83 Percent Of Southwest Flights Canceled At Long Island MacArthur Airport: Report

RONKONKOMA, NY — Southwest Airlines canceled 15 flights, or 83 percent, of all scheduled flights at Long Island MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma by Tuesday afternoon, Newsday reported.

Thousands of Southwest passengers traveling after the holiday weekend were stranded after nearly 3,000 cancellations were announced earlier this week with the majority coming from Southwest. Southwest execs said the company planned to operate about one-third of its schedule over the next several days.

A Southwest spokeswoman told Patch Wednesday that while the company does not have specific city information to share, executives plan to operate a reduced schedule by flying about one-third of the company's schedule for the next several days.

The latest information, including a video of Chief Executive Officer Bob Jordan, is available on SWAMedia.com.

A site where customers can contact Southwest to rebook or request a refund, Southwest.com/traveldisruption, has been implemented, and "teams are finalizing a resource to provide additional assistance to customers with reuniting with lost or missing baggage."

A travel advisory is still in effect to offer customers "maximum flexibility" with rebooking, she said.

"The Southwest team is working to accommodate customers on available flights as soon as possible, and we apologize for the inconvenience to our customers," she wrote in an email.

Patch has reached out to the airport's operator, Islip Town, for comment.

Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said his department would hold Southwest accountable for the cancellations.

"This is an unacceptable situation," Buttigieg told CNN. "Their system really has completely melted down and our department will be holding them accountable … both to get them through this situation and to make sure this can’t happen again."

In his video statement, Jordan said he was "truly sorry," adding that he had been in contact with Buttigieg.

Speaking to CNN, Buttigieg said he had conveyed to the CEO the department's expectation that the airline would go above and beyond to take care of passengers.

"Here's why this giant puzzle is taking us several days to solve," Jordan said in his statement.

Cailin Loesch contributed additional reporting to this story.