Flying with autistic child on Delta

[lorac4disney]

We are going to be flying into and out of Orlando on non-stop flights on Delta. My 12 year old daughter is autistic and I need side-by-side seating to be able to help her through the flight. The problem is that on our flight into Orlando, there were no side-by-side seats available.

Upon contacting the company we booked the flight through, they were of no help except to tell me to keep checking back on the seating assignment just in case someone cancels. Needless to say, it will be the last time I book through them. I contacted Delta directly. Instead of fixing it so that we could have side-by-side seating, they fixed it so that my daughter was sitting way off by herself with aisle seating.

Our flight leaves in two weeks so I thought I would cut straight to the chase and ask you wonderfully informative folks here how I would go about arranging for side by side seating. The Delta website was the most informative on saying that we would need to arrive early and contact the gate attendant. I was hoping to get a little more information than this and I don't want to risk calling them back so that they "fix" things even worse like booking her on a different flight altogether.

As you can tell, this is the first time my daughter is flying and it was a last minute change in plans to fly. Anyone know how early I need to arrive at the airport as well as where I need to go and what I need to do to get side-by-side seating?

Any information, tips, and helpful hints will be appreciated. Also, do I need documentation from her doctor stating that she is autistic?

 

[Brian Noble]

Unfortunately, what you've been told so far is as good as it gets. Keep checking the seating chart to see if someone moves, cancels, changes flights, or gets upgraded. Good times are early morning in each of the five days prior to flight time----that's the "upgrade window" when passengers at various elite status levels get moved to the front.

The other thing to try is to check in as early as possible for your flight---as close to 24 hours prior to departure as you possibly can. There are sometimes a few rows in the very back that are not assigned until check-in time.

If that doesn't work, get to the gate early, and camp out there until the gate agent arrives and see what s/he can do.

If she is in an aisle right now, where are you? If you are not in a middle seat, there's a fighting chance you can offer the person in the middle seat in your row a swap---an aisle is a nice thing, even if it is in the back of the plane.

The good news is: 99% of the time, these things work out just fine. But, as far as I know, there isn't anything you can do that will guarantee it if other passengers already have seats assigned in such a way as to not leave two side-by-side seats open.

For what it is worth, it wouldn't matter if you had booked with Delta directly, nor would it matter if it were some other airline with an assigned seating policy.

 

[Brian Noble]

One more thing to try: use the email contact form, rather than calling. When you call, you get a generic customer service representative---mostly people who are there to sell tickets. The email form is used for questions and problems, and is likely to find its way to someone who is more focused on solving problems vs. selling tickets.

https://www.delta.com/emailus/servlet/EmailUs?cmd=go

 

[dudspizza]

My best thought is to get to the airport very early. Seats are held back for assignment at the airport. Get there very early and ask to be put in those seats, if they are available. I would do this at the check in counter and then again with the gate if needed.

Also, agents on the phone can free up those blocked seats. I would call back and explain my situation. If I didn't get the answer I felt I needed, I would politely end the conversation and call back again..... this should get worked out.

duds

 

[bookwormde]

Under FAA regulations if due to her disability she can not successfuly travel without a companion next to her then they are required to make adjsutments to the seeting to accomidate her. It is all covered under part 382 and there should be a link to it on the Delta web site, if not Southwest has a link.

bookwormde

 

[lorac4disney]

Thank you. We decided to go to our departure city the night before and get a hotel room very close to the airport so that we can get there extra early. To be on the safe side, I am going to get a note from her doctor just in case the airline needs it to accommodate her.

Our flight doesn't leave until 8:45am. We plan on getting to the airport at 6:00am, checking in and hopefully getting our seat assignment before grabbing breakfast at one of the restaurants there. I just hope that will be early enough.

 

[bookwormde]

You do not need a note to "prove" the disability, but it can not hurt.

bookwormde

 

[DebbieB]

Thank you. We decided to go to our departure city the night before and get a hotel room very close to the airport so that we can get there extra early. To be on the safe side, I am going to get a note from her doctor just in case the airline needs it to accommodate her.

Our flight doesn't leave until 8:45am. We plan on getting to the airport at 6:00am, checking in and hopefully getting our seat assignment before grabbing breakfast at one of the restaurants there. I just hope that will be early enough.

I would try online check-in 24 hours before. There might be additional seats opened up then. If there isn't, try calling. Also, keep checking the seat chart starting a week before. Elites can start getting upgraded 7 days before the flight, opening up coach seats.

 

[lorac4disney]

Thank you bookwormde and Debbie. I will definitely be doing the online check-in. I don't anticipate a problem at security, but I'm giving us extra time for that as well. I have been checking the seating chart at least once a day, but will step it up once we hit the seven day mark.

 

[lorac4disney]

Just got a return email from Delta. They said that not all of their seats are available for pre-selection for this reason. We are allowed to get our boarding passes up to six hours prior to the flight time at which time, we needed to notify the gate attendant of our needs.

I just wonder if I could run to the airport to get our boarding passes at the six hour mark while the rest of my family slept and then go back to the hotel myself before returning with them at a more decent time.

 

[kaytieeldr]

The six hours they tell you is "live", at the airport. Your airport's counters may not be operating at 2:45 AM (I don't know how big it is, I could be wrong, but I'm relatively certain even at my 'international' airport, nobody's selling tickets or distributing boarding passes in the middle of the night).

You really can check in online 24 hours prior to your flight's scheduled departure, and get your boarding passes - and seat assignments at that time. Since you're staying in a hotel overnight, ask Guest Services for help with this.

Then, if you still can't find two seats together, check in early - either curbside check-in (tipping is appropriate) or at the counter inside as early as possible; if you still can't get two seats together after explaining your needs, try again at the gate. This is where I (in a wheelchair) got reassigned without asking, a couple of years ago.

With all these options, plus the advice to check daily leading up to your trip - you should be fine.