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Consolidated Delta Schedule Change Discussion Thread

Old Jul 10, 2016, 5:48 pm
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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:
  • 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
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:
  • 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
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Consolidated Delta Schedule Change Discussion Thread

Old Jun 11, 2018, 12:59 pm
  #691  
 
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Originally Posted by Gig103
Hey all,

According to Orbitz (booked a package w/ business class fares), DL changed my return flight by 1 hour 3 minutes. I'm now getting home at 11:20pm and have work the next day. I haven't called yet, but is it likely Orbitz will put me on a KLM route (PRG-AMS-LAX-PHX) instead of my current DL metal (PRG-JFK-PHX)? I'd rather the extra stopover because through AMS arrives home much earlier (5pm) and skips 6 hours in a 'recliner' F seat. Not sure what I can expect with them.
I've never dealt with Orbitz, but that's a pretty minor change for a trip of that distance. I'm skeptical they'll rebook you.
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Old Jun 11, 2018, 1:08 pm
  #692  
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Originally Posted by Gig103
Hey all,

According to Orbitz (booked a package w/ business class fares), DL changed my return flight by 1 hour 3 minutes. I'm now getting home at 11:20pm and have work the next day. I haven't called yet, but is it likely Orbitz will put me on a KLM route (PRG-AMS-LAX-PHX) instead of my current DL metal (PRG-JFK-PHX)? I'd rather the extra stopover because through AMS arrives home much earlier (5pm) and skips 6 hours in a 'recliner' F seat. Not sure what I can expect with them.
From what I've read, dealing with Orbitz in these situations regarding schedule changes can be a real pain. But as you booked through Orbitz, you will need to go through Orbitz. What I have read says you may need to elevate to a supervisor.

You can also contact DL and see if they are able to take over the reservation (this is usually a $50 fee, but then you can deal with DL directly on the schedule change).
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Old Jun 11, 2018, 1:17 pm
  #693  
 
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Originally Posted by kjnangre
I've never dealt with Orbitz, but that's a pretty minor change for a trip of that distance. I'm skeptical they'll rebook you.
Originally Posted by ATOBTTR
From what I've read, dealing with Orbitz in these situations regarding schedule changes can be a real pain.
This is sort of what I was thinking might be the case. I guess there isn't harm in trying but just curious - is this attitude b/c Orbitz wants to be lazy about it, or do they, as the OTA, not need to follow the typical DL guidelines/rules for schedule changes (i.e. > 1 hour is change eligible)?
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Old Jun 12, 2018, 10:03 am
  #694  
 
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My DAB-ATL and ATL-CMH flights in July went from MD-88/738 to 717/739. I about jumped out of my chair when I saw the 717- it's been elusive for me and I've been wanting to catch one.
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Old Jun 12, 2018, 10:13 am
  #695  
 
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Originally Posted by JSprague24
I about jumped out of my chair when I saw the 717- it's been elusive for me and I've been wanting to catch one.
You just have to come out to the west coast. They're all over the place
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Old Jun 12, 2018, 12:45 pm
  #696  
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Originally Posted by JSprague24
My DAB-ATL and ATL-CMH flights in July went from MD-88/738 to 717/739. I about jumped out of my chair when I saw the 717- it's been elusive for me and I've been wanting to catch one.
As noted above, just come out west. I get 717s frequently on SEA-LAX (though I have been getting more 737-800s lately). Meanwhile its been quite a while (about a year now) since Ive been on an MD-88. Ill be moving back East soon though so I may be seeing more Mad Dogs in my future.
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Old Jun 12, 2018, 2:02 pm
  #697  
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returning PRG-CDG-LAX-SMF in premium economy, got hit with a schedule change resulting in a 6 hour LAX layover, up from our originally scheduled 3 hours and 30 minutes

because it is premium economy, not a lot of other options, can fly PRG-CDG-ATL-SMF and get home 90 minutes earlier. unfortunately nothing good to SFO either.

i assume i cannot propose PRG-AMS-SEA-SMF in DeltaOne and get them to take that

travel is not till fall so will let this marinate for a while I guess and see if an earlier LAX-SMF gets added back in...otherwise will have to decide whether to switch to ATL, or buy a separate $60 WN ticket on a more reasonable departure time and have them drop off the segment LAX-SMF. what i'm really hoping for is a business class sale so i can just take a refund or an exchange of the ticket altogether and get a better routing in a better cabin.

Last edited by PV_Premier; Jun 12, 2018 at 3:40 pm
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Old Jun 14, 2018, 8:21 pm
  #698  
 
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Originally Posted by kjnangre
You just have to come out to the west coast. They're all over the place
Originally Posted by ATOBTTR

As noted above, just come out west. I get 717s frequently on SEA-LAX (though I have been getting more 737-800s lately). Meanwhile its been quite a while (about a year now) since Ive been on an MD-88. Ill be moving back East soon though so I may be seeing more Mad Dogs in my future.
Oh yeah, I had an option to go LAS-LAX on a 717 my way back to CMH last summer but opted to avoid the redeye. CMH gets them from MSP from time to time, but most of my trips take me through ATL.
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Old Jun 21, 2018, 8:27 pm
  #699  
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Ugh the dreaded downgrade to a CRJ-200 on one of my itineraries. Sure it's just FAY-ATL but that's still too long to be on that damn plane.
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Old Jun 21, 2018, 9:29 pm
  #700  
 
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My MSP-BZN flight in Sept. got upgauged to an A321...we'll see how many more Saturdays that lasts

Probably the oddest routing I've seen a 321 placed on so far (at least for now...)
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Old Jun 29, 2018, 1:21 pm
  #701  
 
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I noticed today that my ORD-SLC-HNL flight in November was switched from an B767 to a A330 on the long haul segment. I know that the A330 is a superior ride in J, but am wondering if a change in type of aircraft constitutes a big of enough change to warrant a free switch. The only reason I'd want to switch is I have some family going TPA-ATL-HNL and would like to fly with them. I tried calling yesterday but hold times for a non-elite was pretty long. If the answer is a resounding NO I won't even bother trying. The ATL-HNL switched to a B767 so I should probably hope the answer is NO

Thanks for any thoughts.
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Old Jun 29, 2018, 1:29 pm
  #702  
 
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Originally Posted by chicago747
I noticed today that my ORD-SLC-HNL flight in November was switched from an B767 to a A330 on the long haul segment. I know that the A330 is a superior ride in J, but am wondering if a change in type of aircraft constitutes a big of enough change to warrant a free switch. The only reason I'd want to switch is I have some family going TPA-ATL-HNL and would like to fly with them. I tried calling yesterday but hold times for a non-elite was pretty long. If the answer is a resounding NO I won't even bother trying. The ATL-HNL switched to a B767 so I should probably hope the answer is NO

Thanks for any thoughts.
I highly doubt you would get a free switch, especially since the A330 is way better than the 763 and light years better than the 764. The 764 is one of the worst DL wide-bodies IMO and DL needs to get them into mods ASAP!
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Old Jun 29, 2018, 1:31 pm
  #703  
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Originally Posted by chicago747
I noticed today that my ORD-SLC-HNL flight in November was switched from an B767 to a A330 on the long haul segment. I know that the A330 is a superior ride in J, but am wondering if a change in type of aircraft constitutes a big of enough change to warrant a free switch. The only reason I'd want to switch is I have some family going TPA-ATL-HNL and would like to fly with them. I tried calling yesterday but hold times for a non-elite was pretty long. If the answer is a resounding NO I won't even bother trying. The ATL-HNL switched to a B767 so I should probably hope the answer is NO

Thanks for any thoughts.
Aircraft type swap usually doesn’t get you a free change. You would have a case if it resulted in a change of advertised amenities (such as you were on an aircraft with lie-flats and now one with standard domestic FC seats or maybe with the new D1 Suitrs, if you were downgraded out of the Suite). But if the schedule wasn’t impacted, I wouldn’t bank on it in this case.
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Old Jun 29, 2018, 2:14 pm
  #704  
 
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Originally Posted by chicago747
I noticed today that my ORD-SLC-HNL flight in November was switched from an B767 to a A330 on the long haul segment. I know that the A330 is a superior ride in J, but am wondering if a change in type of aircraft constitutes a big of enough change to warrant a free switch. The only reason I'd want to switch is I have some family going TPA-ATL-HNL and would like to fly with them. I tried calling yesterday but hold times for a non-elite was pretty long. If the answer is a resounding NO I won't even bother trying. The ATL-HNL switched to a B767 so I should probably hope the answer is NO

Thanks for any thoughts.
Originally Posted by ATOBTTR

Aircraft type swap usually doesnt get you a free change. You would have a case if it resulted in a change of advertised amenities (such as you were on an aircraft with lie-flats and now one with standard domestic FC seats or maybe with the new D1 Suitrs, if you were downgraded out of the Suite). But if the schedule wasnt impacted, I wouldnt bank on it in this case.

I would agree with that characterization that aircraft swaps are generally don't equate to a free change. Unless there is also a change in operating carrier or the cabin you were in no longer exists.
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Old Jun 30, 2018, 12:16 pm
  #705  
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I say doubtful Especially since it's normally a domestic 767 on SLC/HNL and AATL/HNL is also D1.
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