Fingers have been pointed at the transportation secretary’s failure to act on known airline issues for the current crisis.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is continuing to face pressure over the Southwest Airlines scandal which has resulted in thousands of canceled flights and many left stranded in airports across the country.
While some have pointed the finger of the major disruptions at the airline itself, others have accused Buttigieg of failing to act on previous warnings about the potential for travel chaos, or impose tougher punishments on airlines who fail to provide adequate customer service.
Many other airlines canceled flights over the festive period as a result of the severe winter storm which gripped the entire country. However, Southwest is still struggling, canceling more than 15,000 flights so far due to a mixture of the weather combined with staffing and scheduling issues.
« They need to make sure that these stranded passengers get to where they need to go and that they are provided adequate compensation, not just for the flights itself … but also things like hotels, like ground transportation, like meals because this is the airlines’ responsibility, » Buttigieg said.
However, William McGee, a former aircraft dispatcher who is a senior fellow at the American Economic Liberties Project, suggested that the current situation at Southwest is a direct result of Buttigieg’s failure to respond to industry practices which result in canceled flights.
Buttigieg has also been accused of not going far enough in his proposed strengthening of airline refund regulations.
