Southwest eyes rival United's service provider to bolster its operations

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Southwest Airlines Co is tapping a software company called SureWeather, which rival United Airlines employs, to make its winter operations more resilient, Chief Operating Officer Andrew Watterson told Reuters on Tuesday.

The Dallas-based carrier has been under fire ever since it suffered an operational disruption that resulted in almost 17,000 flight cancellations around the Christmas holiday last year, disrupting travel plans for two million customers.

SureWeather helps airlines calculate the time between de-icing of an aircraft and its take-off.

Watterson said the software helped United recover, particularly in Denver, from a winter storm in December last year.

"We are contracting with them right now. So, by next winter weather we will have that tool," he said in an interview.

The airline has developed a three-part plan with inputs from aviation consultancy Oliver Wyman, which was hired to investigate the disruption, to bolster its operations during the winter season.

Watterson said Oliver Wyman has wrapped up its investigation and the company is working on some additional measures, which are expected to be completed by the end of this month.

(This story has been refiled to add the missing word 'Chief' in paragraph 1)

(Reporting by Rajesh Kumar Singh; editing by Edward Tobin)