I’ve noticed the options tend to vary based on destination airport. I’m sure distance is a factor, but I have seen some some discrepancies.

Example: when I’ve had IROPs into ECP I’ve seen the usual close suggestions (DHN, TLH, VPS, PNS, MOB, etc) However there are some further options that always appear (BHM, MSY, JAN, JAX, TPA) All a 4-6 hr drive away.

A while back my spouse had an IROP going to JAN when the airport closed for 2 or 3 days due to an ice storm. The app only suggested MEM, MSY or MOB. That was it.

I called in because I saw there was availability to ECP, and asked to book him there as we have a house he could stay the night at, and then drive to MS the next morning. The agent at first refused because it wasn’t in the IROPs suggested list. I pushed back because the suggested alternatives were almost 24 hrs later and he would have to pay for a hotel there. I pointed out that anytime there’s an IROP into ECP it suggested JAN, so would expect the reverse to be true and it must be within whatever the distance allowed was. Again, the agent refused. I asked him to escalate to a supervisor. The supervisor immediately approved the request, and the agent came back saying the supervisor agreed that it should’ve been listed.

Bottomline, don’t be afraid to ask for anything reasonable to your travel plans. DL wants to get passengers moving, and the less they have backed up on a standby list, the better.

One last thing: was this IROPs list in the new My Trips interface? I’m wondering if that too could have been causing an issue.