On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) filed a lawsuit in a San Francisco court against Southwest Airlines over “unlawful, chronic flight delays,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced in a Jan. 15 statement.

Southwest Airlines is being sued and Frontier Airlines fined over chronic flight delays by the Department of Transportation, the DOT announced Wednesday. Why it matters: Wednesday's announcement by the outgoing Biden administration's Transportation Secretary,

Southwest is disappointed that DOT chose to file a lawsuit over two flights that occurred more than two years ago," a spokesperson for the airline said.

The Department of Transportation is suing Southwest Airlines, accusing it of operating two “chronically delayed flights” in 2022 that resulted in 180 flight disruptions.

The Department of Transportation said that two Southwest Airlines routes arrived late nearly 180 times in a five-month period in 2022.

The agency is seeking civil penalties against Southwest Airlines, and also fined Frontier Airlines for its continuous delays.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said airlines have a legal obligation to ensure that their schedules list realistic departure and arrival times.

The Department of Transportation found that Southwest was responsible for 90% of the disruptions on two flights.

The Biden administration on Wednesday sued Southwest Airlines, accusing the carrier of illegally operating multiple chronically delayed flights and disrupting passengers’ travel. The

The Department of Transportation and Department of Justice jointly filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against Southwest Airlines for operating "chronically delayed flights" that caused disruptions to passengers.

The US Department of Transportation sued Southwest Airlines and fined Frontier Airlines for flight delays, seeking civil penalties against Southwest and imposing a $650,000 fine on Frontier, part of a broader crackdown on airline delay issues.