Holiday travel: United, American cap fares amid Southwest cancellations

FILE – A United Airlines jetliner taxis for take off from Denver International Airport, Thursday, May 26, 2022, in Denver. Planes from the U.S. to Europe were packed this summer, and United Airlines figures the same thing will happen next year. United announced Wednesday, Oct. 12, that it will again increase its peak summer schedule across the Atlantic. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

by: Colleen Flynn

Posted: Dec 28, 2022 / 04:48 PM MST

Updated: Dec 28, 2022 / 04:48 PM MST

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

DENVER (KDVR) — Two major airlines announced they would cap fares to select cities in order to help travelers whose flights were canceled by Southwest Airlines find alternative ways of getting to their destinations.

A spokesperson with United Airlines told FOX31 the cap is in effect from noon Dec. 27 through Dec. 31 and is mainly for U.S. and Latin American locations serviced by Southwest Airlines.

“We continue to get people to their destinations as safely and quickly as possible this busy holiday season and our latest effort includes capping fares in select cities to make sure our flights are available to as many customers as possible,” the United spokesperson said.

American Airlines also said it would cap fares during the holiday travel backup to help stranded passengers get home or to wherever they are going.

Fox Business said the airlines have announced caps after tweets insinuated they were inflating prices following the massive number of Southwest cancellations.

“We’re doing our part to help get people where they need to be and we’re putting a cap on fares for select cities,” American wrote in a Twitter reply according to Fox Business.

Southwest makes up 53% of DIA’s canceled flights

According to FlightAware at 1 p.m. Wednesday, 53% of DIA flights canceled on Wednesday were from Southwest. The airline said it’s a combination of weather and other factors, while the flight attendants’ union is blaming it mainly on outdated software creating confusion among employees within the company.

Southwest’s CEO said in a video released Tuesday that the airline would reduce the number of flights to try and catch up.

“Our network is highly complex, and the operation of the airline counts on all the pieces on where they are planned to go,” Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said.

DIA figuring out what went wrong

While hundreds of travelers have been stranded at Denver International Airport, officials are working to figure out what went wrong and how to keep it from happening again.

After-action reviews are being conducted with Southwest, United and Frontier airlines, according to the airport’s CEO Phillip A. Washington.