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Days after $140M fine, most delays, cancellations at Denver International Airport are Southwest Airlines'

December 24, 2023 / 12:33 PM MST / CBS Colorado

More than 500 flights delayed at DIA Tuesday after morning snowstorm

Southwest Airlines is again experiencing woes at Denver International Airport one year after an infamous 2022 holiday season meltdown and just days after the U.S. Department of Transportation penalized the company $140 million for that debacle.

As of around noon Sunday, 119 of the 231 total delays and 11 of the 15 cancellations at DIA were Southwest Airlines flights, according to FlightAware, a public flight tracking website. The airline attributes most of the cancellations and delays to fog in Chicago on Saturday.

"We had dense fog in Chicago that forced us to discontinue operating last night and into this morning," Chris Mainz, a Southwest Airlines spokesman, told CBS News Colorado. "We are up and running now in Chicago, but the delays you are seeing at DIA are a byproduct of the delays in Chicago."

Saturday's flight data shows 62 cancellations and 65 delays out of Chicago Midway International Airport and 14 cancellations and 199 delays at Chicago O'Hare International.

Last week, Southwest Airlines settled with the federal government for $140 million over a series of debacles that left countless people stranded and seeking other means of travel last holiday season, a story CBS News Colorado covered extensively at the time.

"Today's action sets a new precedent and sends a clear message: if airlines fail their passengers, we will use the full extent of our authority to hold them accountable," U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a Dec. 18 statement. "Taking care of passengers is not just the right thing to do - it's required, and this penalty should put all airlines on notice to take every step possible to ensure that a meltdown like this never happens again."

FILE - Travelers wait in line for service at the Southwest Airlines check-in counter at Denver International Airport on Dec. 27, 2022. Southwest Airlines will pay a $35 million fine as part of a $140 million agreement to settle a federal investigation into a debacle last December when the airline canceled thousands of flights and stranded more than 2 million travelers over the holidays. David Zalubowski / AP

Southwest previously agreed to pay more than $600 million in refunds and reimbursements to customers.

In total, Southwest will pay over $750 million for the 2022 holiday meltdown, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Southwest Airlines reported revenue for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2023, at over $25.4 billion.

Austen Erblat

Austen Erblat is a digital producer and assignment editor at CBS News Colorado and is Covering Colorado First. Originally from South Florida, he's been working as a journalist in Denver since 2022.

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