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Processes and computer systems that haven't changed since the 1990s are to blame, Captain Casey Murray, the president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, tells CNN.
“It’s phones, it’s computers, it’s processing power, it’s the programs used to connect us to airplanes," he said, "that’s where the problem lies, and it’s systemic throughout the whole airline."
The federal government said it plans on investigating. Customers can request full refunds for their flights, or receive a flight credit.
The bulk of the cancellations were out of Denver International Airport (183). As of 9:10 a.m. Wednesday, here's which East Coast airports had Southwest Airlines cancellations and delays, according to FlightAware.
- Baltimore/Washington: 112 flights, 83 delays
- LaGuardia: 39 cancellations, 80 delays
- Boston Logan: 31 cancellations, 142 delays
- Pittsburgh: 24 cancellations, 39 delays
- Philadelphia: 23 cancellations, 82 delays
- Newark: 21 cancellations, 165 delays
- JFK: 15 cancellations, 201 delays
"The tools we use to recover from disruptions serve us well 99 percent of the time," Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said in an apology video, "but clearly we need to double down on our already existing plans to upgrade systems for these extreme circumstances so we never again face what's happening right now."
Jordan also said the "giant puzzle" is taking several days to solve due to Southwest being the largest carrier in the country that built its schedule around communities, not hubs, making it a highly-complex network.
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