Mar 15, 2020, 10:29 am
Last edit by: Maestro Ramen
FARE RULES:
I pulled down the DL fare rules (these are BUD-SEA but they all appeared nearly identical). I posted them on a share. We can easily grab the AF and KL variants if others need those.
Q: This is a fully flexible fare with free changes. Does that mean I can change the flight dates as I want without paying anything extra?
A: No. The airline simply doesn't charge a change fee. But depending on the fare rules, you will still need to pay the difference to the new price.
Q: But I read that some people could change their flights for free...?
A: The rules for this fare (linked to above) specify that historical pricing shall be used if either at least one flight from the ticket has been taken or the outbound remains the same. In other words, in order to be able to change your flights for free, you must have flown at least one flight from your booking. Otherwise, you can only change the inbound. The outbound has to remain the same or you will be charged the fare difference.
Q: Can I change the rest of the itinerary after flying the first segment without any other charges or additional fare differences?
A: Yes this is possible according to the fare rules where after completing the first segment, you can change the rest of the flights for free (with the condition that the same fare class is available- I-class - in this case. According to the fare rules, after flying the FIRST segment (in the case here BUD-XXX) the historical fare is used. Possible to use the first stopover at AMS or CDG (see post #830).
Q: But some people could change their outbound flights for free!
A: They got lucky. It was probably a bug on the website/in the app. When no flight from the ticket has been flown, the fare rules do not allow changing the outbound without repricing.
Q: Ok, ok, so I can only change the inbound for free. How do I do that?
A: You search for availability for alternative flights on ITA Matrix using "F ..I2FFHU" in the extension codes. You must search for round trip flights as this is a round trip fare. Then you ignore the outbound result (as long as you haven't flown at least one flight from your ticket) and just try to rebook your inbound on the website/app.
Q: I have found availability on ITA Matrix, but the app/website doesn't show me those flights!
A: Keep trying. Sometimes you may have to serach in a different way (split up the searches, e.g. HNL-LAX and LAX-BUD), sometimes you just have to repeat the search several times. But that's no guarantee the desired results will turn up (and without repricing).
Q: It doesn't work. Can I just call the airline to make the changes?
A: Please don't unless you need to. Calling can increase the risk for all of us that they'll change their mind and disallow all further changes, or simply cancel everyone's tickets. However, as this fare has now been running for months and has seen many calls made about it, it is reasonable to expect that calling will not cause issues at this stage. As best practice, avoid attracting attention on the low price paid, and avoid making additional demands or tempting your luck. Remember you get to fly a J ticket for the cost of a Y fare.
Q: How many times can I make changes?
A: In theory, as often as you like, but you can't make more than two changes online/in the app. After that, you'd have to call, which we are trying to avoid.
Q: I've changed my mind. Can I get a refund?
A: Yes, the fare was fully refundable. Just contact the airline or fill out a refund form online.
Q: Due to Coronavirus, I need to extend my travel plan beyond the original expiry date. What can I do?
A: For Delta tickets (starting with 006) you can travel at any point until December 2022. Changes to flights within a 10 month window can be done at any point on the app, following the rules above. If you want to fly later than 10 months from now, you can call Delta and ask them to "park" your ticket. You will receive a ticket number that ties to an eCredit which can be used later to buy tickets. As long as you keep the original itinerary, or if you have flown at least a segment, you will not be charged a fare difference. Bear in mind that the eCredit may only be refundable if your original flight was cancelled (which is very likely in those day and times). Note that only Delta in the US are able to do this so do not call the EU numbers (use Skype to save money on international calls). According to user feedback: iMessage agents seem to also be able to do this, but twitter agents not.
I pulled down the DL fare rules (these are BUD-SEA but they all appeared nearly identical). I posted them on a share. We can easily grab the AF and KL variants if others need those.
Q: This is a fully flexible fare with free changes. Does that mean I can change the flight dates as I want without paying anything extra?
A: No. The airline simply doesn't charge a change fee. But depending on the fare rules, you will still need to pay the difference to the new price.
Q: But I read that some people could change their flights for free...?
A: The rules for this fare (linked to above) specify that historical pricing shall be used if either at least one flight from the ticket has been taken or the outbound remains the same. In other words, in order to be able to change your flights for free, you must have flown at least one flight from your booking. Otherwise, you can only change the inbound. The outbound has to remain the same or you will be charged the fare difference.
Q: Can I change the rest of the itinerary after flying the first segment without any other charges or additional fare differences?
A: Yes this is possible according to the fare rules where after completing the first segment, you can change the rest of the flights for free (with the condition that the same fare class is available- I-class - in this case. According to the fare rules, after flying the FIRST segment (in the case here BUD-XXX) the historical fare is used. Possible to use the first stopover at AMS or CDG (see post #830).
Q: But some people could change their outbound flights for free!
A: They got lucky. It was probably a bug on the website/in the app. When no flight from the ticket has been flown, the fare rules do not allow changing the outbound without repricing.
Q: Ok, ok, so I can only change the inbound for free. How do I do that?
A: You search for availability for alternative flights on ITA Matrix using "F ..I2FFHU" in the extension codes. You must search for round trip flights as this is a round trip fare. Then you ignore the outbound result (as long as you haven't flown at least one flight from your ticket) and just try to rebook your inbound on the website/app.
Q: I have found availability on ITA Matrix, but the app/website doesn't show me those flights!
A: Keep trying. Sometimes you may have to serach in a different way (split up the searches, e.g. HNL-LAX and LAX-BUD), sometimes you just have to repeat the search several times. But that's no guarantee the desired results will turn up (and without repricing).
Q: It doesn't work. Can I just call the airline to make the changes?
A: Please don't unless you need to. Calling can increase the risk for all of us that they'll change their mind and disallow all further changes, or simply cancel everyone's tickets. However, as this fare has now been running for months and has seen many calls made about it, it is reasonable to expect that calling will not cause issues at this stage. As best practice, avoid attracting attention on the low price paid, and avoid making additional demands or tempting your luck. Remember you get to fly a J ticket for the cost of a Y fare.
Q: How many times can I make changes?
A: In theory, as often as you like, but you can't make more than two changes online/in the app. After that, you'd have to call, which we are trying to avoid.
Q: I've changed my mind. Can I get a refund?
A: Yes, the fare was fully refundable. Just contact the airline or fill out a refund form online.
Q: Due to Coronavirus, I need to extend my travel plan beyond the original expiry date. What can I do?
A: For Delta tickets (starting with 006) you can travel at any point until December 2022. Changes to flights within a 10 month window can be done at any point on the app, following the rules above. If you want to fly later than 10 months from now, you can call Delta and ask them to "park" your ticket. You will receive a ticket number that ties to an eCredit which can be used later to buy tickets. As long as you keep the original itinerary, or if you have flown at least a segment, you will not be charged a fare difference. Bear in mind that the eCredit may only be refundable if your original flight was cancelled (which is very likely in those day and times). Note that only Delta in the US are able to do this so do not call the EU numbers (use Skype to save money on international calls). According to user feedback: iMessage agents seem to also be able to do this, but twitter agents not.
{prem fare gone}: AF/KL/DL/VS: BUD-US from $750 R/T
Apr 2, 2020, 8:14 am
#616
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA GGL, A3 Gold, M&M SEN, FlyingBlue Gold, AS MVP Gold, Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire Amb
Posts: 902
Has anyone tried changing the return portion of the ticket? I'm currently booked to return from JFK and would like to change the return flight to go out of HNL, which would save me from spending this many hours on AS flights getting from HNL to JFK. The online change process works up to the point when DL takes payment details (no payment due though, just refund) and errors out subsequently. It's a 006 ticket.
Apr 2, 2020, 8:47 am
#617
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: MUC
Programs: TK Elite, FB Gold
Posts: 315
Has anyone tried changing the return portion of the ticket? I'm currently booked to return from JFK and would like to change the return flight to go out of HNL, which would save me from spending this many hours on AS flights getting from HNL to JFK. The online change process works up to the point when DL takes payment details (no payment due though, just refund) and errors out subsequently. It's a 006 ticket.
Apr 2, 2020, 8:49 am
#618
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA GGL, A3 Gold, M&M SEN, FlyingBlue Gold, AS MVP Gold, Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire Amb
Posts: 902
Have you tried the call centre/twitter team? I wouldn't want to draw unnecessary attention to my ticket ;-)
Apr 2, 2020, 9:28 am
#619
Join Date: Feb 2012
Programs: Flying Blue Platinum, Le ClubAccor Gold
Posts: 776
Yeah, I've only seen historical rates for keeping the same TATL portion of the outbound - meaning no date changes on the front half. Can't seem to move the KL BUD-AMS or vv legs either. Just need my Other Half to decide if she wants me to change it - wary of using up my one online change.
Seems to work on the app. Refund of 100k HUF :-)
But i do not know if I can validate and do not want to try right now.
Last edited by canadavid; Apr 2, 2020 at 9:57 am
Apr 2, 2020, 9:29 am
#620
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: STR-BUD-ZRH-MUC-FRA
Posts: 210
call center 800 numbers but usually those folks don't check the pricing. If you haven't booked on their (DL/KL/AF) website you first need to find a agent who is willing to open your PNR for a change (I'll try again later maybe), then that agent also need to know how to rebook our tickets with historical pricing... the latter could be the biggest challenge???
Apr 2, 2020, 9:44 am
#621
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: MUC
Programs: TK Elite, FB Gold
Posts: 315
Apr 2, 2020, 1:54 pm
#622
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: AMS
Programs: KL PFL; BA Gold; A3 Silver; EY Silver; SU Silver
Posts: 2,488
i have exactly the same thing. It quotes flight only if i keep the same outbound. I can even change destination and select flights but it does not price (i have tried LAX and HNL on a YVR booking - hnl quotes at the low fare by the way. But not able to price it on the website online tool.
Seems to work on the app. Refund of 100k HUF :-)
But i do not know if I can validate and do not want to try right now.
Seems to work on the app. Refund of 100k HUF :-)
But i do not know if I can validate and do not want to try right now.
You shall be able to change segments #2 and later after you fly the #1 (by keeping the same fare), be patient.
Note that those who want to visit other HI islands can easily do this even using just the return portion of travel (so this change can be done before flying segment #1), however, pricing that online is a challenge, For example, HNL-YVR-PAR-BUD can be converted (even online) to HNL-OGG (stopover)-SEA-AMS-BUD with only difference in taxes (or with also mileage surcharge variance which is not big in this case, since the 1/2 RT fare is just USD 20, so max surcharge which is 25% is USD 5
).
Apr 3, 2020, 3:03 am
#623
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: ZRH
Programs: LX-SEN, KL-Gold, BA-Gold, LA-Comodoro
Posts: 94
To sum up the last few weeks of action, do I understand correctly, that
1) Changing of dates/flights for outbound AND inbound travel (that have not been cancelled yet by the airline due to corona) are not possible without heavy repricing
2) Changing of only inbound segments and leaving the outbound segments as booked has been successfully done without repricing in some cases
3) Changing of virtually anything should be possible with historical fares AFTER first segment flown
4) Changing of virutally anything AFTER A CANCELLATION OF A FLIGHT DUE TO CORONA has been done without heavy repricing?
Is this correct?
1) Changing of dates/flights for outbound AND inbound travel (that have not been cancelled yet by the airline due to corona) are not possible without heavy repricing
2) Changing of only inbound segments and leaving the outbound segments as booked has been successfully done without repricing in some cases
3) Changing of virtually anything should be possible with historical fares AFTER first segment flown
4) Changing of virutally anything AFTER A CANCELLATION OF A FLIGHT DUE TO CORONA has been done without heavy repricing?
Is this correct?
Apr 3, 2020, 3:19 am
#624
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: AMS
Programs: BAEC Silver, Flying Blue Gold, TK M&S Nobody
Posts: 2,481
To sum up the last few weeks of action, do I understand correctly, that
1) Changing of dates/flights for outbound AND inbound travel (that have not been cancelled yet by the airline due to corona) are not possible without heavy repricing
2) Changing of only inbound segments and leaving the outbound segments as booked has been successfully done without repricing in some cases
3) Changing of virtually anything should be possible with historical fares AFTER first segment flown
4) Changing of virutally anything AFTER A CANCELLATION OF A FLIGHT DUE TO CORONA has been done without heavy repricing?
Is this correct?
1) Changing of dates/flights for outbound AND inbound travel (that have not been cancelled yet by the airline due to corona) are not possible without heavy repricing
2) Changing of only inbound segments and leaving the outbound segments as booked has been successfully done without repricing in some cases
3) Changing of virtually anything should be possible with historical fares AFTER first segment flown
4) Changing of virutally anything AFTER A CANCELLATION OF A FLIGHT DUE TO CORONA has been done without heavy repricing?
Is this correct?
- There are some outbound changes available without repricing - for me I can't change the date or [seemingly] the TATL segment itself, but I can change the destination [in my case must connect at DTW]. Only explanation I have for this is that "NO CHANGE TO 1ST FARE COMPONENT" is tied to the overwater segment. Don't recall reports contrary to this, though some claimed to have changed their BUD-AMS/CDG segments I think [I can't do this without reprice].
- Yes, this certainly seems both possible and much easier.
- Should be true - but you'd need the right availability [mostly I] so might be tricky if you haven't got a long gap between first segment and whatever you want to change. Same applies to 1 & 2 - reliant on I bucket seats.
- Sounds like it, yes.
Apr 3, 2020, 3:44 am
#626
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: ZRH
Programs: LX-SEN, KL-Gold, BA-Gold, LA-Comodoro
Posts: 94
Not quite, no. With the caveat that I haven't followed through and actually changed - and some have reported payment errors on doing so:
- There are some outbound changes available without repricing - for me I can't change the date or [seemingly] the TATL segment itself, but I can change the destination [in my case must connect at DTW]. Only explanation I have for this is that "NO CHANGE TO 1ST FARE COMPONENT" is tied to the overwater segment. Don't recall reports contrary to this, though some claimed to have changed their BUD-AMS/CDG segments I think [I can't do this without reprice].
- Yes, this certainly seems both possible and much easier.
- Should be true - but you'd need the right availability [mostly I] so might be tricky if you haven't got a long gap between first segment and whatever you want to change. Same applies to 1 & 2 - reliant on I bucket seats.
- Sounds like it, yes.
Apr 3, 2020, 3:47 am
#627
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: AMS
Programs: BAEC Silver, Flying Blue Gold, TK M&S Nobody
Posts: 2,481
That's just been my experience, but I've not seen it contradicted for voluntary changes AFAICR. Only one of three itineraries will allow me to play online though, so can't even corroborate myself.
Apr 3, 2020, 4:06 am
#628
Join Date: Dec 2016
Location: Munich
Programs: QR Platinum, TK Elite Plus, SQ Gold, BA Gold, VS Gold, Globalist, HH Diamond
Posts: 101
Just got back from the phone with very helpful Delta staff: The change of date (August to November) happend quite smoothly. As long as the booking class stays the same no additional fees or fare differences were asked.
They even "upgraded" one leg to "J" to get us on a specific flight (STT->JFK) where no I-class was available.
Online or using the App I couldnīt change anything without getting errors.
Old routing: BUD-AMS-AUS | AUS-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
New routing: BUD-CDG-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
Thumbs up Delta!
They even "upgraded" one leg to "J" to get us on a specific flight (STT->JFK) where no I-class was available.
Online or using the App I couldnīt change anything without getting errors.
Old routing: BUD-AMS-AUS | AUS-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
New routing: BUD-CDG-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
Thumbs up Delta!
Apr 3, 2020, 4:20 am
#629
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: AMS
Programs: BAEC Silver, Flying Blue Gold, TK M&S Nobody
Posts: 2,481
Just got back from the phone with very helpful Delta staff: The change of date (August to November) happend quite smoothly. As long as the booking class stays the same no additional fees or fare differences were asked.
They even "upgraded" one leg to "J" to get us on a specific flight (STT->JFK) where no I-class was available.
Online or using the App I couldnīt change anything without getting errors.
Old routing: BUD-AMS-AUS | AUS-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
New routing: BUD-CDG-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
Thumbs up Delta!
They even "upgraded" one leg to "J" to get us on a specific flight (STT->JFK) where no I-class was available.
Online or using the App I couldnīt change anything without getting errors.
Old routing: BUD-AMS-AUS | AUS-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
New routing: BUD-CDG-ATL-SJU | STT-JFK | JFK-CDG-BUD
Thumbs up Delta!
Apr 3, 2020, 5:09 am
#630
Join Date: Jul 2017
Programs: SE+, OWS
Posts: 373
This is pretty much how I expected things to work based on the rules, but doesn't seem to be what's happening when I use the online change tool. Even simply changing the BUD-AMS-BUD segments asks for several thousand euros/a million florints despite the fact that is says the new flight is in I class.