Last edit by: Zorak
Delta rolls out schedule changes pretty much every Saturday, though the scope/impact can vary. During this time, seat maps may be locked out, may show the wrong aircraft layout, etc. while changes are occurring. If you are not traveling immediately, FT conventional wisdom is to wait until Sunday (or even Monday in the case of major schedule adjustments where things take longer) for things to settle down, then take stock of your upcoming itineraries to see what changes have occurred and what changes/refunds you may be entitled to.
You are entitled to a full refund to original form of payment, even for a ticket that was purchased as a non-refundable ticket, if any of the following occur as a result of schedule change:
The airline would rather keep your money than refund it, so they will frequently accept any vaguely reasonable rerouting that you propose. This includes, by policy, changing origin and/or destination within 100 miles, rebooking +/- two days, and changing outbound/return date to keep the length of the trip the same post-rebooking.
If none of the above conditions for a refund is true, you may still be entitled to a free change -- in your trip summary there will be a notice about changes/refunds, and per the "conditions apply" popup link in that text:
If possible, you may wish to try modifying your flights online first -- there have been data points where the site allowed a free rebooking even though it did not technically fall into the above categories. NOTE however that self-rebooking online is known not to work if you have (1) any trip involving upgrade certificates (whether cleared or not), (2) if you have self-upgraded by picking an upgraded seat that said FREE (instead of waiting for the automated upgrade system sweep to reseat you in an upgraded seat), this seems to inhibit self-rebooking as well.
Otherwise, suggested best practice is to research your preferred alternative rebooking beforehand (whether DL flight search, Google Flights, ITA Matrix etc.) so that you can speak with an agent already knowing what you want, and ask for it; this will be much more efficient than having an agent find alternatives for you.
Other notes/FAQs:
You are entitled to a full refund to original form of payment, even for a ticket that was purchased as a non-refundable ticket, if any of the following occur as a result of schedule change:
- departure or arrival delay of 2hrs or more
- increase in the number of flight segments (non-stop to connecting, 1-stop to 2-stop, etc.)
- change resulting in a connection below the Minimum Connection Time for a given airport (do a Google search for "site:flyertalk.com minimum connecting time XXX" with the airport code to find the relevant thread if one exists)
- any change in operating carrier, i.e. operated by Delta mainline before the schedule change and Delta Connection after the change
- it is also a commonly-held belief that a change from Delta Connection to mainline, or from one Delta Connection carrier to a different Delta Connection carrier, also qualifies for a full refund -- if anyone has documentation of this, a link would be great...
The airline would rather keep your money than refund it, so they will frequently accept any vaguely reasonable rerouting that you propose. This includes, by policy, changing origin and/or destination within 100 miles, rebooking +/- two days, and changing outbound/return date to keep the length of the trip the same post-rebooking.
If none of the above conditions for a refund is true, you may still be entitled to a free change -- in your trip summary there will be a notice about changes/refunds, and per the "conditions apply" popup link in that text:
If a Delta schedule or routing change has delayed your departure or arrival by more than one hour, you may be eligible to select an alternate flight at no additional charge. Note that the below conditions may apply:
- Your origin, destination and travel date must remain the same
- Alternate flights must be available, and you can only modify once as subsequent changes may result in additional fees
- Voluntary changes to other flights not impacted by a Delta schedule change may result in additional fees
Otherwise, suggested best practice is to research your preferred alternative rebooking beforehand (whether DL flight search, Google Flights, ITA Matrix etc.) so that you can speak with an agent already knowing what you want, and ask for it; this will be much more efficient than having an agent find alternatives for you.
Other notes/FAQs:
- Even if you voluntarily choose a preferred rebooking, you have a high likelihood of success claiming Original Routing Credit since the original reason for the change was involuntary.
- If you booked through a travel agency, including online travel agencies (OTA) such as Expedia, Chase Ultimate Rewards, etc. you will have to contact them, not Delta, to request rerouting if the automatic rebooking is not satisfactory to you.
- There have been reports of an agency insisting that a change of 2 hours was required (per the "pro" site) for a free change, even though the popup on the DL site says 1 hour
- You can sometimes get Delta to take over a travel agency ticket; this is subject to a $50 fee to take over the ticket, although sometimes agents decline to collect it
Consolidated Delta Schedule Change Discussion Thread
#2296
#2297
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: VPS
Programs: IHG Diamond, Delta PM, Hilton Gold, Accor Gold, Marriott Silver
Posts: 7,262
Another Christmas Day schedule change put us in ATL for 5.5 hours. But then the 9:15am flight got added back into the schedule AND I was able to get onto it via the web site instead of the 6:30am flight so all is well today.
Hopefully they’ve got the schedule for the festive period relatively set at this point
Hopefully they’ve got the schedule for the festive period relatively set at this point
#2298
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: San Antonio
Programs: DL DM, Former AA EXP now AY Plat, AC 75K, NW Plat, Former CO Gold, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 27,040
Another Christmas Day schedule change put us in ATL for 5.5 hours. But then the 9:15am flight got added back into the schedule AND I was able to get onto it via the web site instead of the 6:30am flight so all is well today.
Hopefully they’ve got the schedule for the festive period relatively set at this point
Hopefully they’ve got the schedule for the festive period relatively set at this point
#2299
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 23,021
They have a separate schedule block for Dec 18th - Jan 4th. Normally they mostly cover a month, but they split the December schedule (the other block goes from Dec 5th - 17th). You can see the breaks by looking at timing shifts on routes. November schedule goes from Nov 7th to Dec 4th. Although they will often load updates which cover multiple schedule blocks (and you will often see differences within a block around holiday dates as well as weekly Tue/Wed/Sat variations). I'd say Nov 7th - Dec 4th is pretty safe with last tweaks made a couple weeks ago involving about 10 routes. I'd expect they might make a few minor changes for Dec 5th though holidays in next couple weeks, but they should be mostly set at this point.
Last edited by xliioper; Oct 18, 2021 at 3:17 pm
#2300
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 88
So Delta changed my schedule, I modified once. Now they changed the schedule again, my Christmas flight from LAX_AUX from direct flight at 9:00am to a flight starting at 12:25 am , then stay 5 hours connect at MSP, then fly to AUS and I can't make change this time. I have been waiting on their message center for quite a bit, what is the easiest way to reach Delta? Sorry for my grammar, I am really in a piss mode.
Last edited by ou5603; Oct 18, 2021 at 8:02 pm
#2301
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SJC/YUL
Programs: DL PM, Marriott Gold
Posts: 3,877
So Delta changed my schedule, I modified once. Now they changed the schedule again, my Christmas flight from LAX_AUX from direct fly at 9:00am to 12:25 am MSP, then stay 5 hours, then fly to AUS and I can't make change this time. I have been waiting on their message center for quite a bit, what is the easiest way to reach Delta? Sorry for my grammar, I am really in a piss mode.
Edit: If you find a flight for a good price on a different airline, you can also tell Delta to give you a refund and you can book with the other airline
Last edited by Mountain Explorer; Oct 18, 2021 at 7:47 pm
#2302
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 88
Take a deep breath. There are many itineraries available between LAX and AUS on Christmas. Unfortunately no direct flights in the morning. But choose ANY option you like, then call Delta and they will give it to you at no extra cost. Christmas is far away, there's no rush. Feel free to take a few days to make your decision if you want.
Edit: If you find a flight for a good price on a different airline, you can also tell Delta to give you a refund and you can book with the other airline
Edit: If you find a flight for a good price on a different airline, you can also tell Delta to give you a refund and you can book with the other airline
I wonder whether they would be OK for me to change to IAH, which is fine with me, just with a little bit schedule change.
#2303
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Atlanta
Posts: 5,175
Take a deep breath. There are many itineraries available between LAX and AUS on Christmas. Unfortunately no direct flights in the morning. But choose ANY option you like, then call Delta and they will give it to you at no extra cost. Christmas is far away, there's no rush. Feel free to take a few days to make your decision if you want.
Edit: If you find a flight for a good price on a different airline, you can also tell Delta to give you a refund and you can book with the other airline
Edit: If you find a flight for a good price on a different airline, you can also tell Delta to give you a refund and you can book with the other airline
#2304
Join Date: Sep 2021
Posts: 288
UGH!!!!
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
#2305
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 23,021
UGH!!!!
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
#2306
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Washington, DC
Programs: DL PM; IHG PlatAmb; Hilton Dia; Marriott Plat; Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 7,309
UGH!!!!
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
#2307
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: San Antonio
Programs: DL DM, Former AA EXP now AY Plat, AC 75K, NW Plat, Former CO Gold, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 27,040
Thanks. I booked multi-city flight with Delta with points and it was a really good deal. So I can't cancel one leg. As you suggested, I will call them to make the change. It really makes me wonder whether I should keep all my hotels reservation as flexible cancellation.
I wonder whether they would be OK for me to change to IAH, which is fine with me, just with a little bit schedule change.
I wonder whether they would be OK for me to change to IAH, which is fine with me, just with a little bit schedule change.
UGH!!!!
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
I had 1st class booked from JFK/SEA/HNL.
Return HNL/MSP( Delta one) MSP/JFK First.
2 weeks ago they changed plane JFK/SeA and got upgraded to delta one!!! Yeah!!!
NOooo
yesterday they changed
JFK/SEA/HNL TO. LGA/ATL/SEA/HNL
Not even close to acceptable.
Would I be able to change back to delta one even though I only had the outbound delta one for a short time?
thanks
#2308
Join Date: Jul 2016
Posts: 37
I ended up with a SCS move!! I was able to get moved to the nonstop the day before and then to a 1 stop (from the SC 2 stop - UGH) on the day after original flight. It added 2 days to our trip but that’s GREAT NEWS! And a BONUS the TATL flights are on the 300-neo which looks like a nice upgrade - flying business. I was holding my breath since I booked with Choice Air for a cruise. Fingers crossed no more major changes.
#2309
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SJC/YUL
Programs: DL PM, Marriott Gold
Posts: 3,877
I ended up with a SCS move!! I was able to get moved to the nonstop the day before and then to a 1 stop (from the SC 2 stop - UGH) on the day after original flight. It added 2 days to our trip but that’s GREAT NEWS! And a BONUS the TATL flights are on the 300-neo which looks like a nice upgrade - flying business. I was holding my breath since I booked with Choice Air for a cruise. Fingers crossed no more major changes.
#2310
Join Date: Jan 2018
Programs: AF/KL Gold, DL Diamond, Hertz PC, Bonvoy Gold Elite; Hilton Gold
Posts: 996