![]() Maria Valenciano Ramos and her husband, Geronima Ramos Jr., were hoping to visit their daughter in Nashville this week, but their Southwest Airlines flight on Monday was canceled, they said. Some passengers said they didn’t receive an email or text message about their flight’s status, and instead learned through a notice on the company’s app, from Flight Aware or from family and friends. “I’m going to move forward with my vacation now and will likely get to spend hours on hold on the phone with customer service trying to rectify this,” Schelter said.įurious and weary travelers flooded Southwest on Twitter with reports of waiting in long lines that extended outside airport terminals, missing luggage that in some cases traveled onward despite canceled flights or piled up unclaimed for days, waiting on customer service calls for hours or repeatedly getting disconnected, and trying to navigate a glitchy website. even though she and her children, ages 9 and 12, were unable to catch a flight.īut Schelter struck out on a refund: A ticketing agent with Southwest Airlines said they couldn’t help her and instead offered travel vouchers. Consumers deserve strong protections, including an updated consumer refund rule.”Īfter driving five hours from Oakland to Los Angeles on Monday after her flight was canceled, Kate Schelter waited for hours in line at the Southwest terminal at LAX on Tuesday morning attempting to obtain a refund and retrieve her family’s luggage. “Many airlines fail to adequately communicate with consumers during flight cancellations. “The problems at Southwest Airlines over the last several days go beyond weather,” Cantwell said in a statement. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, said Tuesday that the committee will examine the causes of the disruptions and their effects on consumers. The Department of Transportation also said it was concerned about the “unacceptable” rate of cancellations and that it would be investigating whether they were controllable. “Our administration is working to ensure airlines are held accountable,” Biden tweeted Tuesday. Southwest’s meltdown reached the Oval Office, with President Biden writing on Twitter that airlines would be held responsible and directing aggrieved travelers to the Department of Transportation’s website to determine whether they’re entitled to compensation. Markey (D-Mass.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), members of the Senate Commerce Committee, said Southwest should not be able to claim flight cancellations were caused by recent winter storms, which would allow the airline to avoid reimbursing travelers.Ĭompensation should include not only rebooked flights, refunds, hotel rooms, meals and transportation, but also “significant monetary compensation for the disruption to their holiday plans,” the two senators said in a statement. ![]() ![]() “While we all understand that you can’t control the weather, this has clearly crossed the line from what’s an uncontrollable weather situation to something that is the airline’s direct responsibility,” he told reporters. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said weather was not the only factor that led to the Southwest Airlines meltdown. We recognize falling short and sincerely apologize.”īut U.S. ![]() Southwest Airlines blamed a catastrophic winter storm that swept across the northern half of the country over the holiday weekend for the cancellations, adding in a statement that “our heartfelt apologies for this are just beginning. John Wayne Airport in Orange County had 51 outbound Southwest flights canceled and seven delayed Tuesday morning, while San Diego saw some of the biggest disruptions, with 89 departing Southwest flights canceled and 28 delayed, according to FlightAware.ĭespite paying $60 for an early check-in, Roger and Jane Truesdale were among the hundreds of passengers at Burbank on Tuesday whose flights were canceled and were told the earliest they could fly out was Saturday. “I’m in flip-flops.”Įlsewhere in Southern California, 18 outbound Southwest flights - or two-thirds of its services - were canceled at Hollywood Burbank Airport on Tuesday, according to the mobile flight tracker Flightview. I’m in California,” said Robinson, whose relative suggested they drive to Denver. with his family to watch the Denver Broncos play the Rams at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Christmas Day, managed to snag a flight home on Thursday, but it is getting jostled by cancellations and other delays. Andy Robinson waited in line at the Southwest terminal for a hotel voucher after his flight home to Denver was canceled.
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