The Latest Breaking News from Southwest

U.S. Department of Transportation officials are investigating Dallas-based Southwest Airlines over whether the carrier’s holiday meltdown that stranded millions of travelers was caused by overscheduling flights.

The Transportation Department is looking into whether the airline scheduled more flights than it could handle during a December storm when 16,700 flights were canceled.

The federal government is investigating whether Southwest Airlines knowingly scheduling more flights than it could handle in December, when it ended up canceling nearly 17,000 flights

A viral video shows a couple flying Southwest and blocking a row of seats while searching for the ‘right person’ to take the seat next to them

Delta Air Lines takes top spot with Alaska Airlines second, Southwest remains high despite holiday meltdown

As Southwest Airlines spiraled out of control during its 16,700 cancellation holiday meltdown, so did the plans for passenger Brenda Angeles, pilot Seth Kornblum and flight attendant Kristen Loucks.

Dallas-based Southwest Airlines has come to a tentative contract deal with the union representing its 450 dispatchers that would give immediate 17% raises and scheduling improvements, a positive sign for the carrier after a rocky year of labor relations.

The cancellations left thousands of passengers and staff stranded during the holidays.

Early January saw Southwest Airlines cutting two-thirds of its flights following an operational meltdown stemming from an arctic storm. A canceled flight often leaves passengers in a conundrum over whether to request a refund or sit and wait for the airline to put them on the next available flight.

Travel meltdowns at Southwest Airlines and the FAA have exposed how deeply we depend on outdated or unreliable computer systems. Yet as Io Dodds discovers, cancelled flights and ruined holidays are only the tip of the iceberg

The airline loves apologizing but it does not seem to be taking its next potential flight disruption all that seriously.