Name changes on an airline ticket are not allowed, except for spelling corrections and to transfer the ticket to another person. However, most airlines do not allow this due to revenue control and security reasons. Name changes to transfer flight tickets are generally not allowed for two reasons: to closely monitor seat availability and ensure no one is left behind.
If you misspell your name on an airline ticket, there’s no panic if you misspell it. However, it’s important to keep your frequent flyer accounts up-to-date. Most airlines do not allow tickets to be transferred to another person, but there are exceptions, usually low-cost airlines. The best way to make a name correction is to wait for the airline to email a schedule change, which may occur if booking far in advance.
Some airlines have more lenient cancellation policies than others, and while most do not allow transfer of tickets to someone else, one can change or cancel the flight with a fee. If you or someone in your travel group cannot travel, you can change the passenger in a booking. However, this change is not available via MyPLAY.
Once ticketed, most airlines do not allow name changes (transfer of ticket to another person) on international flights for leisure. Name changes are accommodated by most airlines in some instances, such as marriages and divorces.
📹 How to BOOK CHEAP FLIGHTS in 2024 | (testing travel hacks)
Flight Hacks that ACTUALLY work. How to book cheap airline tickets in 2024 by testing viral travel hacks. In today’s video, we will …
How much does it cost to change a passenger name on a flight?
In the event that a name change is required for an airline ticket, the passenger is advised to contact the airline directly and follow the instructions provided. Name changes are provided at no additional cost within 24 hours of the initial booking. In the event of an error on the ticket, it is recommended that the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) be consulted prior to contacting the airline. Should a need arise to alter the name on a ticket belonging to a group, the airline should be contacted.
Can we change the passenger after booking flight?
Flight bookings can be made online up to 24 hours before scheduled departure, or by contacting the airline or at the airport up to 2 hours before departure, subject to a fee. Changes must be made to all flights in the booking. First and last names can be swapped free of charge up to 48 hours after booking, and up to three characters per name can be changed free of charge up to 48 hours before scheduled departure. Middle names or second/double-barrelled surnames are not required for flight bookings.
Can you change the traveler on an airline ticket?
Airlines may have varying policies regarding ticket transfers and change requests. American Airlines, the largest airline in the U. S., does not allow passengers to transfer tickets to another person, but most passengers can transfer their tickets to another flight before the departure time of their original flight. However, there may be restrictions and fees applied to the transferred ticket depending on the ticket type and the customer’s specific needs. Generally, American Airlines charges a fee to change your ticket in any way.
Delta Air Lines, the second largest airline in the U. S., does not allow passengers to transfer a ticket to another person. However, there are situations where you can qualify for a refund of the unused ticket. Most eTickets purchased directly through Delta can be refunded, and you have a day to cancel it for any reason. Delta’s ticket change fees range from $500 on the return portion of an international itinerary for Delta-marketed flights to $200 on fares within the 50 U. S., Canada, Puerto Rico, and the U. S. Virgin Islands for Delta-marketed flights.
Can I change my flight ticket to another person?
The company’s website offers a range of features for travelers, including baggage allowance, ticket modification, check-in options, refunds, flight delays and cancellations, pre-paid baggage, infants travel, travel certificates, add-on services, on-board facilities, airport check-in requirements, terminal information, non-standard and special baggage, lost and mishandled baggage, aircraft and routes, contact us, fare rules, expectant mothers, medical assistance, passengers with special needs, unaccompanied minor travel, payment alerts, reservations, payment support, travel documents, 6E fares, codeshare flights, Dubai airport changes, 6E Rewards, Credit Shell, IATA Travel Pass, fees and charges, hotels, and IndiGoStretch.
The website also allows users to view and change their itineraries, process changes/cancellations, make special service request additions, and update their contact information. The company’s website also provides a view/change bookings option for easy access to its services.
How much does it cost to change the name on a plane ticket?
The cost of changing the name on your flight ticket varies depending on the airline. Some airlines allow one free correction per ticket, while others charge a correction fee or change fee ranging from $50 to $200. To change the name on your ticket or transfer it to someone else, you must navigate certain hoops and time constraints. For security reasons, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) enforces that you cannot travel under an incorrect name, including misspelled or outdated ones. Airlines have the right to deny a seat if the name on your boarding pass doesn’t match the one on your ID. Therefore, it’s essential to read this guide before going on your flight.
Can you change the recipient of a plane ticket?
The ability of airlines to facilitate name changes for passengers has the potential to create a secondary market for ticket sales, as individuals may be able to sell their tickets to others with different names. However, it should be noted that not all airlines offer this feature. In the event that no option is available, passengers are able to cancel the flight and book a new one. This allows the aviation industry to avoid the necessity of modifying its business model and ensures a more seamless experience for passengers.
Can I change a flight I already booked?
LendingTree allows users to reschedule or cancel flights, but may incur a fee depending on the airline and ticket fare class. The site is compensated by companies, which may affect the appearance of offers and the order process. It does not include all lenders, savings products, or loan options available in the marketplace. LendingTree is an advertising-supported comparison service, featuring products from partners and non-advertising institutions.
While the site aims to provide the best deals to the general public, it does not guarantee that such information represents all available products. Compensation from these companies may affect the appearance of offers on the site.
Do airlines charge to change passenger name?
The cost of changing the name on your flight ticket varies depending on the airline. Some airlines allow one free correction per ticket, while others charge a correction fee or change fee ranging from $50 to $200. To change the name on your ticket or transfer it to someone else, you must navigate certain hoops and time constraints. For security reasons, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) enforces that you cannot travel under an incorrect name, including misspelled or outdated ones. Airlines have the right to deny a seat if the name on your boarding pass doesn’t match the one on your ID. Therefore, it’s essential to read this guide before going on your flight.
Can I change ticket to another person?
Airlines typically do not allow ticket transfers to someone else to prevent ticket scalping and ensure identification matches. However, some airlines may allow minor name corrections due to typos or spelling errors. Customers should contact customer care for confirmation. If unable to travel, airlines typically offer a 24-hour grace period for cancellation or flight changes, with restrictions may apply. Some airlines offer more flexible cancellation policies depending on the fare class purchased.
Can you change the person on a plane ticket spirit?
Once a reservation has been confirmed, it is not possible to modify the passenger information. It is therefore recommended that a new reservation be created for any additional passengers.
📹 Travel Secrets for Connecting Flights | Airline Pilot Explains
Missing connecting flights can be very stressful. I talk about delayed flights and missed connecting flights. If you aren’t taking a …
On one flight I was on, we were arriving late and the flight attendants had a list of who had which connecting flights and asked us, for the sake of people with tight connections, to let those people get off first as she called them in order of how soon their next flight was leaving. When the seat belt sign went off they read, “Flight 456 to Tuscon, three passengers,” and those people got up and started getting their stuff. “Flight 4229 to Ft. Lauderdale, one passenger,” etc. Everybody sat tight until the people with tight connections got off, then everybody else did so. Why isn’t that routine when people have tight connections? I was one of the people who didn’t have a connecting flight but had no problem whatsoever with sitting tight until those other people got off.
My tips based on my own experience: – Just because an airline is selling a connection it does not mean it works. Many times I saw international flights with 30-40 minute connections that you’re very likely to miss if there are any delays. Check alternate flights and give yourself time. – On international flights: if your connection is super tight (e.g. you got off the plane at the same time they started boarding your connection) and it’s on a flight sold by the same airline, once you enter the airport check for airline employees near the gate. They often are there waiting for people and can speed up the transit time. I’ve been led by them almost running through alternate hallways, been sent to alternate security checks without a queue, or been helped to skip a long security check queue.
AC Flight from SanFran to Montreal then connecting to Ottawa started fine until customs left us with 0 minutes to the Ottawa departure. It was the last flight of the day so we made our way to the CS counter near the gate to see what the evening arrangements could be. Outside the window by the counter was a 767 just sitting there. We joked in the line of 15+ stranded lost connectors that maybe that’s our plane. 10 minutes later a captain comes around the corner and approaches the line asking if we were all headed to Ottawa, he was holding the flight for all of us. He was more aware then the counter rep, thank goodness 🙂 Thanks for sharing and making great articles!
The last time I had to make a connection I scheduled it for just about an hour between flights. Naturally the first flight was almost an hour delayed so the second I got off the plane I had to sprint from one end of Denver airport to the other. Got to my connection gate only to see the door closed. Heart sank for a second until I asked the gate agent if the flight left. Turns out the connecting flight had been delayed too and they hadn’t even started boarding yet.
I once had my connecting flight delayed. 🛬 When I landed (at Dulles) I had only 5 minutes to basically get my carry on, and since I didn’t see the (tram ?), I ran like hell to get from one side of the airport to the gate – d–n near on the other side! My dad had bought the ticket for me to come to Los Angeles for a visit about a month ago. If I had missed my flight, I’d been stuck in a city that none of my relatives live. And I sure as hell didn’t have the extra money for motel and a new plane ticket. It was only by the grace of God I made that connection! 🛫
Great advice, had that experience once in Dallas, I didn’t say anything, just hustled over to my connecting flight. The gate agent seemed to know my 1st flight was late and commended me on my getting over so quickly. The mystery to me is how they still manage to get checked luggage transfered over just as fast.
I once flew from Graz Austria to Vienna and had a connecting flight to Luxembourg. We arrived late. It seems I was the only one with a connection (to Luxembourg on Luxair) and they sent a car which met me at the steps on the parking area and took me across the tarmac to the steps of the Luxair connecting flight. I think I had cabin luggage only. Talk about service!
When I was in the Army and transporting a prisoner from Missouri to El Paso via Dallas in 1976, we were going to be late to Dallas because of weather en route. I did request the stewardess to ask the pilot to radio ahead and hold the next flight as there was no other flight to El-Paso that day and we had no means to lock up the prisoner overnight. They did so for us that one time. We even got a police car ride to the next gate.
I had a flight once with low cost carrier Jetstar from Melbourne to Ho Chi Minh City nonstop with an STD of 15:25, we arrived at the airport at 12:30, way more than enough time, but when we got there we were greeted by a delay till 17:00, which at that point we thought it was convenient as we would have some extra time for lunch. Our aircraft, a 787-8, was at the gate at 2pm, there was no communication about the reason for the delay either. By 16:20, the delayed boarding time on our boarding passes there was no announcement made, absolutely nothing, so we sat tight for a little longer as a line of impatient individuals formed. By 17:00, an announcement of a further delay STILL hadn’t been made and the line stretched all the way down the gate lounge. Only at 17:30 the ETD on the BOARD changed to 19:00, still no verbal announcement though, and the gate agents were just sitting there with straight faces. We were sitting there until 19:00 when a boarding announcement was FINALLY made and left at 20:00. a 4 and a half hour delay and 5 hours of sitting in a gate lounge with no communication from the Jetstar staff. Note: Melbourne is Jetstar’s main hub as well! What a dissapointment!
As a former gate agent for Southwest, when we “opened” the flight an hour before departure, one of the procedures was to check for late arrivals making a connection to our flight. We would then inform the operations agent of that flight how many would be late and they would begin their procedures if the flight could be delayed. Several factors involved were “when is next flight”, “is this the last flight of the day”, “crew scheduling” and even weather. While in flight on several airlines I’ve heard the Flight Attendants make announcements for connecting gates.
I was in the Navy and flying home on leave for Christmas from Norfolk, Va en route to a new duty station. I didn’t make the travel arrangements, the Navy did. I was taking a regional and then a Delta to DFW. Seated next to me was a Delta FO deadheading to Atlanta. We chatted a bit during the flight because we were both in uniform. During our second stop, in South Carolina, the flight was delayed going ATL. I was worried about the connector in ATL. When we were almost on the grown in ATL, the FO said “Come with me when we land” and we get off the plane. He had a golf cart waiting and zipped me over to my next gate, in a different zip code (LOL). ATL is HUGE. Thanks to this Delta FO I made my connector. My bags showed up a day later but at least I made it home for Christmas on time.
I’ve had a connecting flight wait for just me. I was dead last getting on the flight, probably 20 mins late or better due to weather and coach was full so I was forced to sit in first class… People were looking at me with that, “Who the heck is this guy?” look on their face. I should have at least had a red six pack cooler with a donor organ in it!
I was on a late flight into Vienna once and it wasn’t until I landed that I realised I had maybe 15 minutes to get to my next flight, so off i got and then started running – far too late of course. Found the Austrian Airlines desk and it was like they were waiting for me, already had me sorted out for the next flight along with a 10 Euro voucher for a meal and drink while I waited! Excellent service 🙂
Craziest delay. I got to the airport over an hour ahead of my flight, but security was slow, and I was still in the security line when my flight was supposed to depart. I got out of security ready to ask for the next available flight only to see that my flight was being delayed for 1.5hrs from Denver to Los Angeles because of fog at LAX. To my relief, I made original my flight. 🙂 Shortest connection was when I was in the army (early 90s) traveling on orders (the unit booked our flights) with a few other soldiers, we landed with 20 minutes to get to our next gate which was all the way across the terminal to so we ran the whole way and just made our flight before they closed the door. When I plan for a connection, I typically leave about 1 to 1.5 hrs for my connection. I’m not into creating stress or drama for myself.
I have flown only once since I got out of the Army, but I remember December of ’90 I was flying Pan Am from San Francisco to Frankfurt with a stop at JFK in NY. The stop was supposed to only be, I think, 20 min for a quick passenger swap and those of us going to Germany didn’t have to deplane. But about 5 min after those who were getting off in NY had deplaned the rest of us were asked to deplane as there was a maintenance issue that safety rules required all passengers to deplane. I’m not sure if I eventually got back on the same plane or different one but I remember they had us move to a different gate and wait. The layover instead of being 20 min was closer to 90 min.
Good tips. We travel a lot & always consider connection times. Airlines have short timed us & we always check in early so we ask if we can be put out on an earlier flight when reservations refused to change it without a fee. Another airline we had a good connection time with (2 hours) changed our booking & I noticed a connection of 25 minutes (less the 10 gate closure) & mentioned it to reservations. The girl said it was plenty of time. We were travelling out of Montreal in December, connecting Cincinnati for LA then to Tahiti. I mentioned de-icing delays & her reply was that I wouldn’t know if it will happen.” Canada in December 7AM flight- yeah, it’s almost a certainty with frost. Not only that, we had to connect through a different terminal. She changed it to another flight & plenty of time for our flights.
In the years after 911, I was traveling to WDW with my young son. We connected through DFW. We had a short, but doable connection time. HOWEVER……as we were riding the SkyLink…..they put the SkyLink system in lockdown because someone on another train found an unattended “item” on the train! So, we sat…..and missed our connection. But, I guess the reservation system “knew” which terminals we were going through, and when we finally got off the train, found out that they had rebooked us on the next flight❣️❣️ I was one relieved and grateful Mom❣️
Well, this is an old article, but I just have to write about the worst missed connection delay I have ever been involved in. In Dec 2018, my wife and I were headed back to the US for Christmas from our home in Japan. We took a United flight from Narita to Chicago Ohare and had a connecting flight for my hometown departing 4.5 hours after out scheduled arrival. Plenty of time to get through customs and immigration. Always had been before. But this was our first, and hopefully very last time through customs/immigrations at Chicago. There was mass confusion as soon as which hit the first stage with some guy—immigrationS? drunken bum?—in civies yelling at everyone (many who did not understand English well, even when listening to a sane person—yelling “Come on People, it’s not so hard!” Well, it was because there was no way to know what to do or where to go except follow the line and then go to a computer you had likely never seen nor used and enter information for some reason you couldn’t understand. (O’hare is the only US immigrations/customs I have seen that uses this system. Long story short, it took use over 4 hours to get through that mess, by which time we were too late to make our connecting flight—even though we had arrived 20 some minutes early. We had to stay in at an airport hotel for nearly 26 hours awaiting our the next available connecting flight. And it was late due to weather or something. I avoid Chicago it at all possible now. There is nothing any airline or crew could do anything to improve the horrible mess that is customs/immigrations at O’Hare
One time I was connecting in Phoenix on the first day of daylight savings time – except Arizona doesn’t use DST – I was my own travel agent so I thought I had full 90 minutes with no checked baggage, just my carry-on. I made the very critical connection (for me) as they were boarding – because I was arriving from L.A. in fact I only had 30 minutes!
I was flying from Pittsburgh to Dallas/Fort Worth in winter time. I left a two hour window for my connector. The plane was delayed for icing in Pittsburgh by about an hour and a half or hour and 45 minutes. When we got close to Dallas I informed the flight attendant that I was a US servicemember and then I had a connecting flight leaving in about 20 to 25 minutes. They were nice enough to frontload me off the plane and I had to run from one side of that airport to the other. I still didn’t make it. I literally ran up to the gate to see the plane pushback. Major drag.
About 15 years ago, I had flown from Minnesota to Texas to meet my brand new niece in Kingsville. The flights south were uneventful, but the return trip was… a learning experience. My brother in law was quite air travel savvy, and was aware of the existence of a weather related delay for my initial departure, so at least I wasn’t dropped off at some small regional airport the recommended hour or whatever before my scheduled takeoff. Midwest weather in the end of March can be mixed bag of clear skies and winter storms. Add in whatever human and/or mechanical delays that might have occurred, and my flight didn’t takeoff until about three hours past schedule. As the pilots were preparing for approach at some other airport (I don’t remember anymore, maybe St Louis?) The FA ran down a list of what gates different passengers were to go to as the airline had already rebooked some of them on later connecting flights. Once we were on the ground and off the plane, most of the remaining passengers who needed connecting flights swarmed the gate agent at the gate we had arrived. Me? I thought I would be smart and go over to the next gate agent (same airline) where there wasn’t a line. Told her that I had almost certainly missed my connecting flight to MSP, and asked her to please help me get home. She was able to get me on another flight with only about another 90 minutes wait time. Since the airport I was standing in was large enough to offer more than coffee and prepackaged donuts, 90 minutes was acceptable to me.
I’ve learned to to leave a suitable gap for layovers. Once when flying back to the US from the U.K. The flight plan must have been changed at the last minute. The normal six hour flight turned into about eight hours as we flew more northerly. A bunch o passengers were a little upset they were going to miss their connections. I’m thankful I added a buffer on to my next connection. Not sure why our flight diverted so far north to go to NY
The most stressful one I’ve had was when I was 13, on CDG, I believe. I was flying with my grandma and sister, we had only 30 minutes or so, we’ve never been on this airport and the entire weight finding our way, listening to the announcements and communication was on my shoulders – my sister was 10 and barely spoke English, my grandma spoke no English at all.
I once had a connection flight with 45 min time window and my first flight got delayed due to heavy snow. By the time we arrived at the first destination the plane for the second flight should have departed one hour ago xD. However the flight was with the same airline and turns out they were actually going to use the same plane so we just casually got off and got back in with everyone else from that airport who were quite upset about the delay as well but it worked out for me! We ended up delayed by like 2 hours lol but I guess that’s just low cost airline tactics as when I got the ticket they sold it as one trip, didn’t even realise it was a connecting flight at first, till it asked me to select seats twice haha
I’ve got one huge problem in this whole system: I do get stuck at immigration / security quite regularly. While I’m always innocent, it seems like I fit a profile that requires “special attention”. Sometimes, I have to re-clear security on connecting flights aswell – on some airports that depends on the ate where we arrived (for non-obvious reasons to me). I do plan ahead and have at least three hours on every layover. The problems do start if my first leg is delayed – but there’s still more than 90 minutes until my next departure. Everyone considers 90 minutes to be a reasonable time while I know that it’s not always enough for me. I simply miss the option to tell my airline in advance that I’ll need more time (for any reason) for layovers, and therefore their “emergency system” should trigger earlier. On top of that, some airlines claim that it’s your own fault if you get stuck in the airport and it’s not their responsibility to find a new plane for you. Or at least I got told, I never experienced that myself luckily. If I the layover would be 4 hours, reducing it to two hours due to delays really cuts my connection from “good” to “very stressfull and I’d not make it” – while the airline still thinks “he’ll be fine, no worry”. Arrr…
Longest I’ve been delayed was about 20 hours, LA going back home to Australia. We boarded the flight but I guess there was some kind of engineering issue they couldn’t fix and after about the third time telling us they were trying to restart whatever system I was honestly a bit relieved when they told us to disembark and they were getting a new plane for us the next day.
My flight got super delayed overseas and I missed my flight out of JFK to get home. It was terrible. Everything was booked or tons of people flying stand by. Had to fly an entirely different airline into an entirely different airport. It was so stressful. Always try to be prepared. Remember. There’s the plan… and then there’s what actually happens. Safe flying. 😉
I never, ever book a layover that’s shorter than 90 minutes – I’ve learned from experience that there is absolutely no way I can get through DEN, have time to fill my water bottle, use the restroom, perhaps eat a snack, and still be to my next gate with at least a little spare time to chill before boarding starts, especially if I have to change not just concourses but terminals (I hope they’ve finished the construction by now so that I won’t have to change terminals again)… unless it’s in a single-concourse airport – I’ve never had a layover at a small one, but I usually fly into and out of them, and it’s really nice not needing to get to the airport until an hour before my flight.
As much as I love the new direction Kelsey’s going with his website, I do sometimes get a kick out of these old articles! This explains something I always wondered about. In my 2 1/2 years of flying from ship to ship and back to shore, I only had one tight connection, right when I flew out to start my new job. After that point, either the company’s professionals booked great connections for me, or I gave myself plenty of transfer time, because of that one time I had to run… The company booked a four-leg flight across the US, and because my family has a lot of lost-luggage horror stories, I double-checked my luggage at every airport, especially since the airline swapped me to a different flight for one leg. At the last leg, onto a regional carrier, the airline employee was nice enough to point out that I had a long trek to my gate and not much time. I ended up jogging with my heavy backpack and laptop case (I don’t believe in filling up half of an overhead bin with a wheeled “carry-on” monstrosity), but when I made it to the gate agent, she told me, “We wouldn’t have left without you.” Wait… what? I realized the people I’d asked about my luggage had called ahead for me, but I could never believe, until I heard it just now from Kelsey, that aircrews had any leeway at all to wait for passengers! After that, whenever I had to book my own flight, I would make sure to build plenty of time in between connections, not only to get to the next gate in time, but also because I learned I preferred the cheaper transfer flights to sitting in one seat in economy for four hours or more.
As the guy that had Southwest change the boarding procedures to call “A list” members with a “B” or “C” position after A1-A30, I must push back on @74 Gear saying under no circumstances will the flight crew of the prior flight help with a tight connection. I have had it happen once. It was back when AirTran was flying, it was late at night, they talked to ground. It was baller. Still remember it like 20 years later.
I’ve done a lot of flying in the past, both on business and pleasure. The closest I ever came to missing a flight was one that had a stopover in Toronto. It wasn’t a connecting flight, many of us were taking the same aircraft on the next leg of our journey, but it was going to be on the ground for about an hour so they let us get off. I decided to make a phone call to a friend from a payphone (this was decades ago, before cell phones). I could see the gate, so I figured I was safe to wait until I saw people boarding my flight. Getting very close to departure time and nobody had moved, so I thought the flight must be delayed and kept yakking to my friend. Finally I decided to end the call and go back to my gate… as I approached I realized that I had been looking at the wrong gate! The door was already closed and they had removed my carry-on bag! Thankfully they let me back on.
I’d say, it’s best to book a connecting flight as one ticket. That way, if the first flight’s delayed, it’s the airline’s responsibility to find a new flight for you if you miss your connection. If you can’t do that, give yourself time. I’m all for overnight stays. That way, you could explore one more city. That’s how I got to see Dubai. I never went there on purpose, just on two stopovers on the way to China. Certainly beats a direct flight. 🙂
I have found that at times online purchasing of tickets from some websites don’t always give alternative flights with longer layovers, so it makes it difficult to try get the 90 minutes or more that I prefer. I was booked on United once and they changed the flights for my ticket leaving me with a 45 minute layover (I had chosen flights with a 90 minute layover originally). I phoned and asked for an the alternative flight which would have given me 2 hours. They said no they wouldn’t change it because at that Hub airport (Chicago) they said 45 minutes should be more than enough to change planes. Sure enough plane was 25 minutes late because of weather, nope did not get my connecting flight, the next flight of course was full by that time. Thanks for the discount hotel United.
Also want to add an extra note to this article. On the flights with a tv screen in the seat in front of you, you often get information about the next departures with gate numbers on the screen. Before i go to an unknown airport, i always check on youtube and on the website of the airport how the transit works there. And when you are flying and wearing a jeans with a belt, put the belt off and put it in your hand bagage and wear shoes that you can easily put off and on. Saves time at the safety checks and thus you win extra time to get on your connecting flight.
Before landing ask crew or people around your seat to let you go first if you are catching connection and this is their last leg. I have seen Delta crew do that in ATL and it works just great for everyone on the flight. All airlines have a lot to catch up on boarding and deboarding procedures (who gets on and off first), current process is extremely inefficient.
Shortest – Flying Houston to Guam via Honolulu. First leg was late, not sure if planned, or done because of the situation, but the arriving plane and the departing plane were gated next to each other and all of us (like 1/2 the flight) continuing on were shepherded off one plane and right onto the other . Longest – 12+hrs at MKE due to thunderstorms.
My wife and I flew internationally for our honeymoon not long ago, and I made sure to book an itinerary with plenty of connection time. I checked awhile later and saw that we got moved to different flights on a couple legs, so our connection in CLT went from a comfy 1 hr 35 min down to a stressful 45 min. Almost no time at all for an international connection. Fortunately, it’s a fairly compact airport to get around, so we made it with a few minutes to spare. We then had to spend what felt like forever in LHR. Sometimes you can’t help it!
I always book my flights with the shortest connecting time as possible. Stress is “including” in the traveling ;). Once i was the last person on to the plane, the crew was acctually around looking because i did check in my luggage and preceded through the security check, BUT I whent back out to talk to my girlfriend and her family. The time was flying and I was VERRY late on to the plane. Once the crew found me. – ARE YOU MR: ERIK? ME: Yes Flight crew. PLEASE HURRY, HURRY. When i boarded the plane, everyone was sitting down waiting just for me :):)
I saw passengers with connecting flights get hot. We landed in EWR and sat on the taxiway for 2 1/2 hours! There were planes all over the place waiting for an open gate. The pilots had to know that we were going into a sh!tshow but never said a word until we had been sitting for a while. One thing that could have helped people would have been for the crew to have people with connecting flights deboard the plane first.
I was on a flight that was delayed several hours. The flight attendants get up and say that they think everything will be fine, but if it’s going to be too close, they will reschedule in flight. Ok. Sounds good. So we get close and they make an announcement that we’ve gotten even later, and 4 of the passengers need to get off the plane first. Of course, everyone gets up, no one lets me and the other 3 off the plane ahead of them. We had 6 minutes to go from one side of DFW to the other. I ran, I took a train, I ran, I barked at people to get out of my way on the escalators and powered sidewalks, I ran, and I was the last person through the gate onto my connection. They closed the door behind me and declared the other two people from my plane misconnects. This would all have been fine, just bad luck, except for the part where they told us they would reschedule. I’m sure they did help the people that misconnected, but being lied to wasn’t cute. And the train in DFW takes 5 minutes, so if they really could get us rescheduled early, I don’t know why they though we could cover the rest of it on foot in 60 seconds. It’s only coincidence two of us ran onto the train as it was leaving.
Another tip here…if you have a tight connection and are sitting at the back of the plane, consider asking the cabin crew if you can get off early. They sometimes will do this which is really nice! I had a wicked connection at Detroit… 50 minutes but I was at the far back of the plane and I had to make it from A73 to C27…mathematically the LONGEST possible hike at DTW. It was no fun running almost a mile with a winter coat on and some heavy carry-ons. There was a train system in McNamara but I didn’t know how to use it (my being new to Detroit). The moving sidewalks helped but a lot of oblivious people just “camp” on them which creates a big logjams. I actually tried to figure out the gate situation prior to the flight, but the boarding pass didn’t them listed…guess they were determined late. Another tip for tight connections… sometimes when baggage is tight, the cabin crew will moved carry-ons into checked baggage compartments. You DON’T want this. Let the gate agent know you have a tight connection and they will likely exempt you and allow you to keep you carry-on close to you. If you know you have a tight connection, make sure it isn’t the last one of the day so you have a backup plan. Lastly in regards to pilots not wanting to leave late…I think they could do more to help customers. A pilot should have a display that shows incoming passengers with tight connections colored coded. The computer should estimate how much time they will need depending on their seat position, incoming gate, outgoing gate, and boarding times.
I already had good and bad scenarios. One, making a 90′ connection at stanstead, first flight of day… And the first flight departed 45′ late. I only asked to be the first person leaving the plane. I made it by politely asking people to let me pass in the queues and running a lot in the airport. I also had 1 hour connections, same company, and they didn’t made it. The company had replacing flight already handled on touch down.
Thank you for this article!! Straight to the point. I’m flying alone with my four year old and really nervous. We are flying international and have a layover in the US to catch a connection for Oregon. I have to go through customs and security again right? Please let me know if you have a article about international arrivals with connecting flights! New follower here 🙂
I usually give myself at least two hours, because most of the times I need to transit on international flights in very large airports. I have only ever missed one transit flight because the first leg was late. Ironically the aircraft that took me to the transit location was the same one going to my final destination, but the inbound and outbound gates were at completely opposite ends of the airport, so there was no time to physically get there.
I once had a tight connection out of lax. Flew in from St. Luis on a military flight, then go to the domestic terminal for a flight to Honolulu. As soon as I boarded the FA’s shut the door and the plane took off. The FAs never talked to me, as I think they were mad at me for the plane having to wait on me to arrive. Also my checked bag did not arrive until the next day/
The rule is that time available to make the connection is inversely proportional to the distance between the arrival gate and departure gate. Another words if you’re short of time your departure gate will be on the far side of the airport; if you have 2 hours your departure gate will not only be in same terminal but probably the next gate over. I don’t know why, it just always works out that way!!!
Once I flew from Houston, Texas to Frankfurt, Germany and further on to Vienna, Austria. Due to 2 issues ( a) a passenger on this flight managed to go through security check hiding some kind of weaponry, so the flight had to be evacuated… don’t ask, that was the announcement from the cockpit… and b) another passenger checked in a suitcase, but never showed up at the gate) we had about 4 hours of delay when we arrived in Frankfurt. We arrived at the exact time the plane to Vienna should start. We were only two passengers who were affected by that, but the crews involved managed to be insanely awesome. They got us a bus that picked us up directly at the plane and drove us through the whole airport in Frankfurt (if you haven’t been there yet: IT’S HUUUUGE) directly to our connection flight. Because of that, the flight to Vienna was delayed by approx. 30 minutes! But because of a strong tail wind, we made up quite a lot of time and landed in Vienna just about 10 min delayed. It was an exhausting, frightening and awesome experience all at the same time. You guys on the planes and on the ground do a great job all the time (depends on the airline to be honest…). Thank you for that!
Talking about a large number of people and the flight crew decision to hold the plane or leave. Many years ago, I was returning from a mission trip outside the country. Our original flight was delayed due to maintenance and we were arriving toward the end of the flight day. We were actually going to be boarding the last flight of the night to our home airport. There was 36 of us on this mission trip. The captain of our flight did call ahead to advise the airline of our impending arrival time and asking for the connecting flight to stage and wait for us. As it is each flight crew’s call, that captain did not want to wait and we actually passed our connecting flight as it taxi’d past us to the runway when we were heading to the gate. That crew was fully within their rights and would have had to take a delay if they waited for us and that crew wasn’t willing to do that. No problem. However, it was a costly decision in the long run. Here’s why. Rather than waiting and taking a delay, they flew that DC9 with only about 5 people on it to our home airport…certainly a money losing flight from an expenses perspective. It still would have been with all of us on it as that is still far from a 65-70% load factor to break even at the time. We’d have only been at about 50% but the aircraft still needed to be at our home airport for the morning flight so it had to operate regardless. So what happened to us. How did we get home. The airline ended putting an aircraft into the operational flight profile in dispatch, potentially messing up its scheduled flights for the next day in case it didn’t make it back to the hub that night for some reason.
I had an exchange student from Belgium. When it was time for her to return home we dropped her off at Gerald R Ford airport in Grand Rapids mi. We said goodbye as she went thru TSA. After they boarded the pilots found maintenance issue and the flight was delayed over and hour. Which in turn caused her to miss her connecting flight out of DC that was a non stop to Brussels. Apparently that flight only occurs once a day so this poor teenage girl was stranded there 24 hours by herself. That’s longest delay I’ve heard of. She made it home safely the next day but was a sour ending to a wonderful year.
Had a malfunction on a plane on the way to Hawaii and ended up with about 12 hours in LAX back around 2006 when I was about 12. Of course those were the days before smart phones and good WiFi and YouTube and Netflix so we wandered the airport until we found a place with some DVD’s to play on dads laptop, and we also spent a ton of time running backwards up and down the escalators in a quiet corner of the airport. Good times!
A connecting flight was held up for about 6 of us who were bound for Philadelphia. Our flight into St. Louis arrived a bit late due to the fact that there were tremendous thunderstorms surrounding St. Louis and it took some maneuvering to get us down safely (there had been a tornado that had passed near the airport half an hour before). We literally had to run through the terminal like crazy to make the connection as we were told they were waiting for us. As things turned out, we needn’t have rushed so quickly as the Philly flight itself was then held up in order to re-route to avoid the storm. I remember we ended up swinging out over the ocean and approached Philly from the opposite direction. What a day!