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Southwest Airlines begins to reduce cancellations delays after chaotic week

After seeing upward of 2,500 Southwest Airlines cancellations earlier in the week, flight schedules are beginning to return to normalcy.

KENT COUNTY, Mich. — Following a chaotic week in which airline passengers across the country were faced with thousands of delays, cancellations and no way home, flight schedules at Gerald R. Ford International Airport are returning to normal.

While some days saw upward of 2,500 flights cancelled by Southwest Airlines alone, Friday saw fewer such disruptions. After Southwest had established itself as the primary contributor to cancellations during the week, only 43 flights were canceled by the airline on Dec. 30.

Travelers like Kim Huyge are saying they're relieved that they will be able to travel without problems.

"Initially, we were going to cancel because we saw about all the mess in Chicago and all the baggage and all the canceled flights and all the people stranded," Huyge said. "But as of yesterday, I kept checking on the flight and the flight status said it was still on time and so yesterday we decided we would still go."

But even with more flights now departing and arriving on time, some issues like lost luggage will continue to linger.

Given continuing disruptions, the Department of Transportation has signaled that it will continue to look into the cancellations and has threatened to issue financial penalties against Southwest if it does not correct course and compensate disrupted travelers.

"The bottom line is that this is just not an acceptable level of service," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in an interview with ABC News earlier in the week. "They need to fix it. They have pledged to me that they will go above and beyond what is required of them and we will be holding them accountable to do exactly that."

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