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Southwest Airlines

Check your reservation: Southwest pushes 737 Max return to early June, cancels 330 flights

On Thursday, Southwest Airlines joined American and United in pushing the return of the grounded Boeing 737 Max into early June.

The airline had previously scheduled the plane to return after Easter but the prolonged grounding has forced repeated schedule changes in the past 10 months. Further delays aren't out of the question, especially since Boeing is now recommending pilots go through more rigorous pilot simulator training before the plane returns.

Southwest said the decision means it will have to proactively cancel 330 daily flights between mid-April and early June. The airline has about 4,000 daily flights.

That is more than double the amount at American and United. Southwest was the largest U.S. operator of the Max when the plane was grounded in March 2019 following two crashes that killed 346 people within five months.

Southwest had 34 Max 8s in its fleet and was supposed to add another 41 by end of 2019 and more were due this year. Those planes haven't been delivered due to the grounding.

Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX aircraft are parked on the tarmac at the Southern California Logistics Airport in Victorville, California, after being grounded.

Southwest said the "limited number" of passengers who have already booked travel between April 14 and June 6, a period that includes spring break for some parts of the country and Memorial Day weekend, will be rebooked on other flights and notified of the changes. Travelers who don't like the options will be eligible for a refund, even if they bought a nonrefundable ticket.

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