Southwest cancels 60% of flights while air travel disruptions ease elsewhere

Southwest Airlines It canceled more than 60% of its flights on Monday, while other airlines eased flight disruptions caused by the harsh winter weather.

Airlines have canceled more than 17,000 US flights since Wednesday, according to FlightAware. Storms brought snow, ice, high winds and bitter cold across the country, disrupting air travel from coast to coast. These conditions slowed the crew down as they faced harsh conditions at the airport.

Southwest Airlines said Monday that “additional changes are expected as the holiday season approaches, as flight levels have already declined.”

The carriers may detail the costs of the disruption when they report results next month, or sooner. Southwest Airlines put up a very big struggle. Management noted additional challenges, including unexpected fog in San Diego, understaffing at fuel vendors in Denver, and internal technology.

delta airlines, american airlines, united airlines, jetblue airlines When Alaska Airlines It was one of the weather-affected careers. However, other airlines had higher rates of cancellations on Monday.

Southwest Airlines’ problems continued on Monday, while other airlines stabilized. The airline canceled more than 2,600 of his flights, 65% of the schedule, and delayed another 820 flights. Delta canceled his 9% of mainline flights on Monday, United canceled his 5% and American Airlines less than 1%, with 12 flights scrubbed.

More than 3,200 US flights were canceled on Monday and nearly 5,000 were delayed. Southwest Airlines was actively canceling many flights to stabilize operations, COO Andrew Watterson told staff.

From Wednesday to Sunday, nearly a third of Southwest Airlines’ flights were canceled and two-thirds were delayed, according to FlightAware data.

The airline has apologized to its employees for the confusion. This has made it difficult for many to get hold of crew scheduling services, reassignment or other changes, or to secure hotel rooms.

Southwest Airlines also offered flight attendants to work beyond the vacation premium.

Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said in a staff message on Monday that it could take a few more days to fix the airline’s operations.

“Part of what we struggle with is a lack of tools,” Jordan said in a message to staff on Sunday. We’ve been talking, Crew Scheduling is one of the places where we need to invest, we need to be able to create solutions faster.”

Some pilots and flight attendants were forced to sleep at the airport because they could not find hotel rooms, their union said.

Crew members complained of being stranded and having to wait at scheduling services. These are problems that vacation pay can’t solve: time and quality of life will never come back,” Transport president Lynn Montgomery, Local 556, said in a statement.

A union of pilots and flight attendants is in contract negotiations with the company.

Airlines often proactively cancel flights during bad weather to avoid moving planes, crew and customers, which can make recovering from a storm more difficult.

Airlines also planned to shorten their schedules on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day compared to the days before the holidays, which made it difficult to rebook travelers on other flights, resulting in a surge in bookings. An American Airlines spokeswoman said, “The majority of customers affected by the cancellation have been able to stay overnight again.”

A Delta Air Lines spokeswoman said Monday that “our operations are recovering steadily and we expect continued improvement over the next few hours.”

Extreme cold and high winds slowed ground operations at dozens of airports. According to FlightAware, more than half of U.S.-based airline flights were delayed Thursday through Saturday, with an average delay of 81 minutes.

“The temperatures have dropped so low that equipment and infrastructure have been affected, from frozen chiller systems and fuel hoses to broken tow bars,” United Airlines said in a message to pilots on Saturday. The pilot encountered a frozen lock while attempting to re-enter the jet bridge after performing a walkaround.”

The FAA said it had to evacuate a tower at United Hub Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey because of Saturday’s leaks.

Meanwhile, JetBlue offered triple pay for flight attendants to pick up the trip on Christmas Eve due to a staff shortage.

An American Airlines spokeswoman said, “The majority of customers affected by the cancellation have been able to stay overnight.”

A Delta Air Lines spokeswoman said Monday that “our operations are recovering steadily and we expect continued improvement over the next few hours.”

However, passengers also faced luggage delays.

Bill Weaver, 41, traveled from Wichita, Kansas to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport with his wife and five children for Friday’s flight to Cancun after a connecting flight to American Airlines’ hub was cancelled. Our American Airlines flight to Cancun arrived on time, but our luggage didn’t arrive in Cancun until Monday, and we didn’t arrive at our hotel by mid-morning, so we hadn’t packed our clothes and other items. had to spend hundreds of dollars to buy the necessities of their hotel.

Weaver, who works in software sales, said he used to travel a lot.

“I’m used to things happening when I lose my bag, but this is the worst I’ve ever seen,” he said.

Extreme cold and high winds slowed ground operations at dozens of airports. According to FlightAware, more than half of U.S.-based airline flights were delayed Thursday through Saturday, with an average delay of 81 minutes.

“The temperatures have dropped so low that equipment and infrastructure have been affected, from frozen chiller systems and fuel hoses to broken tow bars,” United Airlines said in a message to pilots on Saturday. The pilot encountered a frozen lock while attempting to re-enter the jet bridge after performing a walkaround.”

The FAA said it had to evacuate a tower at United Hub Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey because of Saturday’s leaks.

Meanwhile, JetBlue offered triple pay for flight attendants to pick up the trip on Christmas Eve due to a staff shortage.