But don’t blame the mass cancellations on protests against a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the airline say this isn’t true.

What caused all the flight cancellations?

More than 2,000 Southwest flightsthis past weekend were canceled.

The airline cited issues of weather and limited staffing at Florida airports.

We appreciate your patience as we accommodate affected Customers, and Customer Service wait times are longer than usual.

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The airline added more details about the issues on Monday.

Are the cancellations due to walkouts over COVID-19 vaccine mandates?

No, according to Southwest and the FAA.

Others on social media suggested Southwest employees are protesting thevaccine requirements the company implemented.

Ted Cruz, both Republicans from Texas, tweeted about the cancellations.

Cruz put the blame on Biden’s push for vaccine mandates.

But I hope so.

And I want them to know they have support.

The FAA said it’s working to have its workersvaccinated by the Nov. 22 date set by Biden.

On Oct. 4, Southwest said it will requireall employees to get vaccinated by Dec. 8.

“There is no truth behind the rumors that this is a job-related action,” the company said.

The COVIDvaccines are highly effectivein preventing hospitalization.

Why did this only affect Southwest?

This past weekend exposed some issues with Southwest’s business strategy.

“We were thinly staffed coming into the weekend,” Southwest Airlines CEO Gary KellytoldCNBC on Tuesday.

“We were significantly set behind on Friday, and it takes several days to catch up.”

It also doesn’t help that Southwest uses a linear route online grid, also calledpoint-to-point.

On the other hand, a major issue can cause a domino effect.

“Every single airport in the state of Florida was impacted by this,” Kelly said.

“We’re probably the largest airlines in terms of seats offered in the state of Florida.”

For instance, the FAA requires flight crews to take aneight-hour rest every 24 hours.

This pushes back that flight.

Southwest employees have complained for months about their exhaustion.

Unions for Southwest said in August thatthe crews couldn’t handle the number of flightsthe company had scheduled.

Southwest alsodoesn’t have an interline agreement with other carriers.

If a Delta flight is canceled, Delta can offer passengers a flight on American.

The airline has urged people impacted by delayed and canceled flights toexplore rebooking optionson Southwest.com.