Southwest Airlines\u00a0has canceled more than 200 weekend flights and delayed hundreds of others, the continuation of a rough month for the nation’s largest domestic carrier and its passengers.<\/p>\n
Southwest canceled 156 Friday flights \u2013 far more than any U.S. carrier \u2013 and has already canceled 67\u00a0Saturday flights, according to flight tracker FlightAware.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tardy flights are a big issue, too: Southwest has 541 delayed Friday flights, or 15% of its flights, according to FlightAware.<\/p>\n
The issues come a week after Southwest canceled or delayed hundreds of flights due to two separate technology issues and a week after American Airlines struggled with operational woes during the busy Father’s Day travel weekend and said it would proactively cancel nearly 1,000 July flights to give it more breathing room when weather and other issues crop up.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Southwest spokesman Dan Landson said the airline canceled flights ahead of summer storms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“To proactively manage our operation, we implemented\u00a0a scheduled reduction ahead of expected storms and probable air traffic control initiatives,” he said in a statement.<\/p>\n
He did not specify any\u00a0storms, but the airline’s representatives on Twitter have been telling frustrated passengers the issues include residual effects of Thursday storms in Chicago and Denver, for example.<\/p>\n
Landon said travelers are being rebooked on other flights. But some travelers are finding the next flight isn’t always the same day given the busy summer travel season.<\/p>\n