What happens if I skip the first leg of my flight?

[ophelia2002]

Weird question, I know, but hear me out.

I booked our flight to WDW months ago (flying from a small regional airport to Chicago and then to Orlando) and I was just re-checking the flight times and I realized that on our return trip, we have 45 minutes from landing in Chicago to take off on our return flight home. It's going to be me with 2 kids and I don't think we can make that short a layover- especially in O'Hare where it is quite a trek from one terminal to another. I don't know WHAT I was thinking when I booked that.

Anyway, I checked for a later flight from Chicago but there isn't one. I looked into possibly cancelling the home-Chicago flights to and from and just driving from Chicago to home, but it would cost almost as much as the tickets did! So I was thinking, what happens if we just don't show for the home-Chicago legs of the trip. Does the rest of the trip cancel automatically?

 

[Alesia]

This is a question for the transportation board.

But, to answer your question: No, you cannot do that. Your entire itinerary will be cancelled. It's a huge no-no.

 

[jeepnjudy]

That is a no-no because it becomes a national security issue ever since 9/11.

 

[kollerbear]

Yes--you COULD skip the very last leg of your trip (I don't think there would be any issue with that at all), but skipping any leg at all prior to that WILL cancel your entire itinerary. Could you get one-way transportation on the way home from Chicago?

 

[Alesia]

Yes--you COULD skip the very last leg of your trip (I don't think there would be any issue with that at all), but skipping any leg at all prior to that WILL cancel your entire itinerary. Could you get one-way transportation on the way home from Chicago?

There are a couple of issues with this:

1. Your checked luggage will travel on to the final destination.
2. This is against the airlines' rules. There are various possible punishments.

Your best bet is to call the airline and see if they'll work with you.

 

[kollerbear]

There are a couple of issues with this:

1. Your checked luggage will travel on to the final destination.
2. This is against the airlines' rules. There are various possible punishments.

Your best bet is to call the airline and see if they'll work with you.

Ahhh I forgot about checked luggage. Of course. Honestly, though, this would be in the context of you missing the second leg of your flight, right? If you miss your flight because of a short connection, I can't imagine that they would punish you for it. I would of course tell them that you missed the flight and opt not to rebook.

 

[Alesia]

Ahhh I forgot about checked luggage. Of course. Honestly, though, this would be in the context of you missing the second leg of your flight, right? If you miss your flight because of a short connection, I can't imagine that they would punish you for it. I would of course tell them that you missed the flight and opt not to rebook.

If they legitimately miss the second leg, then no, there won't be any consequences from the airline. But the luggage issue is going to be a problem.

 

[MrsSchmitty12]

I would just call and ask the airline what happens if you legitimately miss the second leg of your flight. When this happened to me, they just rebooked me on a later flight at no cost because my first flight was delayed causing me to miss my second one.

 

[DopeyDame]

I'm a little confused... the connection that you are worried about is on the flight home, right? So it wouldn't be the first leg that you'd be missing.
In any case, like everyone else said, if you are a no-show for a flight, they'll cancel the remainder of your itinerary.
Just stick with your scheduled plans. If you miss the final connection for some reason, they'll help you rebook onto the next flight. I've also had them send me on a bus between OHare and South Bend when I got bumped from a flight.