Southwest Airlines announced it is making improvements to prevent a systemic failure similar to what was seen in December, when the airline had to cancel nearly 17,000 flights after a winter storm.
The airline is promising to increase staffing around the holidays and to purchase more de-icing equipment for its planes. Southwest also announced upgrades to its computer systems.
SOUTHWEST ADMITS MAJOR FAILURE AS CONGRESS GRILLS AIRLINE OVER MASS FLIGHT CANCELLATIONS
“We understand the root causes that led to the holiday disruption, and we’re validating our internal review with the third-party assessment. Now, we expect to mitigate the risk of an event of this magnitude ever happening again,” Southwest Airlines President and CEO Bob Jordan said in a statement. “Work is well underway implementing action items to prepare for next winter — with some items already completed. I want to thank our Employees and Customers for their patience and grace, and we’re resolved to emerge an even stronger airline.”
The company is touting its three-part tactical action plan, which includes accelerating operational investments, improving winter operations, and cross-team collaboration.
As part of the plan, Southwest says crew scheduling and customer phone lines “will be upgraded for better surge protection and efficiency during periods of high call volumes.” The airline also says that “Network Planning and Network Operations Control Teams” will be organized under one “senior leader.”
“I’m very encouraged by the work underway to address the challenges we faced in December. Our operational performance this year has been among the best in the industry, and we’re committed to completing our action items while also running a safe, reliable operation supported by our Legendary Customer Service that has made us famous throughout our 52-year history. I’m confident in our path forward and truly believe our best days are ahead,” Southwest COO Andrew Watterson said in a statement.
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The new plans aim to prevent a repeat of December 2022, when the airline canceled more than 4,500 flights on Dec. 25 and Dec. 26 due to weather conditions. The mass cancellations caused the airline to begin a “reset” of its system, which caused more cancellations for the rest of the week. Nearly 17,000 Southwest flights were canceled over the holiday week, with thousands more delayed.
The airline is facing several investigations over the mass cancellations, including from the Senate. Last month, Watterson admitted during a Senate hearing that the December fiasco happened because they “did not have enough winter operations.”
