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Southwest Airlines’ nightmare holiday season continued midweek with the carrier scrubbing thousands more flights, another 2,500 pulled from arrival and departure boards Wednesday, according to The Associated Press.
Exhausted travelers sought passage by other means using different airlines, rental cars, or trains — or they've simply given up.
According to the FlightAware tracking service, more than 91% of all canceled flights in the U.S. early Wednesday were from Southwest, which has been unable to recover from winter storms that raked large swaths of the country over the weekend.
With cancellations from other major airlines ranging from none to 2%, Southwest has canceled nearly 10,000 flights as of Wednesday and warned of thousands more Thursday and Friday, according to FlightAware.
The operational systems of Southwest, which some have described as antiquated, have been uniquely impacted, so much so that the federal government is now investigating what happened at the Dallas carrier, which has frustrated its own flight and ground crews as well.
“The impact of Southwest’s operational collapse being felt by passengers and crews over this holiday was not a surprise to anyone but the leadership of Southwest Airlines,” Southwest Airlines Pilots Association said in a statement. “It was unacceptable, and the worst of the effects were absolutely preventable.
“A systemic failure of Southwest Airlines leaders to modernize, support, and staff its operation leaves every frontline employee, Pilots included, tired of apologizing to our passengers. For more than a decade, leadership shortcomings in adapting, innovating, and safeguarding our operations have led to repeated system disruptions, countless disappointed passengers, and millions in lost profits.
“The holiday meltdown has been blamed on weather that had been forecast five days prior, but this problem began many years ago when the complexity of our network outgrew its ability to withstand meteorological and technological disruptions. SWAPA subject matter experts have repeatedly presented years of data, countless proposals that make Southwest pilots more efficient and resilient.”
The crisis has impacted the airline on Wall Street, too. After the close on Tuesday, Southwest was down $2.15 to $33.94.
The matter also has hit very close to home with TCU playing in the College Football Playoff’s Fiesta Bowl on Saturday in Arizona. Southwest was the operator of choice for many Horned Frogs fans, leaving many scrambling to find another way.
In a video that Southwest posted late Tuesday, Southwest CEO Robert Jordan said the airline would operate a reduced schedule for several days but hoped to be “back on track before next week.”
Jordan blamed the winter storm for snarling the airline’s “highly complex” network. He said Southwest's tools for recovering from disruptions work “99% of the time, but clearly we need to double down" on upgrading systems to avoid a repeat of this week.
“We have some real work to do in making this right,” said Jordan, a 34-year Southwest veteran who became CEO in February. “For now, I want you to know that we are committed to that.”
The airline is now drawing unwanted attention from Washington.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who has criticized airlines for previous disruptions, said his agency would examine the causes of Southwest's widespread cancellations and whether the airline was meeting its legal obligations to stranded customers.
“Because what we’re seeing right now, from the system and the flights themselves to the inability to reach anybody on a customer service phone line, it is just completely unacceptable,” Buttigieg told CBS early Wednesday.
In Congress, the Senate Commerce Committee also promised an investigation. Two Senate Democrats called on Southwest to provide “significant” compensation for stranded travelers, saying that the airline has the money because it plans to pay $428 million in dividends next month.
“The fact is this is not the same airline that Herb Kelleher built where planes went point-to-point,” said Randy Barnes, president of TWU Local 555 representing Southwest ground workers, in a statement. “We are now experiencing the same problems as the more traditional airlines that rely on a hub and spokes system. When Southwest’s model changed, preparation needed to change. If airline managers had planned better, the meltdown we’ve witnessed in recent days could have been lessened or averted.
Southwest is one of the few carriers that still uses a point-to-point route system in which airlines fly between smaller markets at shorter distances.
“The human factor also has to be a consideration. Ground workers need more support. Many of our people have been forced to work 16- or 18-hour days during this holiday season. Our members work hard, they’re dedicated to their jobs, but many are getting sick, and some have experienced frostbite over the past week. In severe weather it’s unreasonable for workers to stay outside for extended periods. People need to be able to cycle in and out of the cold. The airline needs to do more to protect its ground crews.”
This report contains reporting by The Associated Press.