BOISE, Idaho — The winter storms sweeping through the nation have been seriously affecting air travel, even here in Idaho. On Monday, Dec. 26, every flight coming into the Boise Airport was cancelled, except for one that was delayed and another that was diverted. Twelve out of fifteen departures were also cancelled.
Southwest isn't the only the only airline having problems. The slew of cancellations is in line with what's been happening all over the country, with most of the airlines. As of 8:30 p.m. MT., there have been 8,081 delays today in the U.S. and 3,951 cancellations.
However, Southwest seems to be the one that is cancelling the most flights. In a press release, the airline apologized and said that the weather has impacted customers and employees.
The apology doesn't really help the thousands of people that are stranded though. Some people are being told that they can't get on another flight for three to four days and there have been reports of luggage piling up at airports.
Rae Lopez and her family live in Boise. They waited in line for nearly six hours to rebook after a flight cancellation this morning from DIA to BOI.
They are on a flight to return Thursday and were told it was the last flight. Lopez said they were tired but doing okay.
"The line [to rebook your flight] wrapped around what seemed like the entire building," said Lopez. "We were there from 5:30 am and we finally got up to the front desk at 10:45 this morning."
Monique Scrivner lives in Star. She's still waiting to leave town to see her family in California and was supposed to depart on Christmas Eve.
"I was really expecting to go today, and it just didn't," said Scrivner. "It could be because other areas couldn't get their plane to leave, I'm assuming."
In Idaho, the majority of Southwest flights look like they will be cancelled for tonight at the least. KTVB contacted Shawna Samuelson, the communications manager at Boise Airport, she said that the Boise runways are open and optional and that she couldn't speak on behalf of the airlines.
Southwest is encouraging people to contact its help center if their flight has been cancelled.
For those customers that are worried about their financial outcomes, as well as their travel ones, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued the following statement.
"USDOT is concerned by Southwest’s unacceptable rate of cancellations and delays & reports of lack of prompt customer service. The Department will examine whether cancellations were controllable and if Southwest is complying with its customer service plan."
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