Southwest Airlines flights canceled by the hundreds this weekend

Southwest Airlines canceled hundreds of flights over the weekend, blaming the woes on air traffic control issues and the weather.

The airline canceled more than 1,000 flights in total, or 29% of its schedule, as of 4 p.m. PT on Sunday, according to FlightAware flight tracking. It was by far the highest rate of major US airlines. Next was Allegiant, which canceled 6% of its flights. American Airlines canceled 5% of its flights, while Spirit canceled 4% on Sunday, according to the flight tracker. Southwest Airlines canceled more than 800 flights on Saturday.

Southwest Airlines said in an emailed statement that it encountered weather issues at its Florida airports earlier this weekend, which were made worse by unexpected air traffic control issues in the same area. These issues triggered delays and resulted in major cancellations for airlines starting Friday night.

“We continued to work diligently throughout the weekend to reset our operations with a focus on repositioning aircraft and crews to care for our customers,” said Southwest Airlines. “With fewer frequencies between cities in our current schedule, recovery during operational challenges is more difficult and prolonged. “

The pilots’ union released a statement saying its members were not protesting ahead of a COVID-19 vaccine mandate by calling in sick.

Southwest said it allows customers to explore self-service reservation change options on Southwest.com, where they can get updates on the status of their travel.

Henry H. Harteveldt, president and travel industry analyst at The Atmosphere Research Group, based in San Francisco, says Southwest has scheduled more flights than it can handle, a problem that began in June. He also noted that Southwest operates what is called a point-to-point route network, and when a delay occurs it “cascades” along the remaining flight segments. That’s because, for example, a southwest flight from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to the airline’s home base in Dallas may make multiple stops along the way.

But Harteveldt says the most troubling reason is the likelihood that some pilots who oppose Southwest’s decision to impose COVID-19 vaccinations are participating in an illegal labor action where they call in sick or engage in a ” slowing down of work “.

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

“SWAPA is aware of the operational difficulties affecting Southwest Airlines today due to a number of issues, but we can say with confidence that our pilots are not involved in any official or unofficial action,” he said. .

Harteveldt noted that Southwest’s woes could persist and affect its financial performance in the fourth quarter.

“All of this is happening as people are in the process of booking their Thanksgiving and Christmas / New Years trip,” he said. “It is very possible that some people who normally book on Southwest will see this news and choose to fly with other airlines.”