yomama

I could not find this discussion in the forum, so I hope I'm not bringing up an old topic.

I am confirmed on 4 bus award tickets--90,000 mile awards--this summer from CDG to Frankfurt. The tickets were booked and ticketed 331 days ahead, but of course, the exact routing "didn't have seats in the inventory yet". The agent allowed me to waitlist 3 different schedules that allowed the nonstop between CDG and ATl, instead of having to go through IAD, then to ATL on the return.

Now I hear the waitlist is no more---when I spoke with the agent recently, she said it will never clear, because there is no more waitlist. My question to those of you with experience in this---If I was on the waitlist when waitlist was allowed, do I have any recourse with Delta in hoping they will allow something to clear with a better connection? I know we are number 1 in position on those lists, because they told me that when I booked the ticket.

Can they just arbitrarily throw me off the waitlist they put me on when waitlists were allowed?

Thanks for helping. Sorry I typed so much but I didn't know how else to say it.

PS--I'm not a medallion member and I don't have enough miles left to do anything more than what I have booked.

FlyingUnderTheRadar

To my knowledge, the waitlist now only exists when the agents are waiting to clear a seat with a partner airline. I.e. you call want a seat which is available on say CO. Before getting that seat it has to clear CO. As such, it is internal use only and only for "temporary" holds.

At this point, I would say what your waitlists should have been removed but has fallen through the cracks because your itinerary has not been touch since you made it.

Here is my suggestion - DO NOT have anyone touch the itinerary and clean it up. As soon as they do the waitlist may be removed.

In the meantime start checking for the availability of routings you want at the exact same award level that were listed on the waitlist. If you find one call Delta and see if they will grandfather** it in without charging you the $100 change fee. As always, with the right person you might have it honored.

** First play the dumb game - "I had this routing waitlisted as you can see on my itinerary, and I noticed it was now available. Can you clear this and change my itinerary"

CarolDisney1

Not sure about the waitlist, but have you just been checking the route

Just yesterday I found out I had to make a change to flights this summer. My mother was booked on miles using Business Class. Her original cost 150,000. New ticket 100,000.(I can live with not getting the 10,000 discount)

My ticket was cash (and not business) Cost to change at a month out is pretty steep. So I now have a business class on hold for 100,000. (Working on final decison on my return Will ticket today or tomorrow)

So things open up as you get closer!

mattgoolsby

I booked tickets at the 331 date back in August for travel this June from ATL-ATH. Connections both ways in CDG. This was before the new waitlist policy took effect.

At the time, I waitlisted for various other nonstop flights because I had to go CDG-JFK-ATL on the way back. A few weeks ago, the nonstop CDG-ATL flight cleared the waitlist, and there was no trouble getting my flight changed. I found out the waitlist had cleared when I happened to check my itinerary online.

All my other waitlists are still there as well.

I have also had to have my itinerary cleaned up multiple times since last August due to various schedule changes, and my waitlists have always remained in place. Most recently was this morning when I had to get it cleaned up again.

So the answer to your questions appears to be that if you waitlisted flights before the new policy took effect that there is a chance they could still clear.

yomama

Well, I took everyone's advice and called Delta---told them my problem about having been on a waitlist and then was told there no such list anymore. The trick was I called customer relations in Atlanta, and very nicely, very very nicely, asked them for help. They asked me which day I wanted to come back, what routing I wanted, and gave me anything I wanted in either class.

After I picked myself up from the floor and thanked him, I did ask how can he do that---yes, I was thankful, but how? He said the waitlist is no more, and just wanted to clear it out of my itenerary, and the easiest thing was to just take my request and make it happen.

So there you have it---just be nice, call customer service in Atlanta, and beg for help.

Thanks for your postings,
sincerely yours,
Yomama

AirGorilla

That's a great story!! Glad it worked out for you!!

AG