Captain Mike Santoro, vice president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, reports on the ongoing cancellation of Southwest flights and what the company can do to improve the situation.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg criticized Southwest for the thousands of flights it recently canceled and outlined four priorities for the airline in a letter to CEO Bob Jordan on Thursday.
Buttigieg called the amount of flight disruptions Southwest Airlines customers experienced over the Christmas weekend and this week “unacceptable” and said he doesn’t think weather is the only cause of delays and cancellations.
He also pointed to problems during the disruptions, including Southwest customers “not spending time with loved ones over the holidays” and being separated from their checked bags for long periods of time.
Fox News’ Peter Doocy obtained the letter.
SOUTHWEST AIRLINES PILOTS ON CANCELLATIONS: AIRLINE ‘NOT PREPARED’
Pete Buttigieg, US Secretary of Transportation, at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago on November 21, 2022. (Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
As Buttigieg noted in the letter, the winter storm affecting large parts of the country prompted Southwest and other major U.S. airlines to delay or cancel flights as many people traveled for Christmas.
Southwest suggested it was taking longer than other airlines to return to normal operations, which the Dallas-based carrier expects to happen on Friday.
Jordan said in a video released Tuesday that the airline’s “highly complex” network was disrupted by the storm, with planes and crew members lost in “dozens of locations,” FOX Business previously reported.
Southwest canceled more than 2,300 U.S. flights Thursday and canceled more than 2,500 Wednesday, according to FlightAware.
A traveler waits outside the Southwest Airlines baggage claim office at Oakland International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Oakland, California. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Buttigieg wrote in a letter to Southwest’s CEO: “No monetary compensation can fully compensate passengers who missed out on moments with their families that they will never get back – Christmas, birthdays, weddings and other special events.” “That’s why it’s so important for Southwest to start by passing on costs to passengers that can be measured in cents on the dollar.”
BUTTIGIEG SAYS SOUTHWEST MUST COMPENSATE CUSTOMERS AFTER ‘SYSTEM FAILURE’
Buttigieg’s four priorities for the airline are: “Getting stranded passengers to their destinations safely and quickly; providing or compensating passengers for meals, hotels, and ground transportation to or from hotels; in the event of no-shows, to reimburse affected passengers for their canceled tickets.” immediate refunds. alternative offers such as rebooking and ensuring passengers are quickly reunited with their luggage.”
A Southwest Airlines flight arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, Ariz., Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt York/AP Newsroom)
Buttigieg has promised that the Department of Transportation will take steps to hold Southwest accountable if it fails to meet its commitments and obligations in these four areas.
In response to a request for comment, Southwest referred FOX Business to an update it posted earlier Thursday that operations are expected to return to normal on Friday with “minimal disruption.”
SOUTHWEST EXPECTS OPERATIONS TO RETURN TO NORMAL WEATHER ON FRIDAY
“With another holiday weekend full of important connections for our valued customers and employees, we are eager to get back to normal,” the airline said. “We know even our deepest apologies – to our customers, employees and anyone affected by their breach – only go so far.”
Southwest said it has created a web page for refund and refund requests, baggage handling and rebooking. Customers whose flights were canceled between December 24 and January 2 can request a refund. [their] to the prepayment form of the unused ticket.”
Southwest passengers who experience a flight cancellation or significant delay during that period can also “receipt” for other related expenses.
As the page says, the company “will meet reasonable requests for reimbursement of food, hotel and alternative transportation expenses.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The airline said in an update Thursday that “we have a lot of work ahead of us, including investing in new solutions to manage large-scale disruptions.”