Southwest Airlines cancels more than 1,000 weekend flights

NEW YORK (AP) – Southwest Airlines canceled hundreds of flights over the weekend, blaming air traffic control for the problems …

NEW YORK (AP) – Southwest Airlines canceled hundreds of flights over the weekend, blaming air traffic control and weather issues for the problems.

According to flight tracking service FlightAware, the airline canceled more than 1,000 flights, or 28% of its schedule, as of 5 p.m. ET on Sunday. That was by far the highest rate of the major US airlines. Next up were Allegiant and Spirit, who according to Flight Tracker had canceled 5% and 4% of their flights respectively on Sunday. American Airlines canceled 2% of their flights.

Southwest Airlines said in a statement it emailed it had weather problems at its Florida airports earlier this weekend, made worse by unexpected air traffic control issues in the same region. These problems triggered delays and resulted in significant cancellations for airlines from Friday evening.

“We have been working diligently all weekend to re-establish our operations with an emphasis on repositioning aircraft and crews to take care of our customers,” said Southwest Airlines. “With fewer frequencies between cities in our current schedule, recovery during operational challenges is harder and longer.”

The company said it will allow customers to explore self-service rebooking options on Southwest.com, where they can find out about the status of their trip.

However, Henry H. Harteveldt, president and travel industry analyst at The Atmosphere Research Group, based in San Francisco, points out other reasons for the cancellations.

First, he says Southwest has planned more flights than it can handle, an issue that began in June. He also noted that Southwest operates what is known as a point-to-point route network, and when a delay occurs, it “cascades” along the remaining flight segments. This is because, for example, a Southwest flight from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to the airline’s home airport in Dallas can make multiple stops.

However, Harteveldt says the most troubling reason is the likelihood that some pilots who oppose Southwest’s decision to require COVID-19 vaccinations will refuse to participate in an illegal work action where they call in sick or attend a ” Work slowdown ”.

In a statement on Saturday, the airline’s pilots union, the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, said it was not.

“SWAPA is aware of the operational difficulties facing Southwest Airlines today due to a number of issues, but we can say with confidence that our pilots are not participating in any formal or unofficial work-related activities,” it said.

Harteveldt noted that Southwest’s troubles were ongoing and could affect fourth quarter financial performance.

“All of this happens while people are in the process of booking their Thanksgiving and Christmas / New Years trips,” he said. “There is a very good chance that some people who normally book with Southwest will see this news and decide to fly other airlines.”

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This story has been updated to correct the spelling of the Atmosphere Research Group analyst’s last name. It’s Henry Harteveldt, not Harteveldt.

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