Southwest airline ‘unacceptably’ cancels many US flights

The US Department of Transportation is investigating the airline Southwest, as the company continues to cancel flights due to winter weather in the United States. While most other airlines canceled no more than 2% of their flights today, Southwest canceled more than 60% of scheduled air travel.

Today, approximately 2,950 flights have been canceled in the United States, including nearly 2,550 canceled by Southwest. The US low-cost airline, one of the largest in the world, expects to be affected by the aftermath of winter weather for days to come. In the coming days, only a third of flights are expected to continue as planned.

The Department of Transportation speaks of an “unacceptable number of cancellations” and is investigating to what extent Southwest could have prevented those cancellations. The ministry is also reviewing whether the airline is following its own customer service guidelines, following reports that customer service is not working properly.

Travelers complain about long queues at airports and unreachable service staff:

A Southwest spokesperson said many company personnel and planes were stranded in various parts of the country due to winter conditions. “We’re very busy with this, trying to catch up and get back to normal in a safe way,” he says.

Although the winter weather in the United States has passed its peak, several places in the country are still warning of snowfall and ice. For example, in Buffalo, the second largest city in New York State, it is forbidden to drive on the road. According to local authorities, many residents of the town are unaware of this ban. That is why agents and military personnel were sent to Buffalo to enforce it.

The US National Weather Service expects the snow in New York to be over after today. “It’s still snowing now,” says a meteorologist from the meteorological institute, “but it’s nothing compared to what has fallen in recent days.” He adds that he will warm up quickly after today. Temperatures could reach 8 degrees Celsius on Thursday.

New York State has been hit by heavy snowstorms in recent days. Especially in and around Buffalo, buildings were covered in layers of snow and ice:

According to local authorities, at least 30 people have died in the Buffalo area due to winter weather. Among them are also people who died because aid workers could not reach them in time due to winter conditions.

In total, about sixty deaths have been caused by the weather in the United States in recent days.