Jul 10, 2016, 5:48 pm
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
Feb 3, 2020, 11:18 am
#991
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: BRU
Programs: EuroBonus, FlyingBlue Gold
Posts: 245
Horrified by the service at the DL US call center, I called the Dutch DL office today(Which is staffed by KLM staff), and they could immediately book me on the flights I wanted. Explained my issues and she could not believe what I said. Policy according to her is when you are scheduled to misconnect, you can chose any routing in the same class of service on AF, KL or DL. She was happy I had the flights ready, it was booked in 5 minutes, and she apologised that it even took that long.
Generally I always assume American service is better than European, but in this case, the Dutch office was great!
Generally I always assume American service is better than European, but in this case, the Dutch office was great!
Feb 3, 2020, 11:28 am
#993
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: BRU
Programs: EuroBonus, FlyingBlue Gold
Posts: 245
Feb 15, 2020, 2:15 pm
#994
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: AZO, SRQ
Programs: DL PM
Posts: 311
There's a schedule change in process for a trip that I just purchased yesterday. The trip is AZO-DTW-SEA-SLC-DTW-AZO, all in first class. I bought it thru Delta Vacations and it includes more than just the flights. I presume it's not done yet because it still shows the original flights as part of the itinerary and there's no "accept" button. I'm probably going to have to contact Delta because there's the "you may miss your connection" message, which is in error because I won't - I'll get to DTW 5 minutes earlier. Last leg of the flights they've downgraded from a CR7 to CRJ. No change in operating carrier.
The trip isn't until early September though. I presume that there will be at least 2-3 more changes. At a minimum I wouldn't contact them until sometime this week, once all of the changes are done running. Do I run any risks by just leaving it sit the way it is until about 120 days out and then calling to get it straightened out, thinking that with another change it may resolve itself? I won't ask for compensation on the downgrade until after I take the trip on the chance that they may upgauge it again.
Finally, who "owns" the fixing of the reservation? Delta? Delta Vacations? This particular twist is completely new to me.
The trip isn't until early September though. I presume that there will be at least 2-3 more changes. At a minimum I wouldn't contact them until sometime this week, once all of the changes are done running. Do I run any risks by just leaving it sit the way it is until about 120 days out and then calling to get it straightened out, thinking that with another change it may resolve itself? I won't ask for compensation on the downgrade until after I take the trip on the chance that they may upgauge it again.
Finally, who "owns" the fixing of the reservation? Delta? Delta Vacations? This particular twist is completely new to me.
Last edited by Taz; Feb 15, 2020 at 2:17 pm Reason: missed information
Feb 15, 2020, 2:27 pm
#995
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SJC/YUL
Programs: DL PM, Marriott Gold
Posts: 3,878
There's a schedule change in process for a trip that I just purchased yesterday. The trip is AZO-DTW-SEA-SLC-DTW-AZO, all in first class. I bought it thru Delta Vacations and it includes more than just the flights. I presume it's not done yet because it still shows the original flights as part of the itinerary and there's no "accept" button. I'm probably going to have to contact Delta because there's the "you may miss your connection" message, which is in error because I won't - I'll get to DTW 5 minutes earlier. Last leg of the flights they've downgraded from a CR7 to CRJ. No change in operating carrier.
The trip isn't until early September though. I presume that there will be at least 2-3 more changes. At a minimum I wouldn't contact them until sometime this week, once all of the changes are done running. Do I run any risks by just leaving it sit the way it is until about 120 days out and then calling to get it straightened out, thinking that with another change it may resolve itself? I won't ask for compensation on the downgrade until after I take the trip on the chance that they may upgauge it again.
Finally, who "owns" the fixing of the reservation? Delta? Delta Vacations? This particular twist is completely new to me.
The trip isn't until early September though. I presume that there will be at least 2-3 more changes. At a minimum I wouldn't contact them until sometime this week, once all of the changes are done running. Do I run any risks by just leaving it sit the way it is until about 120 days out and then calling to get it straightened out, thinking that with another change it may resolve itself? I won't ask for compensation on the downgrade until after I take the trip on the chance that they may upgauge it again.
Finally, who "owns" the fixing of the reservation? Delta? Delta Vacations? This particular twist is completely new to me.
Just to set expectations, when one short leg of a long journey gets downgraded, DL's formula for calculating compensation often results in very small numbers. They will of course let you change to a different flight that does offer First class. But if none exists, or if you decide to keep the CRJ flight, you might well get something like $8, for example
Feb 15, 2020, 2:34 pm
#996
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: AZO, SRQ
Programs: DL PM
Posts: 311
There's no risk in waiting, other than your preferred seat on the new plane may already be taken by then. Your right to make a free change does not have an expiration date.
Just to set expectations, when one short leg of a long journey gets downgraded, DL's formula for calculating compensation often results in very small numbers. They will of course let you change to a different flight that does offer First class. But if none exists, or if you decide to keep the CRJ flight, you might well get something like $8, for example
Just to set expectations, when one short leg of a long journey gets downgraded, DL's formula for calculating compensation often results in very small numbers. They will of course let you change to a different flight that does offer First class. But if none exists, or if you decide to keep the CRJ flight, you might well get something like $8, for example
Feb 15, 2020, 7:57 pm
#997
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: PNS
Programs: DL FO, UA, AA
Posts: 700
There's a schedule change in process for a trip that I just purchased yesterday. The trip is AZO-DTW-SEA-SLC-DTW-AZO, all in first class. I bought it thru Delta Vacations and it includes more than just the flights. I presume it's not done yet because it still shows the original flights as part of the itinerary and there's no "accept" button. I'm probably going to have to contact Delta because there's the "you may miss your connection" message, which is in error because I won't - I'll get to DTW 5 minutes earlier. Last leg of the flights they've downgraded from a CR7 to CRJ. No change in operating carrier.
The trip isn't until early September though. I presume that there will be at least 2-3 more changes. At a minimum I wouldn't contact them until sometime this week, once all of the changes are done running. Do I run any risks by just leaving it sit the way it is until about 120 days out and then calling to get it straightened out, thinking that with another change it may resolve itself? I won't ask for compensation on the downgrade until after I take the trip on the chance that they may upgauge it again.
Finally, who "owns" the fixing of the reservation? Delta? Delta Vacations? This particular twist is completely new to me.
The trip isn't until early September though. I presume that there will be at least 2-3 more changes. At a minimum I wouldn't contact them until sometime this week, once all of the changes are done running. Do I run any risks by just leaving it sit the way it is until about 120 days out and then calling to get it straightened out, thinking that with another change it may resolve itself? I won't ask for compensation on the downgrade until after I take the trip on the chance that they may upgauge it again.
Finally, who "owns" the fixing of the reservation? Delta? Delta Vacations? This particular twist is completely new to me.
Feb 15, 2020, 11:36 pm
#998
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: RDU
Posts: 679
I have an upcoming trip purchased through Expedia "bundled and save", so my understanding is that Expedia has control of my ticket. Ticket is issued on 006 stock.
I'm flying RDU-JFK-BOM, BOM-CDG-BOS-RDU. Outbound is DL marketed, DL operated. Return is AF marketed. BOM-CDG is AF operated, CDG-BOS-RDU is DL operated. The itinerary has survived several minor schedule changes on Saturdays so far without issue, but I just got an email from Expedia saying that one of my return flights is no longer available and that I need to pick an alternative. It appears that the flight in question is BOS-RDU - the DL flight is still available, but it looks like the AF-marketed flight number is missing - can't find it on ITA or on the AF site itself.
Expedia is giving me 48-hours to respond to their proposed alternatives, which are completely nonsensical. Should I hang tight for a few hours to see if the AF-codeshare number pops back up again and links correctly to my ticket? Or should I start calling Expedia or DL direct to see what can be done? Ideally I keep my original timed flights, with the original marketing marketing carrier as is.
I'm flying RDU-JFK-BOM, BOM-CDG-BOS-RDU. Outbound is DL marketed, DL operated. Return is AF marketed. BOM-CDG is AF operated, CDG-BOS-RDU is DL operated. The itinerary has survived several minor schedule changes on Saturdays so far without issue, but I just got an email from Expedia saying that one of my return flights is no longer available and that I need to pick an alternative. It appears that the flight in question is BOS-RDU - the DL flight is still available, but it looks like the AF-marketed flight number is missing - can't find it on ITA or on the AF site itself.
Expedia is giving me 48-hours to respond to their proposed alternatives, which are completely nonsensical. Should I hang tight for a few hours to see if the AF-codeshare number pops back up again and links correctly to my ticket? Or should I start calling Expedia or DL direct to see what can be done? Ideally I keep my original timed flights, with the original marketing marketing carrier as is.
Feb 16, 2020, 1:46 am
#999
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: PNS
Programs: DL FO, UA, AA
Posts: 700
I have an upcoming trip purchased through Expedia "bundled and save", so my understanding is that Expedia has control of my ticket. Ticket is issued on 006 stock.
I'm flying RDU-JFK-BOM, BOM-CDG-BOS-RDU. Outbound is DL marketed, DL operated. Return is AF marketed. BOM-CDG is AF operated, CDG-BOS-RDU is DL operated. The itinerary has survived several minor schedule changes on Saturdays so far without issue, but I just got an email from Expedia saying that one of my return flights is no longer available and that I need to pick an alternative. It appears that the flight in question is BOS-RDU - the DL flight is still available, but it looks like the AF-marketed flight number is missing - can't find it on ITA or on the AF site itself.
Expedia is giving me 48-hours to respond to their proposed alternatives, which are completely nonsensical. Should I hang tight for a few hours to see if the AF-codeshare number pops back up again and links correctly to my ticket? Or should I start calling Expedia or DL direct to see what can be done? Ideally I keep my original timed flights, with the original marketing marketing carrier as is.
I'm flying RDU-JFK-BOM, BOM-CDG-BOS-RDU. Outbound is DL marketed, DL operated. Return is AF marketed. BOM-CDG is AF operated, CDG-BOS-RDU is DL operated. The itinerary has survived several minor schedule changes on Saturdays so far without issue, but I just got an email from Expedia saying that one of my return flights is no longer available and that I need to pick an alternative. It appears that the flight in question is BOS-RDU - the DL flight is still available, but it looks like the AF-marketed flight number is missing - can't find it on ITA or on the AF site itself.
Expedia is giving me 48-hours to respond to their proposed alternatives, which are completely nonsensical. Should I hang tight for a few hours to see if the AF-codeshare number pops back up again and links correctly to my ticket? Or should I start calling Expedia or DL direct to see what can be done? Ideally I keep my original timed flights, with the original marketing marketing carrier as is.
Feb 16, 2020, 5:16 am
#1000
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: AZO, SRQ
Programs: DL PM
Posts: 311
First off hang tight. To answer your very last question always call DL Vacations for this type of issue, they can contact the same departments as a regular delta agent. This is schedule change Saturday as it seems you are aware and could revert to it's original time tomorrow. Here is some advice from a first hand perspective of a DL vacations and schedule change Saturday issue (+more info). Wife and I booked a DL vacations trip in the summer of 2019 with flight and hotel for a June 2020 trip to Hawaii all in First class as well. Flying PNS-ATL-LAX-HNL-LAX-ATL-PNS. Our connection on the outbound and inbound at LAX was 2 minutes over MCT (minimum connection time), we were worried about this as my wife has two bum knees so I called DL Vacations to inquire about this and they basically said do not worry about it at this time as there will probably be 3-4 schedule changes before your flight that will allow you to change this around. So I waited... Then one schedule change Saturday the the connections dropped below MCT. So I waited to make sure it stuck after SCS. It did, so I called up on Monday and was able to get an awesome new re-route in D1 on the ATL-HNL-ATL flights without charge. Point of the story is to keep watching, don't make any decisions based on what you see on a Saturday. Wait till it sticks and is still there on Monday. Your story is similar but a little different than mine, but the logic should still be the same. Sorry for the long post.
Feb 16, 2020, 9:48 am
#1002
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: SJC/YUL
Programs: DL PM, Marriott Gold
Posts: 3,878
Thanks! As you noted, I'm well aware of Schedule Change Saturday. As of this morning, everything is sorted, but I now have the "you may miss your connection" message for the last leg, which is the last flight of the day DTW-AZO. This will give me the potential opportunity to ditch the connection in SLC on the return and change to SEA-DTW-AZO, getting home a couple of hours earlier. But who knows what other Saturday Surprises await between now and then, so I'll wait on my call to Delta Vacations for a bit.
Feb 16, 2020, 9:57 am
#1003
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: 27,050
There's no risk in waiting, other than your preferred seat on the new plane may already be taken by then. Your right to make a free change does not have an expiration date.
Just to set expectations, when one short leg of a long journey gets downgraded, DL's formula for calculating compensation often results in very small numbers. They will of course let you change to a different flight that does offer First class. But if none exists, or if you decide to keep the CRJ flight, you might well get something like $8, for example
Just to set expectations, when one short leg of a long journey gets downgraded, DL's formula for calculating compensation often results in very small numbers. They will of course let you change to a different flight that does offer First class. But if none exists, or if you decide to keep the CRJ flight, you might well get something like $8, for example
Feb 16, 2020, 10:15 am
#1004
Moderator: Hyatt; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: WAS
Programs: :rolleyes:, DL DM, Mlife Plat, Caesars Diam, Marriott Tit, UA Gold, Hyatt Glob, invol FT beta tester
Posts: 18,947
Expedia is giving me 48-hours to respond to their proposed alternatives, which are completely nonsensical. Should I hang tight for a few hours to see if the AF-codeshare number pops back up again and links correctly to my ticket? Or should I start calling Expedia or DL direct to see what can be done? Ideally I keep my original timed flights, with the original marketing marketing carrier as is.
Feb 16, 2020, 10:31 am
#1005
Suspended
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: TPA / JFK / LAX
Programs: DL 360, UA 1K, AA EXP, Bonvoy Ambassador
Posts: 304
I have an upcoming trip purchased through Expedia "bundled and save", so my understanding is that Expedia has control of my ticket. Ticket is issued on 006 stock.
I'm flying RDU-JFK-BOM, BOM-CDG-BOS-RDU. Outbound is DL marketed, DL operated. Return is AF marketed. BOM-CDG is AF operated, CDG-BOS-RDU is DL operated. The itinerary has survived several minor schedule changes on Saturdays so far without issue, but I just got an email from Expedia saying that one of my return flights is no longer available and that I need to pick an alternative. It appears that the flight in question is BOS-RDU - the DL flight is still available, but it looks like the AF-marketed flight number is missing - can't find it on ITA or on the AF site itself.
Expedia is giving me 48-hours to respond to their proposed alternatives, which are completely nonsensical. Should I hang tight for a few hours to see if the AF-codeshare number pops back up again and links correctly to my ticket? Or should I start calling Expedia or DL direct to see what can be done? Ideally I keep my original timed flights, with the original marketing marketing carrier as is.
I'm flying RDU-JFK-BOM, BOM-CDG-BOS-RDU. Outbound is DL marketed, DL operated. Return is AF marketed. BOM-CDG is AF operated, CDG-BOS-RDU is DL operated. The itinerary has survived several minor schedule changes on Saturdays so far without issue, but I just got an email from Expedia saying that one of my return flights is no longer available and that I need to pick an alternative. It appears that the flight in question is BOS-RDU - the DL flight is still available, but it looks like the AF-marketed flight number is missing - can't find it on ITA or on the AF site itself.
Expedia is giving me 48-hours to respond to their proposed alternatives, which are completely nonsensical. Should I hang tight for a few hours to see if the AF-codeshare number pops back up again and links correctly to my ticket? Or should I start calling Expedia or DL direct to see what can be done? Ideally I keep my original timed flights, with the original marketing marketing carrier as is.
call DL, pay $50 for them to take control of the ticket, and tell Expedia to pound sand