GAMBRILLS, Md. — The U.S. Department of Transportation said Monday it would examine whether Southwest Airlines is abiding by its customer service policies after the Dallas-based company canceled thousands of flights on the day after Christmas.
In a message on Twitter, the U.S. Department of Transportation said it was "concerned by Southwest's unacceptable rate of cancellations and delays & reports of lack of prompt customer service."
USDOT is concerned by Southwest’s unacceptable rate of cancellations and delays & 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.
— TransportationGov (@USDOT) December 27, 2022
The tweet also included a link to Southwest's customer service plan.
Southwest canceled nearly 3,000 flights – about 70% of its total fleet – Monday, more than any other airline. Customers in airports across the country complained of long lines to reschedule flights and unanswered calls to Southwest's customer service telephone number.
The airline issued an apology Monday and acknowledged "continuing challenges" impacting customers and employees "in a significant way that is unacceptable."
"And our heartfelt apologies for this are just the beginning," the statement added.
Southwest's statement said its crews and fleet were being repositioned "to best serve all who plan to travel with us."
The airline said it was prepared for the holiday weekend, but the winter storm "forced daily changes to our flight schedule at a volume and magnitude that still has the tools our teams use to recover the airline operating at capacity."
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Southwest went on to say it would "work to make things right for those we've let down," including its employees.
"We recognize falling short and sincerely apologize," the statement concluded.
Southwest CEO Bob Jordan told The Wall Street Journal in an interview Monday that the airline would operate just over a third of its usual schedule to allow crews to get into the right positions.
"We had a tough day today. In all likelihood, we'll have another tough day tomorrow as we work our way out of this," he said Monday evening. "This is the largest-scale event that I've ever seen."