Southwest facing lawsuit after Christmas flights canceled, delayed

More than 15K flights were canceled between Dec. 22-30

Southwest Airlines is being sued by a passenger whose flight was canceled over the Christmas holiday rush.

The proposed class-action lawsuit was filed in a New Orleans federal court, claiming the airline only offered credit toward a future flight rather than a refund.

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Attorneys are also asking a judge to certify the lawsuit as a class action to include any other passengers.

This comes as the airline offered 25,000 frequent-flyer points worth more than $300 in flights.

Southwest included the offer in a letter — another apology for the meltdown — from CEO Bob Jordan.

“I know that no amount of apologies can undo your experience,” Jordan wrote. He added the airline is acting “with great urgency” to process refunds, return lost bags and handle requests for reimbursement of costs incurred by stranded travelers.

Dallas-based Southwest canceled more than 15,000 flights between Dec. 22 and Dec. 30, according to tracking service FlightAware.

The flight disruptions began with a winter storm that swept across the country. While other airlines recovered after a couple days, Southwest continued to struggle with crews and airplanes that were stranded far from where they were supposed to be.

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About the Author:

Brenda Argueta is a digital journalist who joined ClickOrlando.com in March 2021. She is the author of the Central Florida Happenings newsletter that goes out every Thursday.

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