52 thoughts on “Forty Southwest Hawaii Flights Canceled Today. Should You Be Concerned?”

  1. I’m not flying any carrier to anywhere until Biden quits ordering people and companies how to run their lives and businesses. If he wants the economy to tank, then so be it. If he wants it to grow,as he claims he does then it will take the rich and powerful to tell him to knock it off.

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    1. Aloha Skip. Mahalo for not flying. That will mean more availability for the rest of us. And less chance of some crazed maskless passenger delaying our flights.

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      1. I did wear a mask on my last flight back in December of 2020. Sad to see reports of people causing delays ad disturbances over a mask. Stupid or drunk or both?
        I don’t want to get caught up in that either!
        It would be nice if people who want or need to fly would just follow the rules they implicitly agreed to when they bought a ticket.

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  2. i don’t know about any games the management of swa may be playing with its scheduling, but i agree with their decision to mandate vaccination or testing for their flight staff. this is a public health measure involving appropriately developed, tested and manufactured drugs that are literally life-saving. of course it is individual choice whether or not to comply with the mandate. and it is of course appropriate that there be consequences for failing to comply. this is an unfortunate but straightforward matter.

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    1. Thank you William. I agree. My family has an upcoming trip to 3 islands starting on Nov. 7. It’s been hard enough wondering if it’s going to happen at all let alone having flights cancelled at the last minute. We qualified for the Southwest companion pass in 2020 and were going to come for our 35th anniversary. Fortunately, Southwest extended the companion pass perk through December of 2021. All of our flights from Florida and in Hawaii are on SW. They have already made a few minor adjustments.

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  3. Hello all
    Good for them, it’s time to stand up to this attack on our constitution. So proud they stood up for themselves. Don’t back down Southwest employees, make it hurt.

    Van

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    1. This doesn’t have anything to do with constitutional rights. It only has to do with choices. And choices have consequences.

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      1. Vaccine mandates are all about prioritizing safety. Requiring vaccines is no more an infringement on an employees rights then requiring the pilots to pass a FAA Physical or subject employees to required training mandates. The job does come with a certain amount of responsibility and passenger safety should be number one.
        Simple fact is a vaccinated employee is far less likely to spread Covid to a passenger or fellow employee, if you want to work for an airline that should be important to you.

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    2. Go get um South West!!! I’m a private pilot with access to a few aircraft. Can’t make it to Hawaii. But my girlfriend is not vaccinated and the rules for indoor dining need civil disobedience. Think lawsuit ADA laws.

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  4. Their pilots union is suing the company over vaccine mandates, they are a Texas company and that certainly provides some clue were much of their employees perspective on mandates are coming from and no other airline had massive “weather” cancellations….
    I’m wondering what’s going to happen inter island. Hawaiian has mandated vaccines for their employees and SWA, whose crews fly in from the mainland to fly inter island for one day then go home, has not.

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  5. Southwest Airlines is a great American Company that brings much Aloha to the State of Hawaii. I am confident they will resolve this issue quickly and we can all fly with confidence on SWA!
    LUV Southwest Airlines!

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    1. SWA has been a major negative impact on the state of Hawaii. I know I will take grief for saying what I have stated in the past but the over population of tourists directly attributed to SWA is unhealthy for the people, infrastructure and the environment of Hawaii.
      Our islands can only sustain so many people at a time and the greed of SWA making Hawaii so “accessible “ will have locals paying the long term costs.
      Before everyone states the obvious…yes we are dependent on tourism, but don’t benefit from tourist numbers that are not sustainable.
      Mahalo for your updates gentlemen.
      Aloha

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      1. Well said Chris…Aloha and SWA is like oil and water…Hawaii simply cannot handle SWA’s push to expand at all cost to Hawaii. We are an island state and cannot support their business plan like Las Vegas or Orlando can. They are a bad fit for Hawaii.

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  6. We left Honolulu on Thursday for a few days in California on our way home. No issues leaving Honolulu at all. But yesterday, flying from San Jose to Chicago was a nightmare. We were not affected as much as many others, we were not canceled, but delayed and our non stop was changed to a stop in Long Beach. Then we were told to stay on the plane; then it was get off the plane; then it was get all your belongings and wait for further information; then it was a gate change; then it was leave your belongings and get off the plane so they could count us (32 through passengers). No one on the ground knew anything. We were moved around like cattle and yelled at for being in the way; the lines for rebooking at the airport were unending and the wait on hold was over 120 minutes! We were delayed again out of Long Beach and the flight was packed to Chicago. The baggage claim at Midway Airport was delirious with lines a mile long at the baggage office; piles of luggage tagged and waiting all over the room. IF this is how SW is going to handle the issues, be aware, they are NOT going to be the only ones with these messes on their hands. There was NO weather and NO ATC issues because every other airlines was flying unhindered, for the most part. Those were lies they shouldn’t have told because it truly pissed a whole lot of people who were flying yesterday, off

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  7. Your question as to whether this would impact flying Southwest or to Hawaii is a simple one for me to answer. I will not fly any airline where it mandated for either a passenger or employee to have to take the “vaccine”. Whether I believe in the “vaccine” is irrelevant at this point but I do Not believe anyone should be subject to putting something in their body that they are not comfortable with and is still experimental. If You want the vaccine and you think I that it protects you, that is your business but the govt and business should Not have the right to force it on others!

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    1. With all due respect, i must disagree with your claim that COVID19 vaccines are experimental. Every available vaccines has met all the rigorous development, clinical studies and manufacturing requirements of the FDA. The Pfizer vaccine has received full pre-marketing approval from the FDA and the Moderna and Jansen vaccines will receive full approval within a few weeks. There have been over 300 million doses (counting all available COVID19 vaccines) administered in the US and over 4 BILLION administered worldwide. as is normal, post-marketing surveillance of vaccine use is done to identify if any unanticipated adverse reactions or responses have occurred. the fact is that the vaccines are extraordinarily safe and effective, although Nothing is ever 100%.

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  8. Good for anyone walking out of their jobs due to vaccine mandates! October 18th is the day that nationwide teachers plan to walk out due to the vaccine mandate. Parents who object to the teacher and student mandate are keeping their children out of school. It’s time to stand up to a government that is taking away personal freedoms and forcing something on citizens where no long term studies have been done. I just heard today from a medical provider about all the heart issues that are surfacing from the vaccines.

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    1. While I honestly respect your decision not to vaccinate I hope all of you who are not getting vaccinated are wearing masks, staying home as much as possible, having food delivered and home schooling your children so the rest of us who have complied with all of the safety protocols for 19 months can live our “vaccinated lives” . We will not end this if unvaccinated people are being carefree. And yes, COVID affects every aspect of our economy.
      I am not getting any younger and I would like to be able to take a trip without feeing at risk from fellow citizens.

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      1. My mom is 92 & has been forced to stay in due to the amount of unvaccinated people around her home. She vaccinated. She had hoped to fly but she doesn’t trust people are doing what they should. She lost her grandfather to the 1918 pandemic & her father to an epidemic in 1936. She watched her brother struggle with polio & now with Parkinsons, which is directly related to his polio. She can’t go out or be around friends because they won’t vaccinate. This has forced her to be completely alone.

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        1. Liam
          Here in FL only 58% of the population is fully vaxed. In Hawaii it’s the same at 59%. The Delta variant is very strong. I have to assume when I go anywhere that half of the people I encounter are not vaxed. I suspect they may be the ones not masked since there was, and is even more so now, so much resistance from this group. I want to have my once in a lifetime trip to Hawaii. Even a mild breakthrough case on either end of this trip would ruin it for everyone.

          1. I was lucky enough to live I HAwaii for 20 years 6 on maui 14 on Oahu. Everyone should go at some point. Now is not the time. I speak almost daily with people there and have gotten 3 of them remote here on the mainland in the last few months. Do not go now whether vaccinated or not. Is it a coincidence that numbers of cases dropped when they told people to stop coming? No the same number of people were traveling that are locals and yet the rates dropped anyway. They need to test again.

    1. Hi ROB T

      In spite of the pilot’s union statement one must wonder. A little “air sickness” perhaps.

      As of 28 September, 2021, American Airlines (AA) reported 30 percent (4200) of its pilots were not vaccinated despite the company’s and government’s vaccine mandate.

      Currently, Delta Airlines has not mandated shots but does have a $200/month “surcharge” to the provided health care plan payable by those subscribers who are unvaccinated. Apparently, Delta does not wish to face an AA situation until it must and may think workarounds are possible.

      Pilots fear heart and other long term health issues from the vaccine that result in their being found medically unfit to fly. They prefer testing in lieu but there appears no accommodation being considered by the administration.

      What could possibly go wrong with iron fist mandates?

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      1. There are just too many people claiming “personal freedom” as the reason to endanger the majority of the people in the country. I don’t get it, but I believe my personal health, that of my family and sane friends deserves protection from those who believe they are smarter and know more than virtually every scientific authority in the country.

        I fly often and this gives me one more reason to avoid SWA. I want to be safe when I fly and when I arrive.

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      2. Heyward..have to correct your “Pilots fear heart and other long term health issues from the vaccine” …that’s unfair to Airline Pilots, most are pragmatic, sensible, and don’t buy into conspiracy theories. What you are witnessing is for sure a minority do go done the political/conspiracy rabbit hole but the majority of Airline Pilots are in fact quite happy to get a vaccination. They are professional enough to know Covid is a far greater risk to their long term health then a vaccine is.

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        1. Hi JOHN

          I spent 30+ years warming a cockpit seat.

          Pilots know our livelihood and love of flying could end in an instant if a flight surgeon finds an issue.

          I certainly agree we are pragmatic, sensible, and don’t buy into conspiracy theories. We very much recognize and follow the rules. But we are also independent enough in judgement to not blindly follow the rules into the dirt. Both with our aircraft and our ability to fly.

          A good pilot is pretty astute at risk analysis.

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          1. Agree with Hayward. The fear is that the known blood clot side effect can manifest in pilots who are sitting down for hours on end during a flight. I certainly don’t want my pilots to have a blood clot and die during the flight. This is according to a well spoken cardiologist, not me.

          2. My point exactly, most pilots are getting vaccinated after looking at the situation. Often those who tend to “do it their own way” rather then fly by the book with their own creative interpretation of how to fly an approach or landing are the biggest problem at sim and out on the line. The pilots I know that are anti vax seem to fit that mold. There is no solid evidence against the vaccine, just a lot of misinformation and speculation from some pretty dubious sources. Good pilots can see that.

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