Southwest Airlines has reached a $140 million settlement with the Department of Transportation regarding the carrier’s 2022 winter storm meltdown that resulted in thousands of flight cancelations and widespread travel disruptions.
Between December 21, 2022, and January 2, 2023, Southwest Airlines canceled or significantly delayed over 16,900 flights and impacted over two million passengers over the holiday season, according to the consent order issued by the Department of Transportation (DOT).
“We find that by failing to provide prompt flight status notifications to over one million passengers regarding a cancellation, diversion, or delay of 30 minutes or more despite being aware of the flight status change for more than 30 minutes,” Southwest Airlines violated 14 federal regulations, the consent order read.
As part of Southwest’s $140 settlement with DOT, the Dallas-based airline will pay $35 million to the U.S. Treasury across three years.
“Today’s action sets a new precedent and sends a clear message: if airlines fail their passengers, we will use the full extent of our authority to hold them accountable,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement. “Taking care of passengers is not just the right thing to do — it’s required, and this penalty should put all airlines on notice to take every step possible to ensure that a meltdown like this never happens again.”
DOT has also ordered Southwest Airlines to provide $90 million in travel vouchers from April 2024 to April 2027 to compensate future passengers amid disruptions. Southwest says it will give a $75 voucher “upon request, during controllable cancellations and delays that cause Customers to reach their final destinations three or more hours after their scheduled arrival.”
Following Southwest’s holiday meltdown during Winter Storm Elliott, the airline has taken steps to bolster airport infrastructure to ensure smoother operations during severe winter weather, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
These changes are reflected in the airline’s Disruption Action Plan and include increasing available equipment to manage the effects of winter weather, increasing staff at airports undergoing extreme cold weather conditions, and introducing a new system to gauge dynamic local weather conditions better, thus providing more precise information for pilots and dispatchers.
“We have spent the past year acutely focused on efforts to enhance the Customer Experience with significant investments and initiatives that accelerate operational resiliency, enhance cross-team collaboration, and bolster overall preparedness for winter operations,” said Bob Jordan, Southwest Airlines president and CEO, in a statement.
Southwest says it has “learned from the event” and can now “shift its entire focus to the future.”
