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Southwest Says Extreme Weather Is a Growing Concern for Airlines

  • Preparing based on historic norms no longer works, COO says
  • Carrier briefs workers on findings of December meltdown review
A traveler looks for luggage in the Southwest Airlines baggage claim area at Oakland International Airport in California, on Dec. 28, 2022.

A traveler looks for luggage in the Southwest Airlines baggage claim area at Oakland International Airport in California, on Dec. 28, 2022.

Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Southwest Airlines Co. is learning the hard way about climate change, blaming extreme weather as a culprit in a meltdown that stranded more than 2 million passengers over the year-end holidays. 

The carrier is changing the way it forecasts and responds to severe storms as part of a series of reforms to prevent a repeat of the late December disruptions that left crews and aircraft scattered across 50 airports and cost it nearly $1.2 billion. The decision was prompted by an internal review and another from consultant Oliver Wyman Inc., which Southwest says it’s briefing employees about this week.