The U.S. Department of Transportation has waived the final $11 million payment of the $140 million civil penalty it levied in 2023 on Southwest Airlines for its December 2022 holiday operational disruptions, according to a Friday DOT consent order.
Southwest initially was to pay the U.S. government $35 million over a three-year period, with the $105 million balance of the fine covered by credits and offsets. The carrier made two $12 million payments each on Feb. 5, 2024, and on Jan. 31, 2025. However, rather than have the U.S. Treasury collect the final $11 million payment on Jan 31, 2026, DOT is providing Southwest with a credit in that amount "for significantly improving its on-time performance and completion factor through its $112.4 million investment in its Network Operations Control."
DOT noted that "this approach is in the public interest as it incentivizes airlines to invest in improving their operations and resiliency, which benefits consumers directly."
"Southwest Airlines is grateful to Secretary [Sean] Duffy and the DOT team for recognizing Southwest's significant investments in modernizing our operations," the carrier said in a statement. "During the last two years, Southwest successfully completed an operational turnaround that directly benefits our customers."
RELATED: DOT Fines Southwest $140M for 2022 Holiday Disruptions