How many flights did Southwest Cancelled?

Southwest Airlines faces investigation, $220M loss over holiday travel disaster The Department of Transportation says it is looking into the airline's flight scheduling practices and will hold it accountable for refunds. The 16,700 canceled flights cost Southwest $800 million.



In 2025 and leading into early 2026, Southwest Airlines faced several operational "waves" of cancellations, though nothing compared to the catastrophic "Meltdown" of 2022. In August 2025, the airline canceled over 750 flights in a single week due to a combination of severe thunderstorms, staffing shortages, and technical glitches at busy hubs like Dallas Love Field and Denver. Additionally, in February 2026, travel reports indicated another significant disruption where over 750 flights were scrapped due to a mix of winter weather and localized technical issues. Southwest has also been "proactively" canceling hundreds of flights as part of a strategic route pivot; for example, they cut 247 flights from their July-September 2025 schedule to stem losses in struggling markets like St. Louis. While their "on-time performance" has generally improved as they transition toward a "hub-and-spoke" model, these periodic mass cancellations remain a point of scrutiny for the carrier as they work to rebuild passenger trust through more robust scheduling and modernized crew-management software.

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Catch up quick: Sparked by severe weather and made worse by the airline's business model and tech issues, Southwest Airlines saw more than 15,000 flight cancellations in December 2022.

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Most major airlines canceled or delayed flights, but Southwest Airlines canceled at least 70% of its flights Monday -- more than 2,600 -- due to a reported system meltdown. The chaos continued Tuesday, with the airline canceling 62% of flights for the day and canceling 62% of flights on Wednesday.

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Southwest has often experienced more cancellations than other major carriers. Major carriers as defined by US Bureau of Transportation Statistics; 2020 cancellations elevated because of the Covid-19 pandemic; Data for each year represent January to September, the most recent month available for 2022.

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Will I get a refund if Southwest cancels my flight? If your flight is cancelled by Southwest and you choose to cancel your trip as a result, you are entitled to a refund upon request for the unused transportation – even for non-refundable tickets.

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If you cancel, you're eligible to receive 100% of your ticket value as a refund to your original form of payment. A Southwest flight credit from a previous reservation that are applied toward a Business Select or Anytime Fare will be refunded as a flight credit.

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Top 10 best domestic airlines 2023 Southwest Airlines is the second highest-rated domestic airline, with a score of 5.56. While the airline only scored 2 out of 5 for its in-flight entertainment, Southwest excelled thanks to its baggage allowance policy.

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Southwest Airlines is forecasted to grow earnings and revenue by 28.9% and 5.9% per annum respectively. EPS is expected to grow by 30.8%. Return on equity is forecast to be 17.5% in 3 years.

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American Airlines and its partners – 2.81% of flights canceled. Frontier Airlines – 2.87% of flights canceled. Spirit Airlines – 3% of flights canceled. Southwest Airlines – 3.26% of flights canceled.

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American Airlines and its partners – 2.81% of flights canceled. Frontier Airlines – 2.87% of flights canceled. Spirit Airlines – 3% of flights canceled. Southwest Airlines – 3.26% of flights canceled.

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Chief among them are outdated internal processes and information technology. Southwest's scheduling system hasn't changed much since the 1990s, according to Captain Casey Murray, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association. Southwest has also acknowledged the company's outdated infrastructure.

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Allegiant Air More than a quarter of those flights were delayed or canceled. In fact, 27.31 percent of the airline's flights were delayed, while just 72.69 percent of its flights were on time. There you have it. Of all the US airlines, Allegiant has the most delays and cancellations.

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You ARE entitled to a full refund via your original method of payment EVEN if you booked a nonrefundable Wanna Get Away fare IF Southwest cancels the flight (and not you). You will likely have to be the one to ask them for it, but you are entitled.

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