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The Aviation Industry as a whole was hardly affected by a huge winter storm last week, but the Southwest in particular knew Unprecedented chaos , canceling near 13,000 flights In the past few days, by NPR. Passengers are still blocked in the United States, and they can remain anchored in the foreseeable future. According to Flightaware data , from this morning, the southwest had canceled 2,508 of today's flights - 62% of its schedule - and tomorrow, 2,348 have already been ax.

Southwest allocated these cancellations to the storm, but the carrier also conceded that its obsolete systems have complicated the disturbances. Now, employees highlight the real story behind the mass cancellations of the Southwest - and they have advice for those who have had an impact on the airline problems. Read more to see what airline workers share on Reddit about the travel disaster.

Read this then: Southwest finally changes the way it takes flights .

Southwest currently works on a "reduced calendar", keeping about a third of its usual flights until it can be done Back on the right track ,, Wall Street's journal reported. In one video declaration December 27, CEO of Southwest Airlines Bob Jordan said the airline hopes to return to normal "before next week".

"We are doing everything we can to return to a normal operation, and please also hear that I am really sorry," said Jordan. He said that the "giant puzzle" was difficult to resolve due to the size of Southwest and his schedule, which is built "around communities, not hubs". Jordan underlined the storm and the icy temperatures in the cities where a large number of southwest flights were planned, leading to cancellations and a domino effect of the reverse.

"Our network is very complex and the functioning of the airline is counting on all parts, in particular the planes and crews remaining in motion towards the place where they plan to go," said Jordan. "With our large fleet of aircraft and flight crews in position in dozens of locations. And after the days to try to operate as much our full schedule throughout the holiday weekend , we have reached a decision point to considerably reduce our flight to catch up. "

He also noted that if "the tools we use to recover from the disturbance serve us well, 99% of the time", there is a blatant need for upgrade in order to avoid problems like this on 'coming. For their part, however, employees say that problems with existing technology are even more complex.

Southwest workers went to Reddit to explain why the airline is Actually struggling. "On behalf of all employees: we are sorry!" A thread that was also shared on Twitter can be read. "I will give it to your right - This merger was entirely caused by the South West. "" AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

The employee said that even if the problems may have been "triggered by the storm", the airline should be held responsible for its recovery efforts. "If you still hear" time "almost a week after the storm, that's not true," they wrote.

According to the employee's position, planning software has been "in the belly" and workers in the Southwest must now call the airline for planning. "If we had better technology that eliminated the need for telephone calls, it would have been repaired now," they noted.

A separate reddit position shared a declaration by a first southwest officer who also underlined the airline " archaic software "The officer wrote that they had spent two hours trying to contact their employer by phone, and the crews called" to pilot anyone, but the company says the system needs to 'A reset ".

They also dissipated rumors on a "lack of crew" or staged sick calls being to blame. "Absolutely not true at all," wrote the officer. "This is a fusion of the computer system."

Lyn Montgomery , President of the local section 556 of Twu, the union which represents the agents of Southwest, corroborated this when speaking with CNN affairs. "The telephone system that the company uses is I don't walk ", did she say." They are simply not inhabited with enough labor in order to give changes to planning to on-board agents, and this has created a training effect that creates chaos throughout the nation. ""

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Frustrated customers also had trouble getting in touch with the airline. NPR reported that some travelers did not even know that their flight had been canceled until they were checked online. In the initial post of Reddit, the employee recommended to avoid this problem and to do the Southwest entirely.

"If you are able to find alternative transport to your final destination, do it," reads the message. "Another airline, bus, train, Lyft, rental car, anything. Southwest will not be able to take you to your destination at any time in the coming days."

According to the employee estimates, the flights scheduled until December 29 should be canceled, but from December 30, flights can take off as planned. The first southwest officer, however, said that the company had "actually closed operations for the rest of the year".

Travelers have also been warned against the verification of a bag unless it is absolutely necessary, because the situation of the bag is "currently a disaster," wrote the first employee in the South West. "Plan not see your luggage recorded for at least a month. In the interest of 100%transparency, some bags will be lost by 30 days and more in the system."

In the middle of chaos, the American Ministry of Transport (DOT) tweeted that it was examining the situation and was "concerned about the Southwest unacceptable rate Cancellations and delays and reports of the lack of rapid customer service. "Transport secretary Pete Buttigieg Also Express In an interview with PBS Newshour, calling "unacceptable" Southwest actions.

"We are going to expect that they go beyond the letter of the law with regard to the way they treat passengers, making sure that they pay things like hotels, travel costs On the ground, meals and of course, reimbursements, "said Buttigieg in the interview, by NPR. "I'm going to look very closely to make sure they follow."

In his video statement, Jordan said that the airline would do things right and that he had spoken with Buttigieg to highlight the efforts that the airline is. "We always take care of our customers. And we are going to look and go beyond as they expected," said Jordan. "The teams work on all of this: the treatment of repayments, stretching their hands in a proactive manner and taking care of customers who face expensive detours and redirects, such as some examples."

The Southwest employee has echoed the need to find other ways to arrive where you have to go, republishing an update of the airline, who asked customers with a significant cancellation or delay between December 24, 2022 and January 2, 2023, to "submit exams for exam." Travelers who have their flight canceled are entitled to a reimbursement of their ticket and all associated costs (including luggage and allocation of seats), according to the dowry rules, reported NPR. However, reimbursement of things like hotels and other transport methods is more a gray area.