Frustrated flyers on Southwest Airlines who experience a delay or cancelation that is the airline’s fault can ask for a voucher, the Department of Transportation announced this week. As of April 16, any flights that are delayed three or more hours after the scheduled arrival time or canceled at the fault of Southwest must compensate the passenger with a transferrable voucher worth at least

During its first-quarter 2024 call with investors, Southwest said it would end service at four airports and cut the frequency of routes at two others.

The Department of Transportation made it a requirement for Southwest to compensate customers for delays and cancelations after the airline's problems in 2022.

Southwest Airlines said it had launched a compensation program for flight delays as part of a $140 million U.S. Department of Transportation settlement over the carrier's meltdown in December 2022 during a busy holiday travel period.

Southwest Airlines is now required to provide vouchers if any of its flights are canceled or delayed more than three hours due to a problem within the airline's control. This includes problems such as maintenance issues or staffing quandaries but not problems such as bad weather.

Southwest Airlines' settlement terms with the Department of Transportation (DOT) are kicking in — leading to future customers receiving compensation if they experience a significant flight delay.As part of the settlement sparked from the airline’s 2022 holiday meltdown,