Advice needed from frequent flyers - cancellations

[Dizzy4DL]

I was looking at our flights for next week, and I noticed that the flight my daughter will be taking alone (she's 20) was canceled by the airline at least once this week. To be clear, I'm not talking about her actual day-of flight. As I won't be with her, what advice do I give her if her flight is canceled last minute? It's Alaska Airlines, and it's the last Alaska flight of the day capable of making her connection in Seattle. Would they put her on the Delta flight to Seattle that leaves at the same time?

 

[FeistyDisneyMom]

My brother was recently flying with Alaska and his flight was canceled. They did not get him rescheduled very quickly so he made his own arrangements with another airline to make sure he got home.

I wouldn't wait for the airline to try to reschedule, especially if they don't have any other flights. She will be better off trying to book herself on the Delta flight so make sure she knows which flight to ask for.

 

[chezcurrie]

I wouldn't wait for the airline to try to reschedule, especially if they don't have any other flights. She will be better off trying to book herself on the Delta flight so make sure she knows which flight to ask for.

This. In the pre-times I would say I wouldn’t worry too much about it, but there are just too many cancellations. If your daughter doesn’t have status on the airline she will be last in line, so to speak. Since the airline cancelled you are in your rights to cancel for a refund within a set amount of time. I would do so and book the direct flight or the flight/airline with most connection options. Much better for peace of mind all around. HTH

 

[Dizzy4DL]

I'm hoping that if they cancel it won't be last minute. This is the first time she has flown alone.

 

[CodeGoddess]

Agreed on the you have to push and advocate. I was flying by myself with my son a couple weeks and was part of the big cancellation in Orlando. They were way more receptive to helping me because I had a little one. Even then we got to the airport at 9:30am, finally got the first leg of our flight out at 4:30pm.

My advice, if she can fly early it will give her time to get rescheduled if the flight changes.

 

[2tinkerbell]

We had a mechanical issue on a flight before takeoff. They couldn’t fix it so we were deplaned and told to wait to be put on another plane/rescheduled. My DD sat there forever waiting for the gate agent to get to us. It didn’t happen. We were rescheduled for the next day. I requested my luggage and they acted like it was a major inconvenience and like I had an extra hole in my head. We were at home starting our vacation. We went back home and called Southwest and got us on better flights - still the next day though. They had so many cancelled/delayed flights that day it was unusual.

Another time we had a weather delay and missed our connecting flight. Again we stood in line at the gate. I called Southwest and got us rescheduled before my sister reached the front of the line.

My advise, if the flight is cancelled or delayed and it is the last flight of the day and if she is at her starting city, have her call instead of standing in a line. Also make sure there is room in the Delta flight before she uses that as a bargaining chip.

It is much faster to call or go online and make the changes than it is to wait in line at the airport.

She is 20. She will be okay and can handle this.

 

[2tinkerbell]

Sorry, double posted

 

[UnpokemonMom]

Not sure which airport your daughter is departing, but if Southwest is an option, I say book a flight for your daughter as a backup. You can cancel the flight up to 10 minutes before departure and get all the flight credit to use within a year. Peace of mind!

 

[cndkanga]

My daughter's Alaska flight (Seattle) was cancelled last minute and they wanted to put her on a late flight the next day. That was not an option. She ended up going online and getting on a Southwest flight but it was quite stressful. Her return flight was also cancelled and the airline rescheduled for the next day but after conversation with the airline they ended up transferring her to a United flight but there were multiple connections to get her home. I would suggest looking at alternatives and checking how many seats are available if she needs to get on another airline. The biggest problem my daughter founds was that the last minute flights were very expensive and although she had insurance for cancelled flights she is not having luck getting her money back as her friend had bought the original ticket and my daughter paid her back. In the end it all worked out but it was quite stressful.

 

[gelatoni fan]

What is the full itinerary? If she booked one ticket with a layover in Seattle, if there's a cancellation, Alaska will prioritize getting her to the final destination which may mean layovers somewhere else. They'll prioritize Alaska flights but if she is at the airport and know what other options get you to the final destination, those can be negotiated.

If she booked two tickets such that she must go to Seattle to catch her next flight, it gets a bit trickier. Airlines typically delay a flight first and then when they find out the mechanical issue is bigger than expected, they'll try to find a new aircraft which could mean waiting till it flies in from some other city. By the time they finally cancel the flight and your daughter finishes waiting in line or gets off hold on the phone, it'll likely be too late for a flight on a different carrier at the same time. It'll be even more difficult if she has already checked bags.

I wouldn't worry too much about this as the chances of the flight getting cancelled are not that high and at 20 years old, she should be able to handle this.

 

[FeistyDisneyMom]

I wouldn't worry too much about this as the chances of the flight getting cancelled are not that high

Normally I would agree with you, but Alaska has had some significant issues with getting crews for their planes. So while it is unlikely maintenance/mechanical issues would cause a cancelation, flight crew availability might be a problem.

Definitely make sure she is prepared to deal with the cancelation though, and as others noted - calling is often more effective and faster than waiting in the line.

 

[Becca1007]

Normally I would agree with you, but Alaska has had some significant issues with getting crews for their planes. So while it is unlikely maintenance/mechanical issues would cause a cancelation, flight crew availability might be a problem.

Definitely make sure she is prepared to deal with the cancelation though, and as others noted - calling is often more effective and faster than waiting in the line.

Call while waiting in LINE... do not choose one option over the other until you have a person helping you.

 

[RogueX]

Not sure which airport your daughter is departing, but if Southwest is an option, I say book a flight for your daughter as a backup. You can cancel the flight up to 10 minutes before departure and get all the flight credit to use within a year. Peace of mind!

Unless something has changed, that's considered a doubled booking and can result in both reservations being canceled.

 

[Dizzy4DL]

Quickly replying at work. Thank you all for the advice! I only mentioned she was 20 to make it obvious she wasn’t a child, not because I think she can’t handle it. I just wanted to have quick answers for her should the worst happen. Southwest isn’t an option from her airport, we can’t change the flight to an earlier time due to a class she can’t miss and from what I’m seeing standing in line, calling at the same time and offering Delta as an option is the best move. Thanks again!

 

[SirDuff]

Unless something has changed, that's considered a doubled booking and can result in both reservations being canceled.

Not if they are separate airlines - which is the suggestion here.

 

[UnpokemonMom]

...calling at the same time and offering Delta as an option is the best move. Thanks again!

AND be on their website (maybe you, if she's on the phone with them).

 

[soniam]

They are canceling stuff last minute fairly frequently now. They usually wait until less than an hour, sometimes less than half an hour, to delay or cancel. I have seen them cancel 5 minutes before the flight was supposed to leave, with no plane present. They should know that late that they aren't taking off on time. They hadn't even said the plane was delayed. It's been vicious lately.

 

[avalon451]

I've flown Alaska twice in the last 2 months (4 flights total) out of and into Seattle; the only problem was a half-hour delay on a departing flight while waiting for our pilot.

I thought I'd read that their scheduling problems have eased, and the callouts from so many Omicron infections has calmed down. But there was just an article in the Seattle Times saying that they're running too lean, and that at the end and beginning of a new month, they have pilots who have already reached their monthly limits and can't sub in when needed. So you're not imagining it; they're still struggling. It did get somewhat better by Tuesday. The pilots are still deadlocked on a new contract, and a lot are quitting over these conditions. So I guess that's the problem.

Now I'm worried, since I fly out June 1 for my next trip!