Southwest’s strong 2022 rebound soured by holiday debacle

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN
AP Business Writer

Southwest Airlines is anticipating a money losing quarter after a holiday debacle led to nearly 17,000 canceled flights and thousands of people, traveling to see family and friends, being stranded. It is a devastating turn financially and reputationally for the Dallas carrier, which led all U.S. airlines expects a quarterly revenue loss of $400 million to $425 million. In early December, before the holiday meltdown, Southwest projected fourth-quarter revenue would rise by up to 17% over the same period in 2019, before the pandemic.