15 Best Tips for Surviving Flight Cancellations
Whether you’re traveling for work or pleasure, flight cancellations can wreak havoc on your plans. In light of the recent IT outage that affected thousands of flights and caused massive Delta Airlines flight cancellations at my home airport of Atlanta, I thought I’d share a few tips about dealing with flight cancellations.
I barely missed this recent incident, arriving from Puerto Rico – on a delayed flight – to an already chaotic Hartsfield Jackson International Airport at 11:30 pm the night before with lines of travelers and missed connections caused by stormy weather conditions.
But it was my recent experience traveling from Atlanta to Maui, Hawaii, when my LAX (Los Angeles) to OGG (Kahului) leg of the trip was cancelled due to a mechanical issue and my daughter’s 36 hours delay returning home to Nevada from Atlanta on what was supposed to be a quick layover in Dallas that prompted me to put together this list.
While neither experience was anything like the IT outage, both situations were super stressful and in the case of Hawaii, very disappointing since we missed 24 hours of our long awaited vacation. Those two experiences taught me a lot about flight cancellations. And even though it might seem silly to prepare for something that could happen, it’s that one time when you don’t prepare that will get you.
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Why Flight Cancellations Happen
The Federal Aviation Administration estimates there are 45,000 flights with nearly 3 million passengers a day just in the United States. With such a high volume of flights, disruptions are inevitable. Weather conditions, mechanical problems, passenger disruptions and, yes, software system glitches, are factors that can lead to flight cancellations.
As you probably know, when you book a plane ticket with an airline you agree to a Contract of Carriage. That contract outlines the rights, duties, and liabilities of both parties. In very, very simple terms it states that the airline will get you to your destination and if they don’t then they are obligated to make it right or make it up to you.
All that’s well and good but that contract doesn’t help much when you’re sitting at the airport watching a mechanical team pull the cowling off the starboard engine of the plane that’s supposed to fly you across the Pacific to a tiny dot of an island.
Preparing for Flight Cancellations
Depending on the circumstances of the cancellation, passengers are generally eligible for some kind of compensation but they won’t be handing out cash in the airport immediately. While you certainly have the right to follow-up with the airline later, it’s what you can do in the meantime that helps you survive a flight cancellation. Here’s my suggestions.
1. Know What the Airlines Offers
Most people don’t take the time to read a contract of carriage, but the U.S. Department of Transportation, who oversees the airlines has. And they’ve put together an easier to understand dashboard with, in their words, the “services that U.S. airlines provide to mitigate passenger inconveniences when the cause of a cancellation or delay was due to circumstances within the airline’s control”.
Mechanical issues fall under controllable cancellations. So, before you book your next ticket, head over to their website and take a look at what airlines are prepared to offer for flight cancellations and other situations. You’ll be better equipped to ask for a hotel room or meal vouchers if the airline has a history of offering those type services or amenities.
2. Book Flights With the Legacy Airlines
This tip isn’t to throw shade at Frontier or Spirit. Those airlines have their place. I happen to love Frontier and their fun animal livery. But if it’s an important event I’m trying to get to or a I have to be back at work on a certain day situation, then I don’t fly Frontier.
The reason being is Frontier has a limited fleet. Most of their planes are in use all the time. If you happen to get stuck because of a delay or cancellation, you will be there until their next flight out. If that airport isn’t one of their home bases, it could be a day or more until the next flight.
The chances of them bringing a plane from somewhere else are slim to none. How do I know? Because my daughter was on a Frontier flight when she spent those 36 hours in Dallas. And they offered little guidance or support. The only option was to wait on Frontier.
Good thing she has an understanding job and boss. Some people do not. Ultimately, Frontier secured her a hotel room and gave her a meal voucher, which was helpful but stressful for a young 20 something solo female traveler without a lot of experience. Airlines, like Delta, are better equipped to to handle problems when they arise. But Lori, isn’t it Delta who was affected the most by the IT outage?
Yes, they were. However, I would rather talk to, and follow up, with Delta any day over Frontier. (I can’t say much about Spirit because I have only flown them once and my flight was delayed. That’s a story for another time). Delta has a well-trained customer service department and, frankly, Frontier does not. Most everything with them is done via chat.
The point is, if you need to be somewhere and don’t have the luxury of time or to wait, then book with the legacy carriers – Delta, American, United (I had a really bad experience with United and will not fly with them but others love them) and even Southwest.
On the Maui cancellation, Delta automatically rebooked me on an another flight the next morning when the plane was not cleared to fly. And the only other cancellation I’ve ever had with Delta, they brought an entirely different airplane to fly all the passengers to Atlanta.
If you decide to fly Frontier or Spirit, or another low cost carrier, my advice is book a direct flight, early in the morning. That way you have the rest of the day to get on another flight if yours cancels. If a direct flight is not an option and the only flights have a layover, then choose a layover in a city that’s one of the airline’s home bases. You’ll have more options available to you for alternate flights in case of a cancellation.
3. Purchase Your Tickets With Credit Cards That Offer Benefits
While a good interest rate is important, credit cards that come with useful travel perks like trip insurance, lounge access and concierge services are your best friend when you have a flight cancellation or delay. Having the luxury of passing the time in a comfortable chair with food, drinks and better wifi is priceless in this stressful situation.
While it’s nice to have a American Express Platinum card, with its hefty annual fee, there are cards with no, or low, annual fees that are also useful. Chase and Capital One both offer cards with benefits like travel insurance, covering trip delays, trip interruption, and yes, even flight cancellations when you purchase your ticket with the card.
The entry level Capital One VentureOne Rewards card has no annual fee and their next tier Venture card has a $95 annual fee. Additionally, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card has an annual fee of just $95 and comes with a whole list of freebies.
Of course, all credit cards differ in what they provide so you’ll need to read the fine print and investigate which one, or two, is right for you. The Points Guy and NerdWallet are excellent websites for comparing credit card benefits.
4. Travel With More Than One Credit Card
Speaking of credit cards, I’m always a bit surprised to hear people say they travel with only one credit card. Okay but what happens when for some reason that one card doesn’t work? I’ve had that happen. In fact, I’m sure we’ve all had that happen.
Or what will you do when you return from vacation with a maxxed out card – again no shame, we’ve probably all been there too – and unexpected expenses, like flight cancellations arise, how will you cover them? Having an extra emergency credit card to help manage the crisis until you can recover your losses from the airline or travel insurance is invaluable.
One more thing I also recommend is carrying multiple brands of credit cards. While it’s not usually an issue here in the United States, some cards like American Express and Discover are not as widely accepted in other countries. Visa and Mastercard are the way to go.
5. Join the Airline’s Frequent Flyer Program
Joining an airline’s frequent flyer program can prove to be very helpful when faced with a flight cancellation or even a delay. Participating gives you a bit more clout and showing that you care enough to join their program and fly with them goes a long way in getting better support and help from customer service.
It might not get you to your destination quicker because let’s face it, a customer service rep hundreds of miles away can only do so much. But there still are good reasons to join and remain loyal to an airline. Many frequent flyer programs come with perks like priority boarding, free bags and even an occasional upgrade just to mention a few things.
6. Use the Airline’s App
Short of staying in touch with gate agents and airline personnel, the best way to stay up-to-date with flight changes and possible flight cancellations and delays, is by utilizing the airline’s app. All airline apps, that I know of, have the option to receive push notifications, and even texts, as soon as updated info is available.
Signing up for these alerts possibly mean you’ll find out what’s going on before airline workers know. And that can be really helpful in getting things done quickly or moving on to the next phase of a cancellation instead of just sitting around waiting and not knowing what’s happening.
7. Download a Flight App
A flight app not associated with the airline is also very helpful to have when traveling. Not only can you check things like airport delays and weather but you can check the conditions at the airport where your plane is coming from and track that inbound airplane.
If you discover your inbound plane is delayed, or even cancelled, then you’ll know right away to start preparing of a flight schedule change. This is crucial in rebooking and getting help as soon as possible. FlightAware is a great free resource and the one I use all the time. I’ve also read good things about Flighty but it’s only available for iOS.
8. Call the Airline Directly
Once it’s confirmed that your flight is indeed cancelled, you have a couple of choices. You can let the airline handle everything, or you can try and rebook your own flight. When cancellations occur, airlines typically attempt to rebook you on the next available flight.
If the next flight is full, the situation becomes more challenging. While some airlines may rebook you on partner airlines, others, like Frontier, don’t offer this option because they don’t have partners.
For instance, with my Maui flight, Delta rescheduled our flight for the next morning and attempted to repair the plane. When they weren’t successful, they booked us on an existing flight to Honolulu, with a connecting flight from Honolulu to Maui on Hawaiian Airlines, their partner.
It wasn’t necessary to speak with anyone. Delta handled everything but still gave me the option to make changes, or get a refund. Although, I wasn’t thrilled with a added stop, taking what they offered meant getting to Maui quicker than some of the other passengers who were rebooked on much later flights.
Everything worked out as good as it could have in this scenario without me doing anything. That’s not always the case though and there’s nothing that says you can’t proactively call the airline for options and to get a head start on a new flight. Especially if there’s a long line at the help desk.
Southerner Says: Save your airline’s phone number in your contacts before you travel.
9. Book Your Own Accommodations
Just as you can proactively rebook your flights you can also take charge of your hotel accommodations. If a flight is canceled due to mechanical issues, the airline might offer to book a hotel for you. However, this often involves waiting for them to make arrangements and staying in whichever hotel they choose.
If you prefer not to wait, you may book your own accommodations and then request a refund. It’s important to remember that reimbursement policies vary by airline, so check the specific airline’s policy. Hold onto all the receipts and documentation related to your expenses so you can submit them when following-up with customer service. Some airlines don’t even require a call. Delta has a reimbursement form right on their website.
Being a member of a hotel loyalty program is also beneficial in this situations. Big hotel brands like Marriott or Hilton offer plenty of extras like upgrades, welcome gifts, free shuttles and late check-outs. They will even assist in locating a hotel if you have difficulty finding a room. Another bonus is these brands usually have restaurants on-site. One less thing to worry about after a long day of travel.
10. Stash Snacks and a Water Bottle in Your Bag
There will be times when none of these strategies work and you might not have access to a lounge, a nice hotel or even food. It seems my daughter had everything go wrong when she was stuck those 36 hours at DFW. She arrived just as the airport restaurants were closing on her late night flight. Even though Frontier handed out meal vouchers, there was no where to use them.
A protein bar, some nuts or crackers, would have come in handy. Now, she never flies without some kind of snack or food with her. After her experience, even when I’m flying an airline that passes out in-flight snacks, I pack my own snack box. That way, no matter what, I’ve got something to eat. Of course, lounges can be useful for grabbing food but even they aren’t open 24/7.
Also, you can’t go wrong bringing a refillable water bottle on your trip. More and more places, like airports and hotels, have hydration stations and water filling stations. I know it’s one extra thing to carry around but it helps you stay hydrated, saves money and is good for the environment.
11. Have Cash on Hand
Even though it feels like we live in a cashless society at time, having some cash on hand for incidentals when you travel is another helpful thing you can do to help prepare for a flight cancellation. Not only is cash essential for small purchases and tips but having cash might be the difference in eating or not.
Imagine my daughter, unable to use her meal vouchers at the airport, arriving to her hotel (I use the word hotel lightly) and finding cash only vending machines when she had no cash. Like I said, her luck really ran out that trip. If you ever find yourself in a similar flight cancellation situation and don’t have cash, consider locating an ATM in the airport to have some on-hand.
12. Use a Carry-On
Another thing that’s possible with flight cancellations is that you might not have access to your luggage. At LAX, we were ready to push back when we were given instructions to deplane. All of the checked luggage was stowed below. Since the airline assumed we would fly to our destination on that plane the next day, the luggage was left on the plane and no one had access to their checked bags.
In this situation, packing a few essentials – like toiletries, underwear, and a change of clothes – in your carry-on or personal item can make handling a flight cancellation much more manageable. Better yet, consider skipping the checked bag altogether. It might take a bit of extra effort but once you do it, you’ll probably do it every time.
Southerner Says: Always carry important things like medication, travel documents and your wallet in your carry-on or personal item in the cabin.
13. Know the Airport Layout
Flight cancellations can also be a bit easier if you know the layout of the airport you are traveling through. That way if worse comes to worse and you have to stay at the airport for a long period of time, you can find a more peaceful place to pass the time. Some airports like Chicago’s O’Hare have hotels attached and some have pod-type, or minute sleep rooms where you can pay for a few hours of sleep.
In Atlanta, there were videos of smart passengers who sought out the popular rainforest-themed, dark walkway between Terminals A and B. This area is known for its soothing jungle sounds and low lighting and is a much better place for resting and sleeping than the bright fluorescent lights of the waiting areas inside the terminals. One way to website Sleeping in Airports can offer tips.
14. Purchase Travel Insurance
While all the tips and suggestions here can certainly help mitigate some of the issues that arise from flight cancellations, the ultimate solution for covering any financial losses associated with cancellations – unfortunately it doesn’t help with the time lost – is by purchasing travel insurance with trip protection.
Travel insurance is really to only way to make sure you are protected no matter which airline you’re flying. Their rules and what they are willing to offer won’t matter because you’ll be covered by a third-party with benefits based on the policy you purchase and not based on what’s within the airline’s control or not. Your lost or delayed bags are even covered too.
More than just trip protection, travel insurance policies can to include health insurance too if you purchase that kind of policy. I always recommend verifying what your regular health insurance covers when you travel out of your home area and go from there. Even if you do have some coverage away from home, most health insurance won’t cover services like medical evacuations or air ambulance costs, both which can cost thousands of dollars.
To find the best policy for you there are plenty of websites out there that will sift through many different companies and help compare coverage. Travelinsurance.com and InsureMyTrip.com are two of my favorites sites for general travel. Long term travelers or digital nomads might look into World Nomads or SafetyWing for their needs.
15. Contact the Department of Transportation
Lastly, the airlines fall under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Transportation. If you feel that your rights have been violated, or if you’re dissatisfied with the outcome and the airline’s response to your cancellation, or delay, then you have the option to file a complaint with the department.
Notifying the department that oversees such an integral part of travel in the United States can prompt an investigation and hopefully lead to policy changes that more effectively address issues that affect travelers. In light of the over 3,000 complaints received, the DOT has already launched an investigation into Delta for this most recent incident.
A Final Word About Flight Cancellations
Flight cancellations are no fun but you can make them a tad easier to deal with by using these strategies. Will these tips help in a major crisis like the recent IT outage? Maybe. All I can say is the better equipped you are the better off you’ll be. Putting the same kind of effort into preparing for flight cancellations that you put into trip planning and your travel safety can help minimize stress and allow you to make quick decisions when your travel plans are disrupted.
