CHICAGO (WLS) — So far Sunday morning, nearly four dozen flights were canceled at Midway Airport.
A Southwest Airlines spokesperson said dense fog is to blame.
According to FlightAware, Midway Airport has the the most cancellations across the board.
Southwest Airlines statement:
We’re working with our Customers whose travel is impacted by fog at Chicago Midway that began Saturday night and prevented inbound aircraft from landing, forcing some diversions and subsequent flight cancelations. With visibility remaining below required operational minimums throughout the night and expected to continue through daybreak, we’ve modified our planned start for today (Sunday) at Chicago Midway. We have all-hands on deck as our Employees are working to quickly to take care of our Customers and accommodate them on alternative flights. Chicago Midway is our fourth busiest airport operation, with more than 200 departures a day scheduled over the holiday weekend. The fog at Midway canceled about 2% of our total flights on Saturday (177 out of 4313 ) and less than 1% of our total flights early on Sunday (53 out of 4242).
Passengers have been waiting for their bags for hours in baggage claim with little information.
A passenger told ABC7 her flight for Fort Myers was canceled at around 8 p.m. Saturday, and she’s been at the airport waiting ever since.
Another passenger was hoping to see his mom for Christmas, but his flight was delayed multiple times and then canceled. He said the flight he rebooked for later in the day was canceled just minutes after he made the reservation.
This year’s flight drama comes after Southwest’s meltdown around Christmas last year, when the airline canceled 17,000 flights, leaving more than 2 million passengers stranded.
Just last week, the airline was hit by the federal government with a $140 million fine as a result of the last year’s travel nightmare.
The Department of Transportation said Southwest has already paid $600 million in reimbursements and refunds to passengers.
Passengers at Midway remain livid Sunday morning and say they are getting little guidance, and they have no idea when they’ll get their bags.
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