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Southwest Airlines flight cancellations continue to snowball

Hundreds of Southwest Airlines checked bags are piled at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A Southwest Airlines employee helps a traveler search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A Southwest Airlines employee helps a traveler search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A Southwest Airlines jet arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A worker pauses while sorting through a pile of unclaimed luggage cordoned off by caution tape inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A person works behind the Southwest Airlines ticket counter inside St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. Families hoping to catch a Southwest Airlines flight after days of cancellations, missing luggage and missed family connections suffered through another wave of scrubbed flights, with another 2,500 pulled from arrival and departure boards Wednesday. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A Southwest Airlines ground operations crew member waits to guide an arriving jet into a gate, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A person walks through luggage piled up around an unmoving baggage carousel inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A traveler looks at luggage in the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A worker pauses while sorting through a pile of unclaimed luggage cordoned off by caution tape inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) Wheelchairs and caution tape restrict access the baggage claim area and piles of luggage inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A pilot rides an escalator down to the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A person works behind the Southwest Airlines ticket counter inside St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. Families hoping to catch a Southwest Airlines flight after days of cancellations, missing luggage and missed family connections suffered through another wave of scrubbed flights, with another 2,500 pulled from arrival and departure boards Wednesday. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A Southwest Airlines jet arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines ground operations crew member moves unused luggage carts past an idle jet sitting on the tarmac, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers relying on Southwest Airlines to get them home experienced another wave of canceled flights Wednesday as pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline's meltdown.(AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines jet arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines jet passes unused luggage carts as it arrives, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines jet arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines employee helps a traveler search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A Southwest Airlines employee helps travelers search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Hundreds of Southwest Airlines checked bags are piled together at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A Southwest Airlines employee helps a traveler search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Ashlyn Harmon of New Orleans searches for her Southwest Airlines bags amongst hundreds of others at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. Harmon said her family's initial Southwest flight was cancelled on Christmas so they rebooked on American Airlines, although Southwest still shipped their bags to Midway. "We rebooked ourselves," she said. "I figure we can deal with refunds and all of that when we get back." She was searching for her own bag, which contains medication for her young son. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Rebekah Isaak of Chicago smiles as she learns her bags may have returned to Chicago from Denver as she searches amongst hundreds of other Southwest Airlines checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. Isaak's flight to Colorado was cancelled so she never left Illinois. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Hundreds of Southwest Airlines checked bags are piled together at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A ground operations crew member walks past a Southwest Airlines jet sitting idly at a gate, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines ground operations crew member waits to guide an arriving jet into a gate, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A person walks through luggage piled up around an unmoving baggage carousel inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A traveler looks at luggage in the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A worker pauses while sorting through a pile of unclaimed luggage cordoned off by caution tape inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) Wheelchairs and caution tape restrict access the baggage claim area and piles of luggage inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) Airline fees continue to escalate and travelers are willing to pay. (Getty Images) A person works behind the Southwest Airlines ticket counter inside St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. Families hoping to catch a Southwest Airlines flight after days of cancellations, missing luggage and missed family connections suffered through another wave of scrubbed flights, with another 2,500 pulled from arrival and departure boards Wednesday. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A Southwest Airlines jet arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines ground operations crew member moves unused luggage carts past an idle jet sitting on the tarmac, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers relying on Southwest Airlines to get them home experienced another wave of canceled flights Wednesday as pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline's meltdown.(AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines jet arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines jet passes unused luggage carts as it arrives, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines jet arrives at Sky Harbor International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines employee helps a traveler search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A Southwest Airlines employee helps travelers search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Hundreds of Southwest Airlines checked bags are piled together at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A Southwest Airlines employee helps a traveler search for bags amongst hundreds of other checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Ashlyn Harmon of New Orleans searches for her Southwest Airlines bags amongst hundreds of others at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. Harmon said her family's initial Southwest flight was cancelled on Christmas so they rebooked on American Airlines, although Southwest still shipped their bags to Midway. "We rebooked ourselves," she said. "I figure we can deal with refunds and all of that when we get back." She was searching for her own bag, which contains medication for her young son. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Rebekah Isaak of Chicago smiles as she learns her bags may have returned to Chicago from Denver as she searches amongst hundreds of other Southwest Airlines checked bags at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. Isaak's flight to Colorado was cancelled so she never left Illinois. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Hundreds of Southwest Airlines checked bags are piled together at baggage claim at Midway International Airport as Southwest continues to cancel thousands of flights across the country Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) A ground operations crew member walks past a Southwest Airlines jet sitting idly at a gate, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A Southwest Airlines ground operations crew member waits to guide an arriving jet into a gate, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix. Travelers who counted on Southwest Airlines to get them home suffered another wave of canceled flights Wednesday, and pressure grew on the federal government to help customers get reimbursed for unexpected expenses they incurred because of the airline’s meltdown. (AP Photo/Matt York) A pilot rides an escalator down to the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) Wheelchairs and caution tape restrict access the baggage claim area and piles of luggage inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A worker pauses while sorting through a pile of unclaimed luggage cordoned off by caution tape inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A person walks through luggage piled up around an unmoving baggage carousel inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A traveler looks at luggage in the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A pilot rides an escalator down to the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) Wheelchairs and caution tape restrict access the baggage claim area and piles of luggage inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A worker pauses while sorting through a pile of unclaimed luggage cordoned off by caution tape inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A person walks through luggage piled up around an unmoving baggage carousel inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A traveler looks at luggage in the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A pilot rides an escalator down to the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) Wheelchairs and caution tape restrict access the baggage claim area and piles of luggage inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A worker pauses while sorting through a pile of unclaimed luggage cordoned off by caution tape inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A person walks through luggage piled up around an unmoving baggage carousel inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) A traveler looks at luggage in the baggage claim area inside the Southwest Airlines terminal at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) Travelers wade through the line for service at the Southwest Airlines check-in counter in Denver International Airport, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) A Southwest Airlines jetliner head down a runway for take off from Denver International Airport Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) A traveler sleeps on a bench near the Southwest Airlines check-in counter at Denver International Airport, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) Brittany Kirk, 41, who arrived in Illinois on December 22 after a delayed flight from Denver, claims her lost luggage near the baggage carousel at Midway Airport in Chicago, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, after Southwest Airlines flights were cancelled and delayed during a winter storm. Problems at Southwest Airlines appeared to snowball after the worst of the storm passed. It cancelled more than 70% of its flights Monday, more than 60% on Tuesday, and warned that it would operate just over a third of its usual schedule in the days ahead to allow crews to get back to where they needed to be. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP) Airport staff looks at a tag on a pile of lost suitcases near the baggage carousel at Midway Airport, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, after Southwest Airlines flights were cancelled and delayed during a winter storm. Problems at Southwest Airlines appeared to snowball after the worst of the storm passed. It cancelled more than 70% of its flights Monday, more than 60% on Tuesday, and warned that it would operate just over a third of its usual schedule in the days ahead to allow crews to get back to where they needed to be. (Pat Nabong /Chicago Sun-Times via AP) Baggage waits to be claimed at the Southwest Airlines baggage claim Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, at Salt Lake City International Airport, in Salt Lake City. Many airlines were forced to cancel flights due to the weather, but Southwest was by far the most affected. Of the 2,890 flight cancellations in the U.S. early Tuesday, 2,522 were called off by Southwest, according to the tracking website FlightAware. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Baggage waits to be claimed at the Southwest Airlines baggage claim Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, at Salt Lake City International Airport, in Salt Lake City. Many airlines were forced to cancel flights due to the weather, but Southwest was by far the most affected. Of the 2,890 flight cancellations in the U.S. early Tuesday, 2,522 were called off by Southwest, according to the tracking website FlightAware. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Travelers wait in line at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, at Salt Lake City International Airport, in Salt Lake City. Southwest Airlines scrubbed thousands of flights again Tuesday in the aftermath of the massive winter storm that wrecked Christmas travel plans across the U.S., and the federal government said it would investigate why the company lagged so far behind other carriers. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) Southwest Airlines jets are seen at the John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, Calif., Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022. Southwest Airlines scrubbed thousands of flights again Tuesday in the aftermath of the massive winter storm that wrecked Christmas travel plans across the U.S., and the federal government said it would investigate why the company lagged so far behind other carriers. (AP Photo/Eugene Garcia) Airline staff walks around a pile of suitcases near the baggage carousel at Los Angeles International Airport Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, after Southwest Airlines flights were canceled and delayed during a winter storm. Southwest Airlines scrubbed thousands of flights again Tuesday after the massive winter storm that wrecked Christmas travel plans across the U.S. The federal government said it would investigate why the company lagged behind other carriers. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) Travelers collect bags at the Southwest Airlines baggage claim area in Denver International Airport Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) Travelers line up to collect bags at the United Airlines baggage claim area in Denver International Airport Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) Stranded passenger, Gwendolyn Johnston, of Love Field, Dallas, holds her 14-month-old daughter, Madison, as she waits with family members at the Southwest terminal at the Los Angeles International Airport, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022. Johnston's family visited Disneyland for the holidays with two other families. Now, all 11 members must book hotel rooms near LAX, as they won't be able to catch a return flight home in Texas until Jan. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) Travelers wade through the south security checkpoint in Denver International Airport Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) A traveler wades through the field of unclaimed bags at the Southwest Airlines luggage carousels at Denver International Airport, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Southwest Airlines flight cancellations continue to snowball