Shares of Southwest are paying for the airline’s “chronically delayed” flights
On Wednesday, the Department of Transportation said it filed a lawsuit against Southwest Airlines Airlines and issued a fine against Frontier Airlines, alleging that both carriers operated “chronically delayed” flights.
The term refers to flights flown 10 or more times per month that are over 30 minutes late more than half the time. The DOT alleges that two Southwest flight routes were chronically delayed for five straight months in 2022. Southwest shares are down more than 2% in early trading.
The DOT hit Frontier with a $650,000 fine for what it said were three chronically delayed flights. Earlier this month, the agency slapped JetBlue with a $2 million fine for routine delays on at least four flight routes — a first-of-its-kind penalty.
This week, Southwest announced it would freeze corporate hiring and pause most of its internships in an effort to cut costs.
The term refers to flights flown 10 or more times per month that are over 30 minutes late more than half the time. The DOT alleges that two Southwest flight routes were chronically delayed for five straight months in 2022. Southwest shares are down more than 2% in early trading.
The DOT hit Frontier with a $650,000 fine for what it said were three chronically delayed flights. Earlier this month, the agency slapped JetBlue with a $2 million fine for routine delays on at least four flight routes — a first-of-its-kind penalty.
This week, Southwest announced it would freeze corporate hiring and pause most of its internships in an effort to cut costs.
