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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 Mar 4, 2015, 9:19 am
  #46  
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Originally Posted by ND76
I got this on a IAD-DTW-LAS flight I booked a few weeks ago for next month. Turns out they have replaced the CRJ-900 that was originally supposed to fly the IAD-DTW sector with an A319.

I got another one for a DCA-ATL-JAX itinerary where they changed the schedule, turning a 36 minute layover in ATL to a mere 33 minutes. When I went to see what my on-line options were, there was no indication of what flights I could change to for free, and when I clicked on one of the flights, delta.com reported that I could not book a change on line but had to call in.
If MCT is 35 minutes, you would get a free change and, in fact, be required to change your itinerary.
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Old Mar 4, 2015, 3:37 pm
  #47  
 
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My parents had book a flight ATL-DFW-ATL. The return DFW-ATL was cancelled and the system rebooked them DFW-ATL-CVG-ATL. Delta technology at it's best.
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Old Mar 4, 2015, 4:20 pm
  #48  
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Originally Posted by gator21
My parents had book a flight ATL-DFW-ATL. The return DFW-ATL was cancelled and the system rebooked them DFW-ATL-CVG-ATL. Delta technology at it's best.
It is watching your back to maximize your MQM!
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Old Mar 4, 2015, 4:41 pm
  #49  
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Originally Posted by gator21
My parents had book a flight ATL-DFW-ATL. The return DFW-ATL was cancelled and the system rebooked them DFW-ATL-CVG-ATL. Delta technology at it's best.
Sounds like a free mileage run.
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Old Mar 5, 2015, 10:11 am
  #50  
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FWIW I've had a lot of these schedule changes the last few months. Delta has always been happy to accommodate me on alternate flights when I call. I do wish the online change flight tool would work though, but I'll take what I can get.
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Old Mar 5, 2015, 3:14 pm
  #51  
 
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Originally Posted by MSPeconomist
I had a two hour schedule change a couple weeks ago for a summer TATL trip. I noticed it on the itinerary but did not do anything to accept it. Yet somehow the change notice no longer shows on the itinerary so it looks like someone at DL "cleared"/accepted it for me without asking or telling me. In addition, I never received an email about the change.

So far the new time is sticking, but the episode is making me wonder whether DL is thinking about changing the schedule back to what it was or knows that there will be further schedule changes for the flight.
I had this happen on a trip a year-and-a-half ago, CLT-DTW-CDG-BEG. The CDG-BEG (AF codeshare with JU) changed from mid-day to late-evening departure, schedule change by almost 7hrs. I didn't touch the itinerary nor "accept" changes while I researched alternatives. After a couple of days, it all went green as if I had accepted it!


Originally Posted by CMK10
FWIW I've had a lot of these schedule changes the last few months. Delta has always been happy to accommodate me on alternate flights when I call. I do wish the online change flight tool would work though, but I'll take what I can get.
I've usually not had an issue, but it gets tricky with partner flights. The above-mentioned schedule change was not even a real partner -- it was an AF codeshare on a non-alliance/non-partner carrier. AF had no flights into BEG, and only ST carrier that does is AZ, via FCO. DL refused to put me on the connecting legs, even tho it'd have gotten me to BEG close to the original schedule, saying AZ flights didn't have same fare class available.

Ultimately, I turned the lemons of an extended layover into a lemonade of a day excursion into Paris with my 6-yr old (went up the Eiffel Tower and to the Jardin des Tuilleries all the way to the Louvre, plus some tasty street food treats).
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 1:40 pm
  #52  
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Exclamation FYI - Delta schedule change Saturday updates rolling out again today!

FYI - Delta schedule change Saturday updates rolling out again today!

Don't forget to check best ALT choices before you call. :-:

PS - DM's CO-terminal (ie less that 100 miles) changes alive and well! ^
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 5:14 pm
  #53  
 
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Is there a timeline when Delta updates their schedule?
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 5:32 pm
  #54  
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Originally Posted by KissFlyGoodbye
Is there a timeline when Delta updates their schedule?
Every Saturday as of late it seems?

But this last one was #WINNING for me with perfect changes to full flats & co terminal joy!
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 5:38 pm
  #55  
 
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Originally Posted by KissFlyGoodbye
Is there a timeline when Delta updates their schedule?
Usually in the overnight hours around 2-4am EST. around the same time as grade inventory is released.

May good schedule change luck come to everyone for Thanksgiving.
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 5:50 pm
  #56  
 
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I usually check on Sunday morning since seat reassignments seem to be the final step in screwing us up. I haven't missed changes for at least the last 7 weeks. You need to look at ALL of your open PNR's.
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 6:02 pm
  #57  
 
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Thanks for the heads up. My PIT-JFK flight changed where I'd have less than two hours to catch my JFK-CDG flight. The very nice CS person put me on an earlier flight so I will have just shy of five hour layover, I'll just buy a pass to SC for $29 with my AMEX Delta card. I'm OK with that. Now, I don't have the ability to run through airports, like I used to. I can relax and chill out. Plus, there is red wine in the SC, right?

Before I called I did check out to see if there was an earlier flight. Plus, I was able to select the same seat.
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 6:34 pm
  #58  
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Originally Posted by SuperG1955
I usually check on Sunday morning
Plus, from my experience, the reps working the overnight Saturday / Sunday pre-8AM ET are just unreal what they will do for elites ^.
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 6:43 pm
  #59  
 
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I really need to reschedule one of my upcoming trips to later in the day, but the fare difference is huge (more than double the original fare).

DL keeps teasing me with 5 minute schedule changes but won't give me anything long enough for me to switch flights!

Should I ask for compensation??
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Old Nov 28, 2015, 7:09 pm
  #60  
 
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Originally Posted by Renes Points
Plus, from my experience, the reps working the overnight Saturday / Sunday pre-8AM ET are just unreal what they will do for elites ^.
I'm no elite. It's my first Delta flight since age 10.
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