The German Exception

Southwest has long been viewed as the gold standard for airline customer service. But not this time. For the airline and millions of its passengers, 2022 ended in misery. Dallas-based Southwest canceled nearly 17,000 flights, part of an epic operational meltdown that might rank as the industry’s worst ever. It was surely the costliest ever, erasing an estimated $725-825 million (!) just during the fourth quarter. That includes lost revenue, customer reimbursements, and additional labor expenses. For context, Southwest, in 2019, earned about $3 billion in operating profits.