Delta Separating Couples
 

In February I purchased two first classes tickets from JFK to Cabo for a Christmas trip. I purchased them for myself (Gold) and husband (Platinum) when they first went on sale because I knew they would sell out quickly. I picked two seats together, and we have one Record Locator Number. There have been a couple of schedule changes since then, by a few minutes here or there, but no equipment changes. I periodically check these seats, and everything was fine, until I noticed last month that both of our seats were changed. My husband was moved back a row, and I was moved over into his old seat (we are now 3A and 4A). I wrote and called Delta but received no helpful response or explanation ('the computer did it automatically') other than they can't do anything as the cabin is sold out, that I should keep checking, and perhaps someone will change with me on the flight.

I am putting this here for two reasons. If it could happen to me, it could happen to you. And wondering if besides moving back to coach to sit together, did I miss any options to fix this? Thank you.

I don’t believe you missed anything. I’ve had this happen, though not in the last year or so. For better or worse I’ve become accustomed to (obsessively?) checking reservations after Schedule Change Saturday.

Keep checking the seat map to see if an adjacent seat opens up between now and your flight.

That stinks that they did that. I would keep an eye open for seats to open up. I would also look for an aisle seat to open up somewhere nearby and swap one person into that. Odds are, someone will swap seats with you, particularly if you have both a window and aisle to offer.

This is not uncommon when schedule changes happen. Seats can get shuffled when there is any type of change: flight number, times, equipment swap, etc. Best practice is to review your reservations weekly after Schedule Change Saturday processes and make any adjustments needed.

I'm sensitive because it is a 6-7 hour flight, and you paid for first class...
buuuuut.... this is an overreaction (the title is borderline clickbait, coupled with "it could happen to you" in the body.

If we're talking a family of 4-6, Delta actually does the opposite - they prefer people all together, even when one family member might, say, want an exit row seat.

Why not ask the person next to you (or next to your husband) to move to the window?
One row isn't really "separated". Different flights or scattered across the aircraft? That's "separated."

Anyone else think this would be about people getting rebooked on different flights?

This is definitely annoying but you'll probably be OK in the end. I suggest keeping an eye on the seat map, and consider taking any non-bulkhead aisle seat that comes available. Then I'm sure either the person next to you or your husband will be willing to swap for the same type of seat they are already in.

Happened to us on our last flight. We were seated separately and had selected seats we were both happy with. No seats were available together when we booked the flight, but I was in 5B because I like the unlimited legroom even though I get bumped into on boarding and wife in 6D because she hates not being able to reach her bag under the seat in front of her. Go to board and the machine spits out a receipt for each of us now seated together in 7A/B. It did not look like they were trying to accommodate anyone else together - so they were definitely trying to seat us together, but it's strange we weren't asked if we wanted to be moved.

I assumed they meant kids. Not able bodied adults

I tried to edit the title but didn't see how - sorry that it is misleading. And we are seniors, if that matters.

I'm pretty sure that if you ask nicely, people would move / accommodate.
I would about 95% of the time - I've done this in coach and FC and BC (D1 and other airlines). I prefer not moving to crew rest area or weird seats, so that's the 5% I've refused.
(and it's only been about 20 times in the thousands of flights I've been on)

This happens to me all the time with my teenager on the same reservation, even before the kid was a teen. It's annoying but we are resigned to it. It's typically full flights and the gate agent can't do anything. We don't mind on a short flight but it happened on a flight to Hawaii as well. I try to check regularly but it seems more common these days! I always tell the kid either way we get there so it is what it is.

It probably happened to others on the flight as well. This is a route that likely is mostly couples in FC, so I think there's a good chance you'll be able to get it worked out once you board. Don't just assume and sit in the seat you'd like, wait until they board to ask politely for the seat change.

Almost 50 years of travel in the Bahamas and Caribbean. I can't find a place within one flight (and no ferry) that meets our needs (good service and food, uncrowded beach). Bermuda works in May and June. Some resorts outside of Cancun come close, but we have been going to Cabo for about ten years and love everything about it.

The opposite happened to me recently. I booked two FC tickets for me and a co-worker with him on the other side of the plane because…well, 6.5 hours is a long time. When we got to the airport we were moved next to each other and I simply couldn't find a polite way to request a seat change. Did I mention that 6.5 hours was a long time?

Air France is the worst with this. They split my wife and I to separate parts of the plane on a transatlantic flight at the last minute. The Delta and AirFrance staff at CDG couldn't care less.

I have had former coworkers that I would not want to have sat next to SEA-PDX, never mind 6.5 hours. I have always booked separate flights from my coworkers to avoid this awkward situation, even with coworkers I like. If someone questions why I am on a particular flight, it's always because that flight worked best with my schedule and being a seasoned traveler, I know which flights work best for me so that I can do my best work.

Thread title edited to read Delta Separating Couples
Obscure2k
Delta Moderator

Even coworkers I like.. I would not want to sit next to for more than 20 minutes. Almost ever.

My wife would pay a premium to Delta for a guarantee of not having to speak to me for 6 hours.

Newest ancillary: "marriage counseling through distance on a plane."
(don't give airlines any more ideas)

That's a good idea. Especially now that the therapy against obsessive addiction to social media is completely gone with in-flight wi-fi.

I used to purposely move my now ex husband to a different seat or upgrade myself so I didn't have sit with him. I figure let someone else have that pleasure as I'll be spending the next 7 days on vacation with him! :D

This isn’t the first time I have seen this with Delta. There are many articles posted here about the same. I’ve even seen write-ups here where passengers have purchased first class seats but then bumped to middle seats in Economy - on Delta. This is why it concerns me about booking with Delta. I’ve been flying for over 50 years, mostly on American - Platinum Pro. Out of all of my years flying, I’ve only had two occasions where AA changed my seat and they were both due to equipment change: A330-300 to A330-200, A320 to B733 (both of these when US Airways). I usually receive schedule changes on my AA flights that I book well in advance, and I usually go and check my seat assignments; however, the seats remain the ones I select. I’m not sure why Delta can’t figure this out??? Why does an airline need to reshuffle the seats if only the time changes and the aircraft remains the same. I certainly have no proof, but it seems that maybe, just maybe, Delta shuffles passengers around to accommodate high spenders/higher status. If AA can keep you in the same seats when the flight time changed by 5 minutes, why can’t Delta. Something doesn’t smell right here.

you must not fly Delta craft with GoGo...whateverIntelSat

I think this is the best advice here though and bears repeating...
Try to get one of you into an aisle seat - it will make your swap that much easier when you board to have either an aisle or a window to offer.

You'd think that when two travelers are traveling together, and have selected adjacent seats, the IT systems would, except in highly unusual scenarios, be capable of keeping those two travelers together even if there are schedule changes or changes of equipment.

Another way to look at it, however, it to say "we're going to be together 24/7 for several days while on vacation; it is really a tragedy to be one row apart on an airplane for a few hours?". Especially when you are in first class so there is no need to have to share an armrest as you might with a traveling companion in Economy class.

Anyhow, as others have suggested, keep monitoring the seat map, and talk to the gate agent.

I'd be leery about asking passengers to change seats. I often am very purposeful when I choose seats . . . I consider which side of the plane the sun will be on, I think about the freedom of right hand movement if I will be working on my laptop (in which case I'll want an aisle seat with the aisle on my right), and I check SeatGuru for other nuances. So it kind of annoys me when people ask to change seats.

As long as someone is polite, has an understandable reason for wanting to change seats and it's not a downgrade, there is no reason why someone should be afraid of asking to change seats. The worst they would say is "no" IF all of the above criteria are met. If the above criteria are not met, people, including myself may get a little grumpy. While many of us are very purposeful in selecting the seats we want, I am always amazed at how many people don't care, don't know what type of aircraft they are on, and sometimes even don't know the class they are seated in.

Am surprised nobody has mentioned the FAM issue -- it is possible that a federal air marshal was assigned to this flight, and they get to bump aisle passengers into a window seat, even if in another row.

Yeah, schedule changes happen and airline reservation systems are archaic coding that predated dial up modems.

Tell your partner that you'll either see them on the otherside (and count yourself lucky) and/or see them in the toilet to join the mile high club (luckier or not?)

You have my sympathies.

This and worse happened to me once. Seated together in the lounge, next to each on a four hour flight, then same taxi. Get to the hotel and there are only two rooms left. FD says fortunately you guys are right next to each other! :rolleyes: I get a nice suite upgrade but there is connecting door to my colleague's room! I hear him open the door from his side and knock on it. :mad: I go to his room and tell him I cannot open my door to another room unless corporate security approves it. (There actually is not much basis for that and I did just make it up on the spot. Sounded pretty good, though.) Tell him good night and take an ambien to get to sleep.

Next morning I have my assistant move me to a later flight that evening.

yes that has happned to me before so aweful