Southwest Airlines expects to post loss after mass cancellations

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Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) led flight cancellations across carriers during the last two weeks of December, as a massive winter storm swept across the eastern part of the United States.

The largest U.S. domestic carrier, which typically has an aggressive schedule that connects vast swathes of the country, scrapped more than 16,000 flights during that period, according to airline-tracking website FlightAware.

Southwest relies on a point-to-point service instead of operating out of large hubs that made it difficult for crews to reassemble as adverse weather left them stranded at different parts of the country, disrupting operations.

The net loss will largely be due to an estimated pre-tax negative impact of $725 million to $825 million, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Shares of the company fell about 1% in premarket trade.