Southwest Airlines took a sharp dive Tuesday after canceling the majority of its flights on Monday due to weather issues, and warned of ongoing cancellations for the remainder of the holiday week. Airline stocks traded up and down, but those with broader U.S. exposure took the heaviest hits.
Southwest on Tuesday said it was working to bring its air fleet and systems back into normal operation, while keeping safety as the primary objective.
"With more than half of the airports where we operate in the continental U.S. under duress from the storm, Southwest is uniquely affected given our size and structure," the company said in a Tuesday press release.
Southwest claims it is the largest carrier in 23 of the top 25 travel markets in the U.S.
The Wall Street Journal quoted Southwest CEO Bob Jordan in a Monday night interview saying, "we had a tough day today. In all likelihood we'll have another tough day tomorrow as we work our way out of this. This is the largest scale event that I've ever seen."
Jordan said the company planned to operate at about one-third capacity until crews were shuffled into the necessary positions. The capacity cuts could be extended, he said.
By late Tuesday morning, in overview, some 2,924 flights had been canceled with, into or out of the U.S., according to flight tracking service Flight Aware. Another 1,935 flights had been delayed. Southwest Airlines accounted for 2,538 of the canceled flights and 236 of the delays.
Airlines Stocks Uneven After Storm Impact
Meanwhile, United Airlines showed 66 canceled flights and 189 delays. Another 34 cancellations, and 237 delays, were from Delta Air Lines.
The interruptions reportedly left thousands of holiday weekend travelers stranded at airports across the U.S. The U.S. Department of Transportation released a statement saying that it would examine whether the disruptions "were controllable and if Southwest is complying with its customer service plan. "
Southwest spokesman Chris Perry told the New York Times that the company's "biggest issue at this time is getting our crews and our aircraft in the right places."
Southwest, United and some other airlines stock had begun to show signs of recovery in early December, climbing back above key levels of support. Passenger volumes had shown hints of recovery, though holding below pre-pandemic levels.
As of late morning trade Tuesday, Southwest Airlines stock was down 5.4% — up 13% from an early October low, with a year-to-date loss of 19%. Delta Air Lines traded 0.2% higher. United reversed early losses and gained 1.4%.
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