TAMPA, Fla. — Following the Southwest Airlines meltdown during Christmas week, we wanted to know if the airline’s errors would negatively affect their future with travelers.
Starting Dec. 21 to 29, Southwest Airlines canceled more than 15,000 flights.
The company said cancellations from the historic extratropical cyclone winter storm crippled their technology system. It took 10 days for the airline to catch up.
At Tampa International Airport (TPA), we met travelers who got stuck at their destinations—sleeping on airport floors, spending days without their luggage, including clothes and hygiene products, and ultimately having to rebook their flights on other airlines for thousands of dollars.
Even after it all, they told us that they would still book with Southwest Airlines in the future.
“I think they’ll get it. They’ve always been great in the past. Sometimes stuff like this has to happen for them to become better,” said Riverview Resident Glenn Rodriguez, who got stuck in Denver before Christmas.
“About 30% of my clientele travel with Southwest, and the reason why they travel with Southwest is because of the direct flights,” explained Lisa Thompson, owner of Mouse Class Travel, which primarily books vacations to Disney World.
Many of her clients got stuck in the cancellation chaos.
“The majority of the destinations were coming into Orlando or leaving Orlando. One was going to Denver, one was leaving Fort Myers and going back home to Chicago,” Thompson exclaimed.
Elliott Corona, CEO of Travel Shops US, said the cancellations affected his business from multiple angles. Corona books international travel and car rentals out of TPA.
“It was pretty much a mess,” he explained. “They couldn't get here to Tampa, and some other clients that made it to Tampa, they couldn't get out when they needed to.”
He let customers cancel free of charge, but he said that cost came out of his company.
“The time that we spent, you know, cleaning the vehicles, getting ready for inspection, then taking it to the airport… all that operation, it cost money and time,” Corona said.
Still, travel agents like Thompson and Corona think Southwest will make the necessary changes to not only right their wrongs but keep flights full and flying.
Thompson said people have “come to expect consistency with the brand."
"So although this is a growing pain for Southwest with their computer technology going down, some weather issues, I do think that the people will come back because it's a brand they trust," she continued.
Corona added that they’ll still use the company as well.
“I will say that this will not affect, in general, our partnership with Southwest and us using their services," said Corona. "We have seven years of using them. Not only their flights, but they also have promotions like vacation packages that we also work with them.”
But they do have a few words of advice for future travelers.
“I did have a client tell me this tip that may be helpful are the air tags,” Thompson said. “So Apple's air tags, if you have them in your luggage, you can locate them just like with the ‘Find My’ app like if you lose your iPhone. She found that when the airport told her they couldn't find her luggage, she was able to show them the app and show them where it was located in the airport.”
That, as well as travel protection, allows travelers to shorten or extend vacation packages during the trip.
And if you’re using a travel agent, choose someone local to the area that will know what hotels might still have availability if something like Southwest’s meltdown should ever happen again.
Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said in a statement on Jan. 5, "We've already taken immediate actions to mitigate the risk of this ever happening again, and the review work will inform additional actions and investment as well."
He added that the company spends about $1 billion a year on technology, and they are continuing to "upgrade the tools and processes."
Travelers should know that airlines are legally obligated to refund flights that are canceled or significantly delayed.
The airline is also giving those customers 25,000 rapids rewards points, good for a flight equaling $300.
Find the full release from Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan on Jan. 5, 2022 below:
Hello, everyone. Bob Jordan here, with an update from Southwest Airlines.
Restoring the trust of our Customers and Employees is everything to us.
We disrupted holiday travel for millions when some of our systems and processes became stressed by Winter Storm Elliott, bringing disruptions that were far reaching. We are taking immediate steps to address the massive inconvenience as well as the issues that contributed to it.
I've said it before, but I can't say it enough how sorry I am for the impact these challenges have had on our Employees and our Customers. We have a long and proud record of delivering on expectations, and when we fall short, we aim to do the right thing.
In addition to our heartfelt apologies, we immediately began an all hands on deck effort to take care of our Customers. We are making great progress by processing tens of thousands of refunds and reimbursements a day and will not let up until we have responded to every impacted Customer. We also sent a goodwill gesture of 25,000 Rapid Rewards Points this week to all Customers significantly disrupted. That goodwill gesture is above and beyond the refunds and reimbursements work that continues around the clock.
Since the moment our recovery started, we've had large teams of Employees reuniting disrupted passengers with their belongings. I'm pleased to share that as of today, we have the vast majority of these bags either reunited or on their way to our Customers.
Our Employees came together as they always do. It's humbling to see the Southwest spirit at work under such adverse conditions.
Our Leadership team is focused on a thorough review of the disruption with all the needed resources involved, and I expect that work to be completed swiftly. We've already taken immediate actions to mitigate the risk of this ever happening again, and the review work will inform additional actions and investment as well. We've asked our unions to participate in this review effort as well, and likewise we are in regular communication with our Board of Directors.
As a company we spend about $1B a year on technology. And we'll will continue to upgrade the tools and processes our Employees use to serve you, our valued Customers, and make sure those items deliver on our mission: to connect People to what's important in their lives through friendly, reliable, and low-cost air travel. We have a proud 51-year history of doing just that, and I'm confident we'll continue to deliver on this all-important Promise.
