The Trump Administration Has Relented: Southwest Airlines Waives $11 Million Fine Over 2022 Holiday Meltdown
In a surprising move, the US Department of Transportation announced on Saturday that it would waive an $11 million fine imposed on Southwest Airlines as part of a larger settlement. The airline had been fined $140 million for its handling of a major meltdown during the 2022 holiday travel period, which left over two million passengers stranded.
Southwest agreed to pay $35 million in cash fines over three years and provide an additional $90 million worth of travel vouchers to passengers delayed by at least three hours due to an airline-caused issue or cancellation. In response, the airline committed to investing more than $1 billion in its operations to improve performance and reliability.
In a written order, the US Transportation Department cited Southwest's investment plans as the reason for waiving the remaining fine, which was due by the end of January. The department noted that the airline had taken significant steps to address its issues, including implementing new policies and procedures to prevent similar meltdowns in the future.
The decision to waive the fine appears to be a recognition of Southwest's efforts to reform and improve its operations following the 2022 meltdown. While the settlement remains in place, this latest move suggests that the airline has made sufficient progress to avoid further penalties.
In a surprising move, the US Department of Transportation announced on Saturday that it would waive an $11 million fine imposed on Southwest Airlines as part of a larger settlement. The airline had been fined $140 million for its handling of a major meltdown during the 2022 holiday travel period, which left over two million passengers stranded.
Southwest agreed to pay $35 million in cash fines over three years and provide an additional $90 million worth of travel vouchers to passengers delayed by at least three hours due to an airline-caused issue or cancellation. In response, the airline committed to investing more than $1 billion in its operations to improve performance and reliability.
In a written order, the US Transportation Department cited Southwest's investment plans as the reason for waiving the remaining fine, which was due by the end of January. The department noted that the airline had taken significant steps to address its issues, including implementing new policies and procedures to prevent similar meltdowns in the future.
The decision to waive the fine appears to be a recognition of Southwest's efforts to reform and improve its operations following the 2022 meltdown. While the settlement remains in place, this latest move suggests that the airline has made sufficient progress to avoid further penalties.
Southwest Airlines is really stepping up their game! $11 million fine goes out the window and they're still committing over a billion dollars to upgrade their operations? That's huge 
Interesting how the government is recognizing their efforts to reform and improve after that crazy 2022 holiday meltdown. Hope this sets a good precedent for airlines to prioritize passenger experience 
and now they get a free pass? it's about time they fixed their issues tho, 1 billion investment is no joke 
like Southwest did make some changes to their ops and stuff, but $11 million is still a lot of $$$ 
I mean, who thought it was a good idea to serve dry chicken and stale crackers on a plane?! I swear, every time I fly Southwest (which is my fave btw), I'm so excited for takeoff, but then I realize they're gonna charge me an arm and a leg for a basic sandwich. And don't even get me started on the whole refund policy... anywayz, glad to hear about Southwest getting off scot-free 
. But at the same time, $11 million is a pretty big chunk of change... and it's not like they just got off scot-free. The fact that they have to invest over a billion dollars in their operations to get back on track is actually kinda cool 
about this news!!! I was totally freaking out when they announced the fine and I couldn't believe an airline could just do that to its customers 
) and realized they needed to make some serious changes.
Can't wait to see them follow through on those promised changes! 
So I'm loving this news about Southwest waiving that $11 million fine 
It just shows how far they've come since those crazy holiday travel days back in 2022 
I mean, who can forget being stuck at the airport for hours with no updates? It was super frustrating. But it's awesome to see them taking responsibility and making changes to improve their performance 
The $1 billion investment plan is a huge step forward too - that should help them prevent similar meltdowns in the future 