Meltdown tips

Delta CEO Ed Bastian said Wednesday morning operations were beginning to improve after days of struggling to recover from a tech outage. 

Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, July 24, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

Delta is facing increasing pressure from its customers and Washington as a meltdown caused by an IT outage on Friday continues. 

The Biden administration is opening up an investigation into Delta Air Lines as the carrier's operational meltdown stretched to a fifth day of mass cancellations in the wake of an IT outage affecting industries worldwide on Friday.

The Department of Transportation announced Tuesday that it is launching an investigation into Delta Air Lines as the carrier struggles to recover from a meltdown that has led it to cancel thousands of flights.

It's been a tumultuous few days at U.S. airports. Airlines have canceled thousands of flights since an IT outage affecting Microsoft clients Friday upended operations at industries around the world — including air travel.

Delta Air Lines canceled around 20% of its schedule on Monday as it grapples with lingering flight disruptions that were caused by a major IT outage. 

Cancellations at Delta Air Lines continue to pile up more than 72 hours after an IT outage affecting industries around the world first disrupted travel Friday.

The real-life Y2K. “Blue Screen of Death.” The IT outage that has affected everything from Times Square billboards to payrolls has also led to a worldwide meltdown in the airline industry. 

Southwest Airlines' settlement terms with the Department of Transportation (DOT) are kicking in — leading to future customers receiving compensation if they experience a significant flight delay. As part of the settlement sparked from the airline’s 2022 holiday meltdown, Southwest has agreed to award $75 or more in transferrable vouchers to travelers who reach their destination at least three hours late due to an airline-caused disruption or cancellation, according to the DOT.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Tuesday, December 19. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Southwest Airlines canceled 16,900 flights and stranded more than 2 million fliers between December 2022 and early January 2023, as operations took a nosedive amid severe winter storms that disrupted holiday air travel across much of the United States last year. But while other major U.S. carriers recovered from the weather-fueled delays and cancellations, Southwest struggled to normalize operations and continued to cancel flights in the days following Christmas 2022. Now, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is making it very clear that that level of failed service comes with serious consequences.

Southwest Airlines will be fined $140 million for violating customer protection laws during its 2022 holiday travel operations failure, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced Monday morning.

The Department of Transportation has ordered Southwest to pay a $140 million fine for numerous consumer-protection violations that resulted from last year’s holiday travel meltdown. 

With holiday travel coming up, travelers may be thinking back to last year, when a spate of severe winter storms grounded flights across the country just around Christmas, and an operational meltdown at Southwest Airlines dragged on for nearly a week after.

As millions of passengers begin to fill airports for the 2023 holiday season, Southwest Airlines is still facing consequences for last year's holiday travel meltdown. The Department of Transportation (DOT) issued a record $140 million fine against Southwest on Monday, while also introducing new consumer protections and enforcements to help avoid another meltdown, which left thousands of flights canceled and passengers across the United States stranded, from happening again.  “We’re pleased to have reached this consumer-friendly settlement, which includes a new, industry-leading policy to compensate Customers during significant delays and cancellations,” Southwest Airlines shared in a statement about the settlement.  After the holiday travel meltdown of 2022, the Department of Transportation conducted an extensive investigation which found the airline failed to provide prompt refunds and general service to «hundreds of thousands of Southwest customers».  As a result of the investigation, the Department of Transportation says that Southwest will be financially responsible for at least $750 million which includes refunds, future compensation for tickets, and more. In addition to the fine and payments, the DOT enforcement also requires that Southwest establish a $90 million reserve fund for future flight delays and cancellation.  “This industry-leading benefit will ensure that Southwest passengers impacted by any future significant disruptions will receive not only flight rebooking, hotels, and food during the delay, but also timely compensation from Southwest due to the inconvenience,” the DOT release shares.  Looking ahead to the holiday travel season that is currently underway, Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said the airline is “absolutely ready” in a recent interview, and that the airline has taken many steps to ensure reliable air service,  Airline passengers this holiday can also utilize new tools from the Department of Transportation, including an interactive dashboard which shows their rights when flying.  “For those who are planning to fly.

The Transportation Department on Monday announced a $140 million fine against Southwest Airlines over a meltdown last winter that disrupted travel for about two million people during the holiday season.

Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan vowed Christmas travel would be smoother this year following last year’s meltdown that saw thousands of flights canceled and customers stranded.

Southwest Airlines is expecting to have a happy holiday season, even as it shakes off the memory of last year's operational collapse.

The technical glitch which caused last week’s flight chaos in the UK was a “one in 15 million” event, according to air traffic service NATS.

Two months. That’s how long Southwest Airlines expects there to be an impact on bookings from its massive holiday meltdown that disrupted millions of travelers over Christmas and New Years.