"I'm okay with these travel situations and fly on by myself when it's just me, but when my one-year-old has to suffer through it because of ineptitude and mismanagement, that becomes personal," Southwest passenger Joshua Caudle, who said he was unsure when they would be able to leave Denver, said on Denver7 News. At Southwest, the customer service phone line's hold times averaged more than two hours, sometimes reaching four hours, according to Colorado Public Radio.ġ2/25 #SouthwestAirlines #Southwest #southweststolechristmas #Houston /iO6ummEi6P- JT December 26, 2022 To have extensive cancellations continue on Monday, Potter said, "is a clear, clear sign something has gone horribly wrong."įrom Houston, Texas, and Tampa, Fla., to Cleveland, Ohio, and Denver, Colo., passengers are sharing photos and video of overwhelmed baggage claim areas and long lines at reservation counters. Holiday travelers see their plans upendedįor Southwest, the situation started unraveling before the Christmas weekend. "The Department will examine whether cancellations were controllable and if Southwest is complying with its customer service plan," USDOT said in a statement. Department of Transportation called the cancellations, delays and customer service response "unacceptable." The airline said in a statement Monday that it will fly about one-third of its schedule for the next several days as it continues to recover its operations. "We've seen this again and again over the course of the last year or so, when airlines really just struggle especially after a storm, but there's pretty clear skies across the country." "This is really as bad as it gets for an airline," Potter said. Kyle Potter, executive editor of Thrifty Traveler, called it an incredibly complex task for an airline with a network as vast as Southwest's to coordinate staffing and scheduling, particularly after weather delays.īut with many areas seeing clear skies on Monday, the airline would seem to have few obvious reasons to cancel so many flights. That issue has made it difficult for employees to access crew scheduling services and get reassignments. Other issues that have exacerbated the airline's struggle to accommodate the holiday rush include problems with "connecting flight crews to their schedules," Perry said. Southwest spokesperson Chris Perry told NPR the airline's disruptions are a result of the winter storm's lingering effects, adding that it hopes to "stabilize and improve its operation" with more favorable weather conditions. On Tuesday night, Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan issued a video, pleading with frustrated travelers and frustrated Southwest employees, for patience. #southwest #southwestair /8bcdwgW9zd- Brandon Richard December 26, 2022 Luggage piled up in the baggage claim area tonight at Denver International Airport (DIA). Southwest says its crew scheduling process is partly to blame Other airlines have also ordered large-scale cancellations in the past week. The number of canceled flights for Southwest Monday was more than 10 times higher than for Delta, which had the second-most cancellations by a U.S. The disruptions add to chaos that has left people stranded at airports across the country, many of them with little idea of when they can get home or where their bags are. ET - at least 60% of its schedule, according to flight tracker FlightAware. Southwest canceled more than 2,900 flights Monday - at least 70% of its schedule for the day - and more than 2,500 flights Tuesday as of 9:10 a.m. The airline warns it will fly about one-third of its schedule for the next several days.Ī historic winter storm has tangled holiday travel and brought dangerous conditions to a big chunk of the United States, but no airline has struggled more to navigate the Christmas holiday rush than Southwest Airlines. Travelers wait at a Southwest Airlines baggage counter after flight cancellations hit Los Angeles International Airport on Monday.
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