Trump admin waives $11 million Southwest 2022 holiday meltdown fine
A Southwest aircraft and luggage carts at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA on Monday, December 27, 2021.
İlyas Nouvelage | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The Trump administration announced that the last $11 million fine imposed on him would be forgiven. Southwest Airlines This stems from the carrier’s holiday crisis, which has left nearly 2 million passengers stranded after nearly 17,000 flights were canceled in 2022.
The Department of Transportation under the Biden administration fined the Dallas-based airline $140 million in late 2023, but the agency later credited the airline with all but $35 million of that amount for compensation it gave customers.
In an order filed Friday, the Department of Transportation cited Southwest’s more than $1 billion investment in its technology and operations since the holiday crash as the reason for the additional loan. Southwest was supposed to make the final payment next month.
“Southwest Airlines is grateful [Transportation] Secretary [Sean] “We thank Duffy and the DOT Team for recognizing Southwest’s significant investment in modernizing our operations,” Southwest said Saturday. “Over the past two years, Southwest has successfully completed an operational transformation that directly benefits our Customers through industry-leading on-time performance and the percentage of flights completed without cancellation,” Southwest said Saturday.
