Southwest Cancels Hundreds of Flights, Delays Over a Thousand

Now it’s Southwest Airlines’ turn to face the realities of reconciling a quicker-than-expected return to travel with a lack of workers.

The Dallas-based airline said it would cancel nearly 300 flights this weekend and delay more than 1,000 more, according to USA Today.

Southwest spokesman Dan Landson said the airline canceled flights ahead of summer storms.

“To proactively manage our operation, we implemented a scheduled reduction ahead of expected storms and probable air traffic control initiatives,” he said in a statement.

But thunderstorms are not necessarily the cause of the cancelations in this instance, but more of a residual effect.

American Airlines suffered the same fate last week and said it would be canceling or delaying flights through July, in large part because its operations are affected by a lack of workers and proactively canceling nearly 1,000 July flights gives it more breathing room when weather and other issues crop up.

Southwest appears to be doing the same thing this weekend. The airline has had a tough week, canceling or delaying hundreds of flights due to technology issues and then announcing its beloved CEO, Gary Kelly, was stepping down in February of 2022.

Landon said Southwest travelers are being rebooked on other flights, but those flights might not be on the same day as their original travel plans.