Southwest Airlines Will Face Senate Over MASSIVE Holiday Cancelations

Were you affected by the Southwest Airlines flight problems that happened over the holidays?

©Southwest

Although Southwest’s cancellations began as the result of winter weather, the airline continued to cancel over 16,000 flights over multiple days even after the weather was no longer an issue. This left many travelers frustrated and stranded during the busy holiday travel season. Many now question why the airline had a meltdown, including the U.S. Senate.

According to CNBC, Southwest’s Chief Operating Officer, Andrew Watterson, will have to face a Senate panel on February 9th to answer questions about what happened during the holidays. Watterson will be stepping in for Southwest CEO Bob Jordan, who had a prior commitment on that date. Jordan previously posted an apology video to Southwest passengers affected by the holiday cancellations.

Southwest Airplane

A statement by Southwest says that Watterson will “use the opportunity to explain how we’ve taken actions to make things right for our Customers since Southwest’s late December disruption, as well as what we’re doing to mitigate the risk of it happening again.”

©Southwest Airlines

Southwest has since promised that it’s working to prevent these issues from happening again which will include implementing plans to update the airline’s current processes. The weather only paid an initial factor in the holiday flight cancellations. Then things began to barrel out of control when the airline couldn’t use its automation for crew scheduling.

©Reuters

Southwest has since issued refunds to those affected by the cancellations. However, a lawsuit has been filed by Southwest’s shareholders alleging that the airline hid certain problems that led to the mass flight cancellations. In the meantime, several U.S. lawmakers are seeking to “strengthen airline passenger protections.”

Regardless, it seems that although Southwest Airlines seems to have bounced back from the problems it had over the holiday season, it will still be spending some time dealing with the fallout. We’ll keep an eye on the situation and get you more details when we have them.

What to Do if Your Flight to Disney World is Canceled

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

WE KNOW DISNEY.
YOU CAN, TOO.

Oh boy, planning a Disney trip can be quite the adventure, and we totally get it! But fear not, dear friends, we compiled EVERYTHING you need (and the things to avoid!) to plan the ULTIMATE Disney vacation.

Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned pro, our insider tips and tricks will have you exploring the parks like never before. So come along with us, and get planning your most magical vacation ever!

Were you affected by Southwest’s massive flight cancellations? What did you do? Let us know in the comments!