Column: Flight cancellations ruined the holidays

We all know what happens on planes — the vast majority of the time, you kink your neck and sit next to the talkative Sally who can’t stop talking about her third divorce. 

If you aren’t next to Sally, you’re next to her kid, who happens to be three months old, hates flying and isn’t afraid to let the whole plane know. Not only are you stuck next to the crying baby, but the free headphones the airline gives you aren’t loud enough and won’t cancel out any of the noise.

But I would take any of those scenarios, even if I was on Spirit Airlines, if it at least meant I was on the plane and going somewhere. 

“Attention all passengers, flight number (whatever it was) to Honolulu has been delayed.” 

This notification flashes on my phone on Dec. 26, showing the first sign of trouble on my way back to Oahu from Maui after spending Christmas there with my brother. 

An hour later, another notification threatens to drain all the fun from the trip and instead bring anxiety when I read, “Attention all passengers, flight number (whatever it was) to Honolulu has been canceled.”

You’ve got to be kidding. 

Out of the group I was with in Maui, I was honestly the last person who should’ve been worried. Everyone else had work the next day, but I just simply wanted to get back to a shower, considering we had been sleeping in hammocks on the beach for the previous three days.

We booked another flight with Southwest, but after a few hours, that flight was also delayed and then canceled. Eventually, we drove to the airport and booked a flight with Hawaiian Airlines instead.

“I will say, it was a huge bummer to our trip. That sucked,” my brother, Tucker Caldwell, said.

Little did we know at the time, our flight wasn’t the only one affected – it was a problem all over the country. 

According to an article from the New York Times, over 3,800 flights across the U.S. had been canceled on Dec. 26, and over 7,400 flights had been delayed.

FlightAware, a flight tracking website, showed Southwest had the biggest meltdown, with more than 2,800 flights canceled — close to 70% of their total. My Honolulu flight was one of them. 

In a media news release from Southwest on Dec. 22, they announced, “Challenging working and travel conditions, especially in Denver and Chicago, have resulted in disruptions to Southwest’s nearly 12,000 scheduled flights Wednesday, Dec. 21 through Friday, Dec. 23.”

Southwest released another media news release on Dec. 26  apologizing for all of their delays and cancellations and warning of a continued reduced schedule for the next following days to recover. 

“This safety-first work is intentional, ongoing, and necessary to return to normal reliability, one that minimizes last-minute inconveniences. As we continue the work to recover our operation, we have made the decision to continue operating a reduced schedule by flying roughly one third of our schedule for the next several days,” the release said. “On the other side of this, we’ll work to make things right for those we’ve let down, including our Employees.”

Although Southwest took the brunt of it, they weren’t the only airline struggling with winter storms. 

My flight with Delta Airlines back to Utah on Dec. 29 was delayed eight hours less than 24 hours before it was scheduled to take off. 

The delay would have caused me to miss my layover, so I had to rebook another flight for much later that night. Luckily, Delta gave me a $15 food voucher and 10,000 SkyMiles points for the inconvenience. 

Karlee Inman, another holiday traveler flying with Southwest, said her flight from Utah to Hawaii was canceled on Dec. 28 only six hours before takeoff. She was trying to get home to get to work the next day. 

“I scrambled to find another flight that cost me an arm and leg,” Inman said. “I am a big fan of Southwest, always have been, but it did put a bad taste in my mouth about it. They screwed over a lot of people.” 

Not only did flight cancellations cause some angry travelers, it also caused problems with hotels and rental cars. 

“My parents landed in Hawaii trying to rent a car at the airport, and they had no cars,” Inman said. “The guy at the service desk told them it was because of all the flight cancellations.”

In an email to the Statesman, Southwest said although the disruptions are now minimal, they are working to give more support to their “valued Customers.” 

“We look forward to the opportunity to address any needs of our Customers over the coming days as we strive to return to our previous level of Southwest Hospitality and reliability,” a Southwest spokesperson wrote.

If you had a flight delay or cancellation during the holiday season with Southwest, you can request reimbursements and refunds at https://www.southwest.com/traveldisruption/.

According to an article from the Wall Street Journal, the airline also offered 25,000 frequent-flyer miles points on Jan. 3 to all passengers who were affected by the meltdown.

I appreciate the effort the airlines are taking to try to make amends. They can’t control the weather but it shows they understand how they ruined a lot of plans for thousands of people, especially since it was at a popular travel time.

And if it happens to you at any point in the future, which I’m sure is inevitable if you travel often, then my brother has a word of advice.

“Keep a positive mind about it,” Caldwell said. “It is a big deal, and it can change a lot of plans and even cost a lot of money, but the biggest thing is positivity — it’s no one’s fault.”

-Jacee.Caldwell@usu.edu

Featured photo by Jacee Caldwell