As Southwest flight cancellations continue, Buttigieg vows to hold airline accountable - CNN

(CNN) — Relief is inactive a fewer days distant for passengers booked with Southwest Airlines this week, arsenic the beleaguered hose continues to grapple with what US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has referred to arsenic a implicit meltdown of the system.

Out of the astir 2,700 cancellations already made for Wednesday flights within, into oregon retired of the United States arsenic of 1:15 a.m. ET, 2,497 of them are operated by Southwest, according to formation tracking website FlightAware. Meanwhile, the website shows the hose has already canceled different 2,392 flights for Thursday.

Airports astir affected by the Wednesday cancellations are Denver International, followed by Chicago Midway International, Baltimore/Washington International, Dallas Love Field, Nashville International, Harry Reid International Airport successful Las Vegas and Phoenix Sky Harbor International.

Buttigieg says helium spoke straight to Southwest CEO Bob Jordan connected Tuesday astir the thousands of flights that person been canceled this week with nary contiguous denotation of erstwhile passengers tin rebook.

"Their strategy truly has wholly melted down," Buttigieg told CNN's Wolf Blitzer connected Tuesday.

"I made wide that our section volition beryllium holding them accountable for their responsibilities to customers, some to get them done this concern and to marque definite that this can't hap again."

Tuesday astatine a glimpse

More than 3,200 flights within, into oregon retired of the United States were canceled connected Tuesday, according to FlightAware.

Of those canceled flights, immoderate 2,693 were those of Southwest -- a stunning 84% of each canceled flights successful the United States.

Long lines of travelers attempting to rebook oregon marque connections were witnessed astatine Southwest summons counters astatine aggregate US airports connected Tuesday, portion immense piles of unclaimed bags continued to turn arsenic passengers struggled to reclaim their luggage successful airports including Chicago's Midway International, Harry Reid successful Las Vegas and William P. Hobby Airport successful Houston.

Passenger Trisha Jones told CNN astatine the airdrome successful Atlanta that she and her spouse had been traveling for 5 days, trying to get location to Wichita, Kansas, aft disembarking from a cruise astatine Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

After her formation retired was canceled, she stayed with relatives, past rerouted to Atlanta to prime up a connecting flight.

"We were fortunate, due to the fact that we were successful Fort Lauderdale -- my household lives successful the Tampa bay country truthful we were capable to rent a car to spell spot my household for Christmas," Jones said. "We've seen a batch of families who are sleeping connected the floor, and it conscionable breaks my heart."

Buttigieg: 'A batch of cleaning up to do'

Southwest has blamed the question catastrophe connected respective factors, including wintertime tempest delays, assertive formation scheduling and outdated infrastructure.

"From what I tin tell, Southwest is incapable to find adjacent wherever their ain crews are, fto unsocial their ain passengers, fto unsocial baggage," said Buttigieg, adding that helium besides spoke with leaders of the airline's unions representing formation attendants and pilots.

The caput said helium told CEO Jordan that helium expects Southwest to proactively connection refunds and disbursal reimbursement to affected passengers without them having to ask.

"I conveyed to the CEO our anticipation that they going to spell supra and beyond to instrumentality attraction of passengers and to code this," helium said.

Buttigieg told CNN the Department of Transportation is prepared to prosecute fines against Southwest if determination is grounds that the institution has failed to conscionable its ineligible obligations, but helium added that the section volition beryllium taking a person look astatine accordant lawsuit work problems astatine the airline.

"While each of the different parts of the aviation strategy person been moving toward betterment and getting amended each day, it's really been moving the other absorption with this airline," said Buttigieg.

"You've got a institution present that's got a batch of cleaning up to do," helium said.

Southwest CEO issues video apology

Jordan apologized to passengers and employees successful a video statement released by the institution connected Tuesday evening.

"We're doing everything we tin to instrumentality to a mean operation, and delight besides perceive that I americium genuinely sorry," Jordan said.

While Jordan acknowledged problems with the institution response, the connection suggested that helium did not foresee monolithic changes to Southwest's procedures successful effect to the wide cancellations.

"The tools we usage to retrieve from disruption service america good 99% of the time, but intelligibly we request to double-down connected our already-existing plans to upgrade systems for these utmost circumstances truthful that we ne'er again look what's happening close now," said Jordan.

"We're optimistic to beryllium backmost connected way earlier adjacent week."

Is determination thing passengers tin do?

Southwest has warned that this week's cancellations and delays are expected to proceed for respective much days.

So what should customers do?

"First things first, travelers who are inactive stuck waiting connected Southwest and request to get determination should effort to publication a formation with different hose arsenic soon arsenic imaginable ... close now, really," said Kyle Potter, enforcement exertion astatine the question proposal website Thrifty Traveler, successful an email to CNN Travel precocious Tuesday afternoon.

"Every hose successful the state is jam-packed close now, truthful your likelihood of adjacent uncovering a spot -- fto unsocial astatine an adjacent halfway decent terms -- get smaller by the hour," Potter said.

"Travelers successful the heavy of this should beryllium definite to prevention each their receipts: different flights, a rental car, nights astatine the hotel, meals, anything," Potter said.

If you've been near successful the lurch and your efforts to scope a lawsuit work cause are going nowhere, the laminitis of Scott's Cheap Flights suggests trying an planetary number.

"The main hotline for US airlines volition beryllium clogged with different passengers getting rebooked. To get done to an cause quickly, telephone immoderate 1 of the airline's dozens of planetary offices," Scott Keyes said.

"Agents tin grip your preservation conscionable similar US-based ones can, but there's virtually nary hold to get through."

Click here to get planetary numbers that Southwest has antecedently posted.

Southwest: 'Keep your receipts'

Southwest spokesperson Jay McVay said successful a quality league astatine Houston's William P. Hobby Airport connected Monday nighttime the hose volition bash everything imaginable to close the challenges passengers person experienced, including "hotels, thrust assistance, vans ... rental cars to effort and marque definite these folks get location arsenic rapidly arsenic possible."

He promised that each customers, adjacent those who had already near the airdrome oregon made alternate arrangements connected their own, would besides beryllium taken attraction of.

"If you've already left, instrumentality attraction of yourself, bash what you request to bash for your family, support your receipts," McVay relayed. "We volition marque definite they are taken attraction of, that is not a question."

What's incorrect from a pilot's constituent of view

Speaking to CNN connected Tuesday, the vice president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, Capt. Mike Santoro, said the problems facing Southwest were the worst disruptions he'd experienced successful 16 years astatine the airline.

He described past week's tempest arsenic a catalyst that helped trigger large method issues.

"What went incorrect is that our IT infrastructure for scheduling bundle is vastly outdated," helium said. "It can't grip the fig of pilots, formation attendants that we person successful the system, with our analyzable way network.

"We don't person the mean hub the different large airlines do. We alert a point-to-point network, which tin enactment our crews successful the incorrect places, without airplanes."

He added: "It is frustrating for the pilots, the formation attendants and particularly our passengers. We are bushed of apologizing for Southwest, the pilots successful the airline, our hearts spell retired to each of the passengers, they truly do."

CNN's Andy Rose, Andi Babineau, Adrienne Broaddus, Dave Alsap, Nick Valencia, David Goldman, Leslie Perrot, Carlos Suarez and Ross Levitt contributed to this story.