Southwest Airlines canceled thousands of flights nationwide Sunday, according to flight-tracking site FlightAware. And according to the site, some cancellations are continuing Monday morning.
As of 7 a.m., FlightAware showed that 349 Southwest flights had been canceled, with another 184 delayed.
The Dallas-based airline said over the weekend that the disruptions were due to air traffic control issues and weather.
“We’re working diligently to accommodate affected Southwest Customers as quickly as possible. We’re asking our Customers whose travel is affected to explore our self-service rebooking options and to check their flight status on Southwest.com,” an airline spokesperson wrote inaFacebook post.
FAA spokesperson Steve Kulm said there were no staffing shortages reported.
"No FAA air traffic staffing shortages have been reported since Friday," Kulm said in a statement to KMGH. "Flight delays and cancellations occurred for a few hours Friday afternoon due to widespread severe weather, military training, and limited staffing in one area of the Jacksonville Air Route Traffic Control Center. Some airlines continue to experience scheduling challenges due to aircraft and crews being out of place. Please contact the airlines for details about current flight schedules."
Social media speculation surrounding the disruption centered on possible labor action taken by Southwest employees due to the recent vaccine mandate imposed by the airline.
However, the union representing Southwest pilots told The Denver Post that its members were not participating in any strike.
