2022 Southwest Airlines scheduling crisis

[15] Southwest canceled more than 2,000 flights during the October 2021 event, blaming a combination of weather, insufficient staff, and air traffic control.[17][18] In a December 21 memo to airport ramp staff at Denver International Airport (DEN), Southwest's vice president for ground operations declared a "state of operational emergency" because of an "unusually high number of absences" there, implementing mandatory overtime and disallowing telemedicine appointments to excuse absences due to sickness.[26] By December 27, it became more clear that weather was not the sole cause of the mass cancellations; rather, the airline's operational systems were struggling to recover from the disruptions.[31][32] Chief executive officer (CEO) Robert Jordan issued an apology via video recording seven days after mass cancellations began.[33] Throughout the crisis, a substantial number of passengers were left stranded at airports across the Southwest route network seeking alternative flights or modes of transportation, with multi-hour wait times for rental car counters a common occurrence.[35] Many Southwest crews found themselves competing with stranded passengers for scarce hotel rooms and ground transportation, with no help from the company.[37] Initial investigations said outdated technology was to blame and an industry analyst said it was also due to airlines "running these razor thin margins".[46] William J. McGee, a consumer advocate and Senior Fellow for Aviation and Travel at the American Economic Liberties Project, called the Southwest Airlines failures "inevitable" due to Department of Transportation regulatory inaction.[citation needed] Southwest announced their intention to spend $1.3 billion on maintenance and technology upgrades to correct the problems that caused the crisis.The sketch, titled "Southwest Airlines Announcement," featured Heidi Gardner and Devon Walker as Southwest spokespeople announcing the airline's response to the crisis: upgrading its entire communications system to use Dell computers from 2008, sorting luggage by color instead of by destination, and only hiring flight attendants with prior experience as Waffle House servers.
Southwest AirlinesSanta Barbara AirportFlight cancellationsDecember 2022 North American winter stormmajor U.S. airlinecanceledU.S. Department of TransportationSeeking Alphatrade unionpicketedair traffic controlairport rampDenver International AirportluggageDelta Air LinesDallas Love FieldDallas Fort Worth International AirportChief executive officerRobert JordanTransport Workers Union of Americarunning jokehub-and-spokepoint-to-pointWilliam J. McGeeAmerican Economic Liberties ProjectAirline Deregulation ActTransportation SecretaryPete ButtigiegUnited States Senate Commerce CommitteeSaturday Night LiveHeidi GardnerDevon WalkerWaffle HouseHistory of Southwest AirlinesContract of carriageCBS NewsReutersThe New York TimesWHEC-TVLos Angeles TimesThe Dallas Morning NewsThe Washington PostThe Denver PostKXAS-TVTwitterThe HillAirTran AirwaysATA AirlinesMorris AirTranStar AirlinesHerb KelleherRollin KingLamar MuseJ. George MikelsonsGary C. KellyColleen BarrettBob JordanRakesh GangwalFlight 1455Flight 1763Flight 1248Flight 2294Flight 812Flight 345Flight 3472Flight 1380Flight 1392AirlineOn the FlyHistoryAccess Now, Inc. v. Southwest Airlines Co.List of Southwest Airlines destinationsSouthwest EffectSouthwest Airlines fleetWright Amendmentintrastate airlineTexas Aeronautics Commission