INDIANAPOLIS — Flight cancellations, specifically with Southwest Airlines, continue to cause frustrations for travelers at airports across the country, including at Indianapolis International Airport, where Southwest Airlines had canceled a majority of its flights for the week after Christmas.
Here's a breakdown of Southwest's flight cancellations in and out of IND since Christmas, according to tracking site FlightAware:
- Monday, Dec. 26: 45 flights canceled (86%)
- Tuesday, Dec. 27: 40 flights canceled (76%)
- Wednesday, Dec. 28: 40 flights canceled (76%)
- Thursday, Dec. 29: 38 flights canceled (73%)
- Friday, Dec. 30: 4 flights canceled (7%)
Multiple travelers told 13News the airline didn't notify them of the cancellations before they got to the airport for their flights. Now they're stuck waiting in long lines to try to reschedule their flights.
"We didn't, they said there's been issues with their ticketing system with getting text messages and emails out because my number is in for getting texts, and we haven't heard anything," said Delaney Patterson, who is trying to get back to the Baltimore area. "We've mostly been able to get into the app today without too much trouble, especially as a guest. As soon as we logged in, it's out for maintenance. So there's been some miscommunication. They, of course, were very apologetic at the counter. It's not their fault, and everyone's out for vacation. Getting a person in there to fix it seems to be an issue."
The line on Monday stretched all the way from the Southwest Airlines counter, through the hallway where the other airline counters are, and around the corner toward the food court and TSA security checkpoint.
Angela Davis endured a Christmas Eve flight cancellation, and a second one was canceled Monday just before its scheduled departure.
"And I don’t know what to do about it. I want to do something about that, I want something done about that, but you can't call because you can't get through. I've called, I've called them for days now," Davis said.
The cancellations at IND, unfortunately, were just a small fraction of the more than 2,700 flights Southwest had canceled across the country by 5 p.m. on Monday. That's about 67% of its flights that were canceled. Another 754, about 18% of its flights, were delayed.
And on Tuesday, Southwest had canceled another nearly 2,600 flights by 2 p.m.
For comparison, Spirit Airlines had the second-most cancellations Tuesday for a U.S. carrier with 85, about 11% of its scheduled flights.
Other affected airports include Denver, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Seattle, Baltimore and Chicago.
Lines continue to be long at the Southwest ticket counter Tuesday.
Chris Alexander from Fishers was in line, trying to get some answers. He and his family of five are supposed to have a family vacation in Aruba. But his connecting flight out of Indy got canceled. He couldn't get through on the phone to customer service either.
"I've been calling since our flight was canceled this morning. Can't get through. Just hangs up," Alexander said. "It's unfortunate we can't get any communication, not even online. So I've tried to do it online, on the phone, anything. And it's just not working. So ... I came here to talk to somebody live."
Alexander said his family is considering driving to their connecting flight, but he needs to know the status of it first.
Another passenger, Rochelle, spent Christmas visiting her grandson in Indy. She's trying to get home to Georgia, but Monday night got an email from Southwest saying her flight was canceled. She ended up rebooking through Delta, paying an extra $500 for that ticket. When she tried to call Southwest for answers, she said they kept her on hold for hours, and then hung up.
"I don't have that money to spend, but I have to get home, otherwise I stay here in the airport until when — maybe the first? It's the noncommunication," she lamented. "They said that they have the manpower to answer the phone calls? I don't think so. Being on hold for three hours and 38 minutes? It's not good manpower. And then I got kicked out of the queue."
In Phoenix, a Southwest employee informed passengers over the airport intercom Monday that they "do not have crew to work the flights" and that 90% of their flights have been canceled. The announcement, which can be heard in the video below, told Phoenix passengers to just go home because they weren't going to be able to get rebooked on other flights for four days.
Southwest blamed winter weather for the cancellations — despite other airlines having considerably fewer cancellations — and asserted that the disruptions weren't a staffing issue.
"We were fully staffed and prepared for the approaching holiday weekend when the severe weather swept across the continent, where Southwest is the largest carrier in 23 of the top 25 travel markets in the U.S. This forced daily changes to our flight schedule at a volume and magnitude that still has the tools our teams use to recover the airline operating at capacity," Southwest said in a statement Monday night.
Travel experts recommend having a backup plan for anyone planning on flying Southwest soon. Book on a different airline and save that receipt.
The U.S. Department of Transportation is investigating Southwest right now, and if they determine this was a "controllable scenario," travelers could get reimbursed for booking on a different airline.
Also, check your credit card for travel protection. Some cards will be able to reimburse you. And don't forget, federal law says you are entitled to a full cash refund or rebooking through Southwest.
Stay vigilant and keep calling if you can't get through.
"In this scenario, if your flight is canceled, you can ask for a cash refund ASAP," said Katy Nastro with Scott's Cheap Flights. "They have to make those refunds promptly. 'Prompt' is kind of the loose word, being that it could be up to seven business days for that money to get back to your credit card. But regardless, you are entitled to that money back."
People have been taking to social media, desperately trying to get a new flight. So much so that Southwest's Twitter page is flooded with consumer complaints and that the airline has pinned a tweet at the top of their page that says they're experiencing "high call and social inquiry volumes." The airline is advising people to check their flight status and explore self-service options on Southwest's website, here.
The airline said it's repositioning crews and anticipates additional changes with an already reduced level of flights as we approach the coming New Year's holiday travel period. Southwest also said it's working with customers whose travel plans will change with specific information and their available options.
To read Southwest's full statement, click here.
Experts say you can try calling the Southwest Airlines International Hotline number, where agents will be able to assist your U.S. reservations with little to no wait time. Click here to get a list of international numbers that Southwest has posted online.