AAAAAAArrrrrrrrrrrrrrrghhhhhhh! ...more flight problems

1911

DIS Dad #856
Joined
Apr 6, 2014
so I log onto my new flight reservations tonight to review some things and see a notice our returning flights have had a schedule change making our connection impossible. so I am now on ignore with delta to see what I can do. I cant believe this,our first flights with frontier got canceled outright after being booked 2 months prior. then having to scramble for new flights and now they are hosed.I am beginning to think this trip wasn't meant to be...
 
ignore = (asinine) autocorrect for "on phone" or something, right? If not already resolved, hang up. More to come...

This happens. If both legs are on Delta or a codes are partner, they should easily be able to assist you in changing flights at no charge.

In the future, first look for more satisfactory flights online, then call the airline and explain why their change won't work. Then have them move you to the more appropriate flight.
 
ignore = (asinine) autocorrect for "on phone" or something, right? If not already resolved, hang up. More to come...

This happens. If both legs are on Delta or a codes are partner, they should easily be able to assist you in changing flights at no charge.

In the future, first look for more satisfactory flights online, then call the airline and explain why their change won't work. Then have them move you to the more appropriate flight.

I use the term "ignore" for being on hold listening to the prerecorded loop.I should have been more clear. thank you for the advice, I am still on hold but have researched some flight options as you suggested.worst case it will cost me a bit more.I just want to finally have these flights nailed down and not have to keep scrambling to find alternatives. I'm bad enough with the obsessive worrying about our trips, this is just feeding my neurosis
 
In my experience, Delta can have flight changes but won't shoot themselves in the foot on connections because they know they have to reaccomodate you if it's their fault. What's the current situation with your flight status? Where are you changing planes, and what is the new connection time. And - equally important - when is this flight?
 


the flight was connecting at Raleigh nc from mco.They moved the mco departure back 1 hour.we had had a 45 minute connection effectively leaving us stranded in raleigh. I am talking to an agent now,sounds like they are going to help.I will post an update when i get done.

edit to add: they didn't even notify me of the change,I just happened to log on to my account and saw it. I wonder why?
 
so after getting bounced around a bit to different folks, all of which were very understanding and helpful. I was able to get a nonstop return flight leaving 2 and half hours later and arriving 1 hour later than our original. which works out better for us as we now dont have to worry about the tight connection and the later flight time will allow us to spend part of the day in the parks before we leave.(flight leaves at 7pm)
Other than being on hold forever I must say the delta representatives were top notch and gave very good customer service.
 
It is not unusual for airlines (especially the legacy ones) to change equipment (planes) and/or schedules. Often that can be a good thing because as you pointed out, you got a non-stop and some more park time.

It is advisable to EVERYONE to routinely check their reservation for changes. Most airlines are accommodating and will put you on a flight of your choice at no cost to you when you call. However, their notification systems leave something to be desired (which is why you should check).
 


One of the benefits of booking a large "legacy" airline is that they usually have multiple options to get you from point A to point B. The smaller "ultra low-cost" airlines like Frontier tend to have far fewer options. They also don't have the customer service staffing levels that a company the size of Delta can offer.

As sam_gordon notes, a schedule change (especially one where the connection is impossible) usually means you have carte blanche to choose any other flights. As long as it's the same class of service (i.e. coach), the change should be free.

For anyone finding themselves in this situation, kaytieeldr's suggestion about finding your preferred flights before calling is a great one. If the agent doesn't have to spend time searching, that makes their job easier. As someone who used to work in a travel call center, I loved it when a guest called with a problem and provided a requested solution to that problem.

edit to add: they didn't even notify me of the change, I just happened to log on to my account and saw it. I wonder why?

Typically, airlines make schedules changes on Saturday nights. Any guest that is affected by a change will be notified of the change. However, that notification might not be immediate. Notifications happen based on the flight date. If your flight isn't in the next week, you might not get notified until Monday or Tuesday.

According to Wikipedia, Delta operates 5,400 flights every day. That's 1,971,000 flights annually. If just 0.5% of those flights have a schedule change, that's 9,855 flights. If you assume there are 150 people booked on each of those flights, that means Delta has to notify 1,478,250 people. As great as technology is, it still takes time to process that many emails.

(Note: While the total flights is factual, the rest of those figures are arbitrary. I don't know what percentage of flights are usually changed nor do I know the average number of people booked on those flights.)
 
One of the benefits of booking a large "legacy" airline is that they usually have multiple options to get you from point A to point B. The smaller "ultra low-cost" airlines like Frontier tend to have far fewer options. They also don't have the customer service staffing levels that a company the size of Delta can offer.

As sam_gordon notes, a schedule change (especially one where the connection is impossible) usually means you have carte blanche to choose any other flights. As long as it's the same class of service (i.e. coach), the change should be free.

For anyone finding themselves in this situation, kaytieeldr's suggestion about finding your preferred flights before calling is a great one. If the agent doesn't have to spend time searching, that makes their job easier. As someone who used to work in a travel call center, I loved it when a guest called with a problem and provided a requested solution to that problem.



Typically, airlines make schedules changes on Saturday nights. Any guest that is affected by a change will be notified of the change. However, that notification might not be immediate. Notifications happen based on the flight date. If your flight isn't in the next week, you might not get notified until Monday or Tuesday.

According to Wikipedia, Delta operates 5,400 flights every day. That's 1,971,000 flights annually. If just 0.5% of those flights have a schedule change, that's 9,855 flights. If you assume there are 150 pe+
ople booked on each of those flights, that means Delta has to notify 1,478,250 people. As great as technology is, it still takes time to process that many emails.

(Note: While the total flights is factual, the rest of those figures are arbitrary. I don't know what percentage of flights are usually changed nor do I know the average number of people booked on those flights.)



I'm going to quote this whole post because it deserves to be reread.
in case you cant tell we are fairly inexperienced flyers,only flying once a year or every several years. Believe it or not we have never experienced anything like this before this trip.I know it may seem normal "stuff happens" in the airline world for others but for us we have only experienced a few itinerary changes and those were always minor arrival or departure time adjustments by just a few minutes.
I did exactly what you and kaytieeldr advised and offered my solution with flight number and time to the representative and once they confirmed my info was correct were more than happy to rebook us on that flight at no extra charge.Had we been with a budget airline like I originally was when this saga began,I would have been left with little to no options.
...this is turning out to be quite the learning experience albeit a stressful one.
 
Another friendly tip: don't check anything in the middle of the night :D. I was awake, but frequently nobody is around to respond, and you find yourself anxious, angry, or panicking for several hours, and at the mercy of a reservationist who's (given how long you were on hold!) most likely been attacked by several customers.
 
Another friendly tip: don't check anything in the middle of the night :D. I was awake, but frequently nobody is around to respond, and you find yourself anxious, angry, or panicking for several hours, and at the mercy of a reservationist who's (given how long you were on hold!) most likely been attacked by several customers.
so true! I finally got to sleep at 3 am.
One thing I learned long ago when dealing with a problem is to never vent your anger or frustration with the person who can help you.They didn't create the problem but they certainly may be able to fix it. I have found being calm and respectful while explaining the situation and trying to foster a degree of empathy on their part can work wonders (read as civility). They really do want to help as far as they are allowed by the guidelines given to them.even if they can't they may be able to suggest a way to get the help you need that's beyond their scope of empowerment.
 
so after getting bounced around a bit to different folks, all of which were very understanding and helpful. I was able to get a nonstop return flight leaving 2 and half hours later and arriving 1 hour later than our original. which works out better for us as we now dont have to worry about the tight connection and the later flight time will allow us to spend part of the day in the parks before we leave.(flight leaves at 7pm)
Other than being on hold forever I must say the delta representatives were top notch and gave very good customer service.

I’ve had a couple trips on Delta and both times they made changes that made connections impossible or made times inconvenient. Both times I ended up with better flights.
 
45 minutes is fine in RDU. It only takes 10 minutes to walk from one end of the terminal to the other. If it were an impossible connection, Delta’s system would not have even allowed it.

OP, I know it’s stressful, but take some breaths. Since you’re not an experienced traveler, it’s easy to think anything less than X amount of time means you won’t make it. But you won’t be stranded anywhere. You will make it to your destination.
 
45 minutes is fine in RDU. It only takes 10 minutes to walk from one end of the terminal to the other. If it were an impossible connection, Delta’s system would not have even allowed it.
Yeah, the original itinerary would have given them the 45 minute connection:
the flight was connecting at Raleigh nc from mco.They moved the mco departure back 1 hour.we had had a 45 minute connection
While Delta probably (possibly?) hadn't completed the change, the MCO departure an hour later would have given them negative fifteen minutes.
 
so after getting bounced around a bit to different folks, all of which were very understanding and helpful. I was able to get a nonstop return flight leaving 2 and half hours later and arriving 1 hour later than our original. which works out better for us as we now dont have to worry about the tight connection and the later flight time will allow us to spend part of the day in the parks before we leave.(flight leaves at 7pm)
Other than being on hold forever I must say the delta representatives were top notch and gave very good customer service.

I'm glad that it worked out for you! :-)
 
I just got a notice on our upcoming trip ( Delta/Air France), we had a 2 1/2 hour layover, at JFK... now we are down to a 1 1/2 hours... which make me nervous, as most of you know if you have every flown into JFK it takes forever to get to the gate, last august when we flew in there we waited 30 minutes on the tarmac before we arrived at the gate. 6 people that were sitting around us missed their connecting flight... and several people they let get up first and out the door and they were running to their connections...

So I called right away... she said we have enough time to make our connection. But we should keep and eye on all the flights for changes...
 
the flight was connecting at Raleigh nc from mco.They moved the mco departure back 1 hour.we had had a 45 minute connection effectively leaving us stranded in raleigh. I am talking to an agent now,sounds like they are going to help.I will post an update when i get done.

edit to add: they didn't even notify me of the change,I just happened to log on to my account and saw it. I wonder why?

They notify in order of impact. So those of us flying next week get notified before those flying next month and so on.
 
I'm glad I found out before it was too late to get a decent replacement flight
 

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