Get on Diverted Flight?
Jul 18, 2019, 8:51 am
#1
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Get on Diverted Flight?
So as a lot of people are probably aware, bad storms in ORD today causing massive delays and lots of diversions.
I happen to be flying from one of AA's popular diversion points for ORD and so right now there are 3 or 4 mainline planes sitting in my city, some with extensive delay times. I am currently booked on a regularly scheduled Eagle flight and as we all know these are usually the first to get cancelled to make room for the bigger guys. Having that concern, does anyone know (or have experience) if there is a possibility to get on the leg to ORD from one of these diverted planes? (Assume that the plane isn't 100% full and is a domestic flight).
Is this something that can be done? and by whom? or just pray my scheduled flight doesn't get cancelled.
TIA
I happen to be flying from one of AA's popular diversion points for ORD and so right now there are 3 or 4 mainline planes sitting in my city, some with extensive delay times. I am currently booked on a regularly scheduled Eagle flight and as we all know these are usually the first to get cancelled to make room for the bigger guys. Having that concern, does anyone know (or have experience) if there is a possibility to get on the leg to ORD from one of these diverted planes? (Assume that the plane isn't 100% full and is a domestic flight).
Is this something that can be done? and by whom? or just pray my scheduled flight doesn't get cancelled.
TIA
Jul 18, 2019, 11:09 am
#2
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Yes, it can be done in extreme circumstances. It basically has to be initiated by airport emplyees and it is very rare, only used for operational reasons (say a locally originating flight is overbooked).
Jul 18, 2019, 12:21 pm
#3
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I sort of figured that. I feel back for the people on the redeye from LA with a new arrival time into ORD at 4pm but it would have been nice for me to get on that plane (if seats are there). I can imagine a lot of people with ORD as their final just drove the 3-4 hours instead of waiting 9ish hours.
Jul 19, 2019, 9:01 am
#4
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Funny thing. I asked a retired captain a similar question last weekend.
For years, but mostly pre-9/11, I flew almost weekly under a negotiated fare deal. Always last-minute booking and usually arrived at the airport as a standby without an assigned seat. I was put on more than one diverted flight and more than one delayed still at the gate flight, but that all but stopped after 9/11.
A few days before I saw him we sat on an RJ through a long departure hold at a smaller Texas end-of-spoke airport. A mainline MD-80 diverted in for weather. Despite there being empty seats and quite a bit of time overlap nobody off that plane was re-accommodated onto our flight. I was surprised they did not. (Flight Aware indicated that flight truncated at the outstation and they spent the night there).
The captain is not a fan of his old union, current management, the FAA, or the TSA and is usually a good and unbiased source. More or less agreed with Post 2, but was surprisingly and unusually cryptic. He emphasized repeatedly you had better have a really defensible reason for coming back to the gate and opening the door. Would not comment on the specific question if security changes played a part in the change. But like you it sure seems to me like it used to happen.
For years, but mostly pre-9/11, I flew almost weekly under a negotiated fare deal. Always last-minute booking and usually arrived at the airport as a standby without an assigned seat. I was put on more than one diverted flight and more than one delayed still at the gate flight, but that all but stopped after 9/11.
A few days before I saw him we sat on an RJ through a long departure hold at a smaller Texas end-of-spoke airport. A mainline MD-80 diverted in for weather. Despite there being empty seats and quite a bit of time overlap nobody off that plane was re-accommodated onto our flight. I was surprised they did not. (Flight Aware indicated that flight truncated at the outstation and they spent the night there).
The captain is not a fan of his old union, current management, the FAA, or the TSA and is usually a good and unbiased source. More or less agreed with Post 2, but was surprisingly and unusually cryptic. He emphasized repeatedly you had better have a really defensible reason for coming back to the gate and opening the door. Would not comment on the specific question if security changes played a part in the change. But like you it sure seems to me like it used to happen.
Jul 19, 2019, 9:09 am
#5
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Funny thing. I asked a retired captain a similar question last weekend.
For years, but mostly pre-9/11, I flew almost weekly under a negotiated fare deal. Always last-minute booking and usually arrived at the airport as a standby without an assigned seat. I was put on more than one diverted flight and more than one delayed still at the gate flight, but that all but stopped after 9/11.
A few days before I saw him we sat on an RJ through a long departure hold at a smaller Texas end-of-spoke airport. A mainline MD-80 diverted in for weather. Despite there being empty seats and quite a bit of time overlap nobody off that plane was re-accommodated onto our flight. I was surprised they did not. (Flight Aware indicated that flight truncated at the outstation and they spent the night there).
The captain is not a fan of his old union, current management, the FAA, or the TSA and is usually a good and unbiased source. More or less agreed with Post 2, but was surprisingly and unusually cryptic. He emphasized repeatedly you had better have a really defensible reason for coming back to the gate and opening the door. Would not comment on the specific question if security changes played a part in the change. But like you it sure seems to me like it used to happen.
For years, but mostly pre-9/11, I flew almost weekly under a negotiated fare deal. Always last-minute booking and usually arrived at the airport as a standby without an assigned seat. I was put on more than one diverted flight and more than one delayed still at the gate flight, but that all but stopped after 9/11.
A few days before I saw him we sat on an RJ through a long departure hold at a smaller Texas end-of-spoke airport. A mainline MD-80 diverted in for weather. Despite there being empty seats and quite a bit of time overlap nobody off that plane was re-accommodated onto our flight. I was surprised they did not. (Flight Aware indicated that flight truncated at the outstation and they spent the night there).
The captain is not a fan of his old union, current management, the FAA, or the TSA and is usually a good and unbiased source. More or less agreed with Post 2, but was surprisingly and unusually cryptic. He emphasized repeatedly you had better have a really defensible reason for coming back to the gate and opening the door. Would not comment on the specific question if security changes played a part in the change. But like you it sure seems to me like it used to happen.
The extra tasks involved once there is passenger movement on fairly easily accomplished. While it makes no sense to to do if the diversion is just long enough to pick up some fuel, if it is going to run past 90-120 minutes, keeping pax cooped up onboard makes no sense.
Jul 19, 2019, 9:50 am
#6
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That is a bit of an anachronism.
The extra tasks involved once there is passenger movement on fairly easily accomplished. While it makes no sense to to do if the diversion is just long enough to pick up some fuel, if it is going to run past 90-120 minutes, keeping pax cooped up onboard makes no sense.
The extra tasks involved once there is passenger movement on fairly easily accomplished. While it makes no sense to to do if the diversion is just long enough to pick up some fuel, if it is going to run past 90-120 minutes, keeping pax cooped up onboard makes no sense.
Sure once the plane is unloaded due to extended delay, crew time out etc it becomes a paper work exercise, one that can still be distracting from getting an already late flight out.