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Amid the mass flight cancellations from Southwest Airlines, which have even prompted an investigation from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), one pilot says he and his colleagues have warned Southwest "for years" that the recent chaos was bound to ensue.
"We have been telling them this for years," Captain Mike Santoro, the vice president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association (SWAPA), told CNN on Tuesday. "This is the largest disruption I've seen in my 16 years at the airline. It's embarrassing."
A powerful winter storm over the Christmas weekend forced many Americans to delay their holiday plans, but as other airlines scrambled to amend flight schedules, travelers flying Southwest have had little luck taking off.
As of Tuesday morning, more than 2,909 Southwest flights have been canceled and nearly 770 flights have been delayed, according to FlightAware. More than 70 percent of Tuesday's flight cancellations in the United States are Southwest.
Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan called it the "largest-scale event" he's ever seen at the company.
On Monday, the DOT issued a statement expressing concern over the airline's "unacceptable rate of cancellations and delays and reports of lack of prompt customer service."
"The Department will examine whether cancellations were controllable and if Southwest is complying with its customer service plan," the federal agency tweeted.
Although the airline is up against unique obstacles—like the storm hitting Denver and Chicago, two of Southwest's largest hubs, particularly hard—Santoro's remarks suggested that much of the disruption could have been prevented.
He said Southwest has "had a meltdown like once a year for the past five or six years," and that during every annual after-action review, SWAPA would warn operations that the scheduling software and systems need to be fixed. But those pleas were made "to no avail."
"They never update it. They never invest the money and resources they need to. So, we continue to have these issues," Santoro said on Tuesday.
SWAPA President Captain Casey Murray echoed his colleague's frustrations.
"We've been having these issues for the past 20 months," Murray told CNN. "We've seen these sorts of meltdowns occur on a much more regular basis and it really just has to do with outdated processes and outdated IT," which he said haven't changed much over the last two decades.
"It's phones, it's computers, it's processing power, it's the programs used to connect us to airplanes—that's where the problem lies, and it's systemic throughout the whole airline," Murray said.
In a Monday statement, Southwest Airlines vowed to "make things right for those we've let down, including our Employees."
"With no concern higher than ultimate Safety, the People of Southwest share a goal to take care of each and every Customer. We recognize falling short and sincerely apologize," the statement read.
Update 12/27/22, 1:49 p.m. ET: This article was updated with a statement from Southwest Airlines.
About the writer
Katherine Fung is a Newsweek senior reporter based in New York City. She has covered U.S. politics and culture extensively. ... Read more