, but no one was willing to admit defeat then.

This happens in IT projects as well, and it tends to get worse as more money is spent. There's kind of a tipping point past which failure becomes too ugly to contemplate - someone would have to explain all the consulting fees, all the hours spent, etc. etc - it's just easier for all involved to try and muddle through. In the meantime, large amounts of business damage accrue, and for what? The pride of a small cadre of management who won't admit that mistakes were made.