Dec 6 (Reuters) – The Trump administration said Saturday it will waive ​an $11 million fine imposed on Southwest ‌Airlines as part of a $140 million settlement ‌over the carrier’s meltdown in December 2022 during a busy holiday travel period.

Southwest in December 2023 agreed to provide ⁠over three ‌years to pay a $35 million cash fine and provide $90 million ‍in travel vouchers of $75 or more to passengers delayed at least three hours getting ​to final destinations because of ‌an airline-caused issue or cancellation over the airline’s handling of the meltdown that stranded more than 2 million passengers.

The U.S. Transportation Department in a written ⁠order cited Southwest’s decision ​to invest over $1 ​billion in its operations to improve performance and reliability since the ‍2022 meltdown ⁠in explaining its decision to waiver the remaining $11 million of the ⁠fine that was due by the end ‌of January.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing ‌by Chizu Nomiyama )