Often1

If DL sells the connection, it is within MCT. If it is within MCT, the bags can be transfered.

Needless to say, the MCT does not account for delays in your arriving flight nor any delays which you or your bag may encounter at CBP.

MSPeconomist

Outgoing checked bags on a domestic to international connection shouldn't be subject to CBP, although there might be an exception if there's a suspicion that the bag contains more than $10,000 in unreported cash and cash substitutes (which would be a Treasury regulation violation IIRC). Otherwise, AFAIK customs has nothing to do with stuff leaving the USA, just incoming (checked and carry on) bags but maybe drug smugglers are an exception. Some countries such as Russia do an outgoing customs check but the USA does not.

CarmenOM

Plenty of discussion for the OP here:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/delta...ve-thread.html

emrdoc

I believe the poster was being more complete in his answer by referencing incoming international flights as well as departing.

Guess it is in the interpretation of his answer.

A Lyford

After spending two fruitless hours searching decade+ old posts and the Delta website several times, I reluctantly posted a new thread, and you guys came through! (If Delta has a recommended minimum connection/layover time at ATL, I'd sure like to know where it's stated on their website.)

Why I need your experienced advice:
I need to know if I should bother to request a change with a change fee waiver, as Delta pushed my outgoing red-eye to Rome by an hour.
Why it matters:
A partially successful surgery means that long periods of sitting causes me severe ankle swelling. Even with "Comfort Economy" seats, elevating my leg on the red-eye won't be possible, and a longer layover at ATL won't help. Now that the layover is 3 hours, and adding an hour for airport arrival, my total travel time (HSV to FCO) is extended to 14 hours.
My choices:
I could request a later connecting flight (reducing my total travel time to 12 hours), but would that be wise? Certainly 71 minutes is adequate time to walk between gates, but is Delta baggage transfer reliably prompt at ATL? How likely is it that my connecting flight (but not my red-eye) would be delayed due to severe weather?
Facts:
The later connecting flight (I'm considering) is rated by FlightStats as 96% on time, with a 10 minute average delay. The red-eye to Rome is rated at 90%, but the severity of departure delays, when they do happen, is far greater. The average delay is a whopping 140 minutes, all (5 out of 50) delayed flights were considered "very" or "excessively" delayed. One was delayed by 5 hours. This might be because it originates in SFO.
My departure date is in April, a common month for severe weather delays. Severe weather between HSV and ATL travels ENE, can I assume weather will affect both flights equally?

Finally, what is Delta's corporate attitude towards stranding passengers between connections? Would they hold departure for two passengers they knew were in the terminal? I fly Southwest frequently, and they go the extra mile. I've seen them make personal announcements and hold up departures for even just one passenger. Southwest passengers know they matter more than good on-time flight statistics. Everyone cheers when the latecomer huffs and puffs his/her way into the last seat. I've never met anyone who's lost a checked bag. In contrast, I have seen American Airlines refuse boarding to passengers even when their baggage was stowed on the plane. They had passed through TSA and arrived at the gate 15 minutes before departure. Attendants had chosen to close the door prematurely at the gate and claimed their policy prevented them from reopening it. The plane remained at the gate and departed on time after removing the stored luggage. This was at ONT right after the labor union had been forced to make a lot of concessions to AA management. I still fly AA when I have to, but I know where I stand as a passenger.

So if you're still reading this, here's the bottom line:
Which is better:
A) A 71 minute layover, followed by an airline meal on a 9 hour flight... risking that the initial connecting flight would be significantly delayed, but not the departing red-eye (the regret factor in missing the red-eye would be huge).
B) A three hour layover, a dinner at an overpriced ATL restaurant, followed by a 10% chance that the departing flight will be very or excessively delayed by 140 minutes, as well as additional hours of bed rest to elevate my foot required on the first day in Rome.

Travel is always a gamble, I can't plan for every event, and Delta might change their schedule again. Experienced Delta/ATL flyers: please help me decide by telling me what you would choose.

Xandrios

Next week we will be flying in from the Caribbean on Delta, arriving at an E gate in ATL, and continuing on with KLM from an F gate.

I find it hard to figure out what this means regarding security checks, immigration (if any), and so on.

These are two international flights so I would assume (hope) that this basically is a gate-change and does not require any further security or immigration procedures. It also seems that there is a 'sterile' walkway between E and F to make this possible.

Is this indeed correct? Would it be possible to go from E to F gates without going landside at all, and therefore possibly also do not require any immigration (ESTA) procedures?

Thanks for your help

tentseller

No, your assumption is incorrect.

All US transits even to intl departure require US CBP immigration processing.
After that you will claim your bags and go through US customs unless your bag is tagged ITI. You will then drop the bags of at onward baggage (re-check), go through TSA security check and then head to F terminal.

If your bags are tagged ITI at your Caribbean departure point you would not have to pickup and then recheck your bags.

MSPeconomist

IIRC there are some Caribbean flights that have pre clearance, so that immigration and customs would occur before departure rather than at ATL upon arrival, but you would still do USA immigration and customs. Visas would be required.

Also, for customs and immigration, Puerto Rico is basically part of the USA, although there are agricultural inspections. The San Juan PR flight would not be treated like international upon landing in the USA.

Xandrios

Thanks tentseller and MSPeconomist!

In this case we'll not be flying in from a US territory so pre-clearance will not be the case I presume. Therefore we will most probably have to go landside and re-enter the secure area. It is booked as one itinerary so I do hope the bags will be checked through all the way. We do have a bit over 3 hours so we would have time to do any approach if required.

I am curious about the reason why this is required though. In Europe it is very common for pax to be able to transfer to another flight without having to enter the country/Shengen. So it would be possible to come in from the US, change onto an Asia-bound flight, without ever actually entering Europe/Shengen. Do we know what the theory is behind not allowing this in the US? Is it a security matter?

MSPeconomist

Most European airports segregate arriving from departing passengers. In USA airports, on domestic itineraries the groups are mixed. The way most of our airports are built would not support keeping international transfer passengers separate. The system could also relate to our government not doing outgoing passport control.

Xandrios

Thanks.

Our bags were indeed ITI tagged so they were checked through to Europe. Arriving in ATL we used ESTA to go landside and used the train to reach concourse F. We had plenty of time to visit the lounge but it turned out there was no food whatsoever there (Is that normal at 8PM?). So we headed to the food court upstairs where I actually quite enjoyed the food at the Taco place.

Besides KLM/Delta having messed up our reservations due to a last-minute change (Irrelevant to the ATL transfer) the experience in ATL was quite good. A lot better (faster) than expected for sure. The Skyclub may just as well be skipped through - the only thing readily available there is booze...which I believe is not free.

apodo77

Anyone done a 36 minute connection recently at ATL?

PBI-ATL-MKE

Shortest connection I have had lately was :46 and barely made it.

monitor

I try not to book that short a connection but when it happens, either by a late incoming or a schedule change, I have made it every time.

However, if it turns up less than 35 minutes, I will figure out something else. But then again, I am usually going to a destination where there is another flight in an hour (and another an hour after that). So there is no nervousness involved as my inbound flight lingers in the air longer than expected.

gooselee

Not a connection per se, but a good example:
This week a friend I hadn't seen in a while happened to be leaving ATL about the same time as me, so we decided to meet up. Her flight was at E5, mine was B2.

I met her at E5 and we chatted right up until T-30 for my flight. Brisk walk, plane train, brisk walk - got to my flight right around T-15.

briantoronto

Flying out of OKC today (if the storms cooperate) with a connection to YYZ. Looks to me atm I will have a 20 minute connection. Part of me just wants them to put me on a flight to YYZ tomorrow just so I don't have to run. Flying in F on a paid ticket FWIW.