DOT sues Southwest, fines Frontier Airlines over chronic flight delays
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Southwest Airlines airplanes are serviced at their gates at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in May in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Photo: Gary Hershorn/Getty Images
Southwest Airlines is being sued and Frontier Airlines fined over chronic flight delays by the Department of Transportation, the DOT announced Wednesday.
Why it matters: Wednesday's announcement by the outgoing Biden administration's Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, comes days after the DOT fined JetBlue $2 million for chronic flight delays — the first time such a penalty had been imposed on an airline.
What we're watching: When asked for comment Wednesday evening on whether Southwest would petition the incoming Trump administration to withdraw the lawsuit, company spokesperson Lynn Lunsford said the airline "has kept an open dialogue with DOT and continues to invite the agency to engage in discussions about a reasonable settlement."
Driving the news: The U.S. Government and Buttigieg are seeking maximum penalties against Southwest for allegedly illegally operating multiple chronically delayed flights, per the lawsuit that was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on Wednesday.
- DOT alleges an investigation found that Southwest operated two "chronically delayed" services between April and August 2022 that resulted in 180 flight disruptions for passengers.
- Each flight between Chicago Midway International Airport and Oakland, Calif., as well as between Baltimore, Md., and Cleveland, Ohio, was chronically delayed for five consecutive months, according to the suit.
Separately, DOT issued Frontier Airlines a fine for "operating multiple chronically delayed flights."
- The airline faces $650,000 in civil penalties with $325,000 to be paid to the U.S. Treasury, per a DOT statement.
- The remaining $325,000 will be suspended if the carrier avoids operating any chronically delayed flights over the next three years.
What they're saying: "Airlines have a legal obligation to ensure that their flight schedules provide travelers with realistic departure and arrival times. Today's action sends a message to all airlines that the Department is prepared to go to court in order to enforce passenger protections," Buttigieg said in a statement.
- Lunsford said via email the airline was "disappointed that DOT chose to file a lawsuit over two flights that occurred more than two years ago" and noted there had been no other violations of the department's Chronically Delayed Flight policy since it was issued in 2009.
- "Any claim that these two flights represent an unrealistic schedule is simply not credible when compared with our performance over the past 15 years," she said. "In 2024, Southwest led the industry by completing more than 99% of its flights without cancellation."
- Representatives for Frontier declined to comment and representatives for President-elect Trump did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment in the evening.
Go deeper: The best (and worst) airports for on-time departures
