Travel

Flight Canceled? Here’s 8 Tips to Get Back on Track

by/January 25, 2023
An image of a flight departure board at an airport showing cancelled flights. Flight delay or flight cancellation? That can be a frustrating experience. Here's our step-by-step guide to getting back on track. What To Do When Your Flight Gets Canceled

A flight delay or cancelation can not only be a headache, but a financial drain. We asked the experts for the their tips on what to do when your flight gets canceled.

Over the holidays, as Southwest Airlines struggled to restore its network following a wave of brutal winter weather across the country, hundreds of thousands of the airline’s passengers found themselves stranded during the busy holiday rush. 

With the airline canceling upwards of 10,000 flights over the winter holiday, crews out of place, and other airlines booked to capacity, few options remained for passengers left figuring out what to do when your flight gets canceled.

The network disruption over the holidays is not an issue isolated to Southwest, most airlines at one time or another have experienced disruptions to their networks that have affected tens of thousands of passengers.

Last week, on a call with analysts and reporters, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby remarked that the industry is setting “unachievable” capacity goals for 2023 that they won’t be able to achieve.

“The system simply can’t handle the volume today, much less the anticipated growth,” said Kirby, adding that “there are a number of airlines who cannot fly their schedules.”

So how can you better prepare and protect yourself when a delay or cancellation affects your flight?

Why does it happen?

When the dominoes begin to fall for an airline, it can easily affect flights across the entire country.

The list of things that can go wrong is seemingly endless. Pilots are only able to fly a single type of aircraft. Crews have a maximum number of duty hours they can work in a day in addition to 12 hours of uninterrupted rest between duty periods. Aircraft can get out of position for their next flight and airports can run out of gate space. Many crews commute to their base city and a delay or cancellation of their flight to work could mean they aren’t there to fly yours.

Add in 1.73 million daily passengers and 5,400 aircraft in the sky at peak operational times and you very well may have the world’s most complex puzzle. The ability for an airline to appropriately respond to issues as they arise is the true test of an airline’s ability to navigate the complexities of the industry.

How do the carriers stack up?

The U.S. Department of Transportation produces a monthly report to assist consumers with information on the quality of service provided by airlines. This includes on-time arrivals, flight cancellations, mishandled baggage, oversales, official consumer complaints, and much more. A flight is counted as “on-time” if it arrives at the gate within 15 minutes of the published scheduled time.

  • On-Time Arrivals

    As of October 2022

    1. Delta Air Lines – 88.0%*
    2. United Airlines – 87.1%*
    3. Alaska Airlines – 86.1%*
    4. American Airlines – 83.5%*
    5. Spirit Airlines – 81.1%
    6. Southwest Airlines – 80.6%
    7. Allegiant Air – 72.9%
    8. JetBlue Airways – 72.7%
    9. Frontier Airlines – 70.3%
    10. Hawaiian Airlines – 58.2%

    *Includes branded codeshare partners

  • Canceled Flights

    As of October 2022

    1. Alaska Airlines – 0.4%*
    2. United Airlines – 0.5%*
    3. Hawaiian Airlines – 0.5%
    4. Delta Air Lines – 0.6%*
    5. American Airlines – 0.6%*
    6. Southwest Airlines – 1.2%
    7. Allegiant Air – 1.4%
    8. JetBlue Airways – 1.4%
    9. Frontier Airlines – 1.7%
    10. Spirit Airlines – 2.3%

    *Includes branded codeshare partners.

What can I do?

When your flight gets canceled, it can be a frustrating and stressful experience. However, there are a few steps you can take to minimize the inconvenience and get to your destination as quickly as possible.

  • Stay Calm

    It’s important to remain calm and composed when dealing with a canceled flight. This will help you make better decisions and communicate more effectively with airline staff.

  • Know your rights

    Hopefully, you have not had to deal with delays, cancellations, refunds, or lost luggage often. The U.S. Department has created a consumer dashboard to ensure the traveling public has easy access to information about services U.S. airlines provide to passengers. Keep this link handy when traveling and when an issue arises you can be empowered to seek the services available to you.

  • Contact the Airline

    The first step is to contact the airline. Ok, that may be a little easier said than done, especially if your flight is part of a larger group of delayed or canceled flights.

    Find out why your flight was canceled and what options are available to you. Depending on the reason for the cancellation, the airline may be able to rebook you on another flight or provide a refund.

    Here are some contact options:

    • Airline App: As airlines streamline their customer service headcount, they’ve moved to technology to provide information and options to passengers. Many airline apps will automatically book you on the next available flight if a cancellation occurs or provide you with alternative options in cases of a flight delay. The auto-generated options provided by the app may not work for you. Some airlines with advanced technology will allow you to search for other flights, new dates, or even different city options. 
    • Online Chat: Like many other businesses experimenting with online chat features, airlines have realized the benefits of online chat to assist their customers. Most times, you may first be interacting with artificial intelligence bots that have been programmed to assist you with commonly asked questions, like, “is my flight delayed” or, “can I change my seat.” For questions or issues that cannot be resolved by a ‘bot,’ customers will be connected with an agent via chat eventually, but it can be difficult to navigate your way through the prompted questions to a human agent.
    • Airport Customer Service: This may be an option, if you are already at the airport, but with airlines streamlining and outsourcing staff, you may experience long lines.
    • 800 Customer Service Line : if your flight is a part of a larger network disruption, the 800 number may have long hold times. If you decide to wait or utilize the call back feature, use the wait time to explore options for an agent to quickly book for you. Note that both Frontier and Breeze have opted to do away with their phone lines entirely, opting instead to focus solely on online chat options.

  • Be Ready with Information and Backup Plans

    Airlines are operating with record passenger loads, leaving very little room for error when massive delays or cancellations occur. 

    Consider alternative routes: If your flight was canceled due to a schedule change, you may be able to find an alternative route to your destination. If you are affected by a delay or cancellation, get creative. Look at other airlines, nearby cities, available rental cars, and even the train.

    During the holiday rush last year, my flight from Tampa to Philadelphia canceled last minute and there weren’t any available seats open on flights for the next few days. While other passengers waited in line at the counter for a customer service agent, I went online and found the last two seats on a carrier out of nearby St. Petersburg Airport, FL (PIE) to Allentown, PA (ABE) and booked a rental a car for the 45 minute ride back to Philadelphia. 

    Stay cool and calm and start thinking outside the box.

  • Pro Tools

    Both Flight Aware and Flight Radar 24 are free and available online and as an app on mobile devices. The sites provide real-time worldwide flight traffic, allowing you to review the current status for not only your flight, but also the aircraft that is scheduled to operate your upcoming flight.

    Let’s say you are flying from Washington National to Tampa, Florida on American 2842. On both sites I am able to view the inbound aircraft for that flight. I can see the aircraft is inbound from Tampa and it is on time, so theoretically, if the crew operating my flight is also on time and there are no weather or traffic delays, my flight to Tampa should be on time for me.

The system simply can’t handle the volume today, much less the anticipated growth. There are a number of airlines who cannot fly their schedules.

– Scott Kirby, United Airlines CEO

A jet sits at the gate at the airport

  • Is the airline required to give me a hotel room or other compensation?

    Recently, the U.S. Department of Transportation launched an Airline Customer Service Dashboard to provide easy access to information about services available to consumers from the big 10 carriers. The dashboard displays commitments from carriers for controllable cancellations and delays in addition to a link to the airlines’ customer service plans. A controllable delay for an airline would include a mechanical issue or late arriving crew; whereas, delays or cancellations related to weather or air traffic issues would be labeled as non-controllable and would not be eligible for hotel compensation.

  • The Airline Offered Me a Refund. Now What?

    A consumer is entitled to a refund if the airline cancelled a flight, regardless of the reason, and the consumer chooses not to travel. This includes ancillary fees like seats and baggage.

    • If your flight is delayed or canceled and you are eligible for a refund, make sure you have secured an alternative means of transportation to your destination before you accept the refund. Once you have accepted the refund, you are no longer the airline’s “problem.”
    • When accepting a refund, insist that the refund goes back to the original form of payment and not in the form of an airline voucher. Airline vouchers may have blackout dates and expiration dates for one year from the date of issue.

    As displayed on the DOT’s Airline Customer Service Dashboard, there is very little recourse for passengers flying on ULCC’s. If they decide to cancel your flight to Chicago, for instance, your options may be to accept an open seat on a flight in three days or even two weeks or take a refund and find your own way.

    Want more details? View the US DOT’s Consumer Protection dashboard.

  • How do I avoid this in the future?

    • Book early morning flights
    • Travel with travel insurance: Travel insurance may add some cost to your trip, but you will have peace of mind knowing you have a leg up on the competition to get where you need to be plus certain additional expenses, such as meals, lodging, lost baggage, etc.

      This is especially true in the following scenarios:

      • Flying during the busy holiday season when flights are typically full
      • Traveling internationally 
      • When you have booked an expensive non-refundable travel options, like a hotel and rental car
      • Taking a cruise
      • Flying an ultra low-cost carrier (ULCC’s)* 

    *ULCC’s often have less than daily service between city pairs, few connection options, and minimal service levels for delays or cancellations. Use the USDOT’s customer service dashboard to better determine risk during irregular operations on your airline.

Where does your airline stack up in its customer service commitment?

The U.S. Department of Transportation has created a dashboard to ensure the traveling public has easy access to information about 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.

What To Do When Your Flight Gets Canceled

Have an issue? Voice your complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation

Want to make a formal complaint regarding service you received? The U.S. Department of Transportation tracks formal consumer complaints in its Air Travel Consumer Report (ATCR). You can make a formal complaint regarding flight delays or cancelations, overbookings, disability, tarmac delays, baggage, discrimination, refunds, ticketing practices, family seating, etc.

U.S. DOT Consumer Form

Remember, the most important thing is to stay calm and communicate effectively with the airline staff. Following these steps can help you minimize the inconvenience of a canceled flight and get to your destination as quickly as possible.

If you experienced disrupted holiday travel on Southwest from December 24, 2022 through January 2, 2023, you are eligible for refunds of unused tickets in addition to reimbursements for meals, other airline tickets, and/or rental car expenses.

Learn More

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