For more than a week, Southwest Airlines has struggled through a historic meltdown that put both its reputation and people's travel plans in jeopardy.
It started with a historic winter storm that swept across the nation around Christmas. Mass cancellations and delays sent hundreds of thousands of people scrambling to rebook flights and accommodations.
But while other airlines were able to recover after the storm, Southwest struggled. The airline cancelled more than 2,500 every day for multiple days last week.
Southwest put the blame on weather and a surge in travelers while experts say the airline's point to point system stranded planes and crews across the country.
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After a few more hiccups towards the end of the week, Southwest flights were back in the skies Monday.
In a statement to NBC5, the Dallas-based airline said they were operating a normal schedule, with nearly 4,000 flights on Monday. Any cancellations were due to weather, including heavy snow in Denver, a spokesperson said in a statement to NBC 5 on Monday.
"We're operating a normal schedule today and are pleased with the Operational performance over the past few days," the spokesperson said.
Inside Dallas Love Field it was a much calmer scene. Gone are the long lines at the ticket counters and rows of unclaimed baggage. Left are the stories of travelers’ canceled flights and disrupted plans.
Jaymie Sheffield was dropping off her son whose original flight to Tampa was canceled by the airline last week.
“He missed his grandpa’s wedding and going to see his dad for Christmas,” said Sheffield.
The family lives in Mineola and received an overnight text message from Southwest stating the flight was canceled and the next availability would be the following week.
“We didn’t get a phone call. It was just canceled. No explanation. Nothing,” Sheffield said.
Etedal Asmar decided to delay a trip to see her sister in Chicago.
“I was scheduled for one last week but I didn’t take a chance and rescheduled,” Asmar said.
For the Alvarez family, the disruption meant more time with their adult children.
“They were supposed to leave Thursday, but they canceled the flight so they got on today,” said mother Maria Alvarez. “It was a good thing for us because we got to spend New Year’s too with them.”
Chef Robert Hutson flew from Minneapolis to St. Louis to Dallas before taking a train to Shreveport to help cater a bowl game.
His return flight was canceled and he was stuck in Shreveport for an extra four days.
“I’m better,” said Hutson. “I was slightly ticked off because I was canceled twice.”
Southwest has promised to make things right with customers by offering refunds and reimbursement for travel expenses. The airlines said it could take weeks to work through those requests.
GETTING YOUR MONEY BACK
Federal law requires the airline to offer you a refund within 20 days on a flight that they've canceled so you should be able to get your money back for your ticket.
The airline has promised to make things right with customers but has been vague on the details other than directing people to request a refund or reimbursement through a link on their website. Click here to access it.
You will need to submit receipts for those expenses through the online form, so make sure you have those saved.
Keep in mind, this only impacts people who were impacted with cancellations or significant delays between Christmas Eve and January 2, 2023.
The airlines says it could take weeks to work through those requests and experts warn there aren't guarantees.
If you don't have any luck with Southwest, check which credit card you've used to pay for the flight and extra expenses.
Depending on the travel protection benefits it offers, you could still get back some money.
Some travel credit cards have this protection built in and you might not know it. Just call your credit card company to find out what they can do to help.