My booked overnight flight was changed to a morning flight - what to do?

[tukogirl]

We booked an American Airlines flight leaving LAX for MCO Wednesday night at 9:45 pm as we have plans for Thursday during the day. Just got an email from American that our flight time is now 8:45 AM Thursday!

I'm guessing the flight didn't sell well so they cancelled. There is a 9:45 PM flight out of LAX on Delta though. IF I could get a refund from American would you switch it to the overnight Delta flight? Or just suck it up and fly in the morning?

Looking at the seats available map for the overnight delta flight it looks like there is no one on the plane. I guess I"m worried that if I do switch to that overnight Delta flight that it will also get cancelled due to lack of booking and I'm going to be in the same situation - leaving the next morning. And probably closer to my travel date so that my options for leaving in the morning may be more limited.

What would you do?

 

[Jestocost]

We booked an American Airlines flight leaving LAX for MCO Wednesday night at 9:45 pm as we have plans for Thursday during the day. Just got an email from American that our flight time is now 8:45 AM Thursday!

I'm guessing the flight didn't sell well so they cancelled. There is a 9:45 PM flight out of LAX on Delta though. IF I could get a refund from American would you switch it to the overnight Delta flight? Or just suck it up and fly in the morning?

Looking at the seats available map for the overnight delta flight it looks like there is no one on the plane. I guess I"m worried that if I do switch to that overnight Delta flight that it will also get cancelled due to lack of booking and I'm going to be in the same situation - leaving the next morning. And probably closer to my travel date so that my options for leaving in the morning may be more limited.

What would you do?

It's not typical for flights to be canceled due to low bookings but the reason really doesn't matter. With a change of that significance, American should allow you to rebook another American flight of your choosing with no additional charges or to cancel and get a full refund. In the latter case you could then rebook on Delta but you would have to pay whatever the current fare may be; even if that's more than your refund from American.

 

[Gracie09]

I did something similar a fee years ago but it was delta and jetblue.

 

[jsilvers]

Looking at American's current schedules, the overnight LAX-MCO flight goes away after August 17. It may well be that American belatedly realized that public school in Los Angeles resumes on August 12, and that demand just wasn't going to be there for the flight.

The U.S. Department of Transportation requires airlines to allow passengers to cancel a reservation without penalty in the event that the flight date is changed, or other "significant" changes. See http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/rules/20010925.htm. So you can get your money back and book Delta instead, if that's what you want.

Of course, as you note, there is a risk that Delta might also cancel its flight, but you can look at seat maps online to get a rough sense of bookings for the overall time period (since it's unlikely that the flight would be canceled for a specific day only); for example, the August 20 LAX-MCO overnight flight shows about half the seats as unavailable.

 

[DebbieB]

Are you going on a cruise? When does it sail?

 

[tukogirl]

Thanks for all of the replies. The additional info was very helpful.

We are going on a cruise, but not until Saturday morning. We are coming in to Orlando a little early to get a bit of time in the parks

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

You are incorrect in assuming flights are canceled because the plane isn't full. If you don't like the change, you can request a refund and rebook on another airline, or change to a different flight on your current airline. Be warned, rebooking on another airline only a few days before your travel day is likely to cost significantly more than your original ticket.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

You are incorrect in assuming flights are canceled because the plane isn't full. If you don't like the change, you can request a refund and rebook on another airline, or change to a different flight on your current airline. Be warned, rebooking on another airline only a few days before your travel day is likely to cost significantly more than your original ticket.

Her trip is not for another 5 months.

 

[winthropf]

Cancelling a flight because it isn't full doesn't happen often. The airline needs to move the plane so it is available for a flight leaving the original destination the next morning.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Her trip is not for another 5 months.

Where does OP state this?

We booked an American Airlines flight leaving LAX for MCO Wednesday night at 9:45 pm as we have plans for Thursday during the day. Just got an email from American that our flight time is now 8:45 AM Thursday!

 

[OKW Lover]

Where does OP state this?

We booked an American Airlines flight leaving LAX for MCO Wednesday night at 9:45 pm as we have plans for Thursday during the day. Just got an email from American that our flight time is now 8:45 AM Thursday!

Its in her ticker

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Its in her ticker

These aren't displayed on my screen.

 

[Greysword]

If you must travel over night for some reason, then you may have a couple other options.

1) Check the US Air website for their flight schedule. AA and US are one in the same, now, and it would likely be very easy to interchange tickets.

2) Create your own overnight flight. Fly into DFW on an afternoon/evening flight then take an early morning flight from DFW to MCO. That night, stay in the hotel connected to the airport (I think it is a Hyatt). Airlines generally allow a stop over in the itinerary.

3) Check flights on JetBlue out of LGB.

Good luck, and try to think of the flight as part of the adventure rather than a simple repositioning.

 

[bluwater]

Agree with Greysword.. Reroute yourself and create another overnight. Try going through PHX on usair. I was trying to reach Chairmans status on usair last year and had one week to fly 4k miles. I live in Philadelphia and was planning to go to Disney. I flew PHL to PHX and then overnight back PHX to DAB...and a short drive to Disney. I actually loved arriving at DAB....tiny airport. Then I flew back from MCO. Rental car didn't charge anything for the return to different location.

Edit: I may have flown PHX to CLT to DAB. At that point, it was a blur....but I got my Chairmans!