Delta does it again

[talkamotta]

We had direct flights from SLC to OGG in September. Delta has quit all direct flights between SLC and OGG. First they change my return flight, ok only a half hour layover. Then they change my in bound flight by only 1 hour but still direct. Then they change my in bound by 5 hours giving me a layover in LAX. The biggest problem is that we are staying our first week in Kauai. Ok so we had to take a inter island flight but now that our flight doesnt get in until late, too late for inter island flights and Delta of course doesnt do Kauai.

So I called Delta and the cute little reservation agent, was mad about it too because she doesnt like flying into LAX. So cant get mad at her (even though I wanted to). So we were going to be flying into OGG on Sunday, so I made her change it to Saturday and we will pay for a hotel room for a night. So they can mess with me all they want on Saturday.

That direct flight was pretty full, so why does Delta mess with a full plane? I could see it if we were only 25% capacity. Too bad I was on FF tickets or I would have booked with another airline.

[dlpearson]

Bummer. As a fellow Utahn, I hadn't heard they killed their direct flights from SLC to OGG. Was waiting till March to hopefully book ff tickets to OGG next February. Sigh.........

[fnover]

They also eliminated their direct flight from ATL to OGG.
We just came back from Maui on DL B/F to SLC using FF points, it's not worth the extra points as the service was terrible. They served wine in plastic glasses with sharp rims, no breakfast and not any more leg room than in coach.

[Dave M]

Originally Posted by fnover

...and not any more leg room than in coach.

I don't believe that's accurate, unless DL substituted an unusual aircraft for your particular flight. DL currently uses 767-400 aircraft between SLC and OGG. As DL configures those planes, the front cabin has six to eight inches more room between seats than the economy cabin does. The only exception is for bulkhead seats E&F in row 2. You can check the configuration at www.seatguru.com

[stevedmatt]

Every time I fly Delta, they change my itinerary 2-3 times before the actual flight. When I used them to OGG, they had added a stop on my way out with a total change in flight duration of 5 hours. Also changed my arrival time 4 hours. When I called to complain, they put me on a 1 stop flight (SLC) that was only 1/2 hour different on the departure and arrival time of my originally scheduled flight.

Guess I'm lucky that my next Delta itinerary only changed once (15minutes earlier). However, I don't leave for another month, so they have time to change me at least once more.

[johnmfaeth]

Expect a lot more of these as Delta continues to operate under bankruptcy protection.

Sometimes a full flight leaves the airplane "positioned" for another flight which is highly unprofitable. Airline revenue/profit must be looked at from the perspective of the complete sequence of flights it makes during a "cycle".

[grest]

I too have experienced many plane/itinerary changes with Delta, but to be fair they always made it right for me. Don't be afraid to keep calling so that they make adjustments that work. Good luck.
Connie

[jesuis1837]

You got me worried now... How do i know if flights are already changed? I book via Orbitz airfare from BTV (Vermont) to PBI (West Palm Beach) for July but we have 1 connection (JFK) to get there and 2 when we will be back. How do you know that far that it has been changed?

[Art]

With luck, you have a 6 alphanumeric "locater" code for your PBI flight.

You can go to the Delta site and use this to check the current itinerary. I am sure if you have to have a Delta frequent flier account to do this.

Art

[talkamotta]

I booked directly with Delta, so I have a confirmation number. Ive never booked a flight through expedia or any other third party company so Im not sure. If you knew which flights and numbers then you could check with the individual airlines. Im sure others will have more information for you.

A good practice to get into is whenever you have a airline reservation booked, you check it weekly. My last trip from Las Vegas to OGG on US Air was never changed but because it was a direct flight I checked it weekly.

Delta is one airline you always check. Southwest you dont have to check (never had a flight changed and I use to fly them all the time).

[jesuis1837]

Thanks! Yes i have the flight numbers but the reservation number is for Orbitz i think... I will have to check this out....

[Harmina]

We were booked on a Delta flight from Toronto to Ft. Lauderale 2 weeks ago. We had a 45 minute connection in Cincinnati - just as we were to board in Toronto, they announced that our departure was going to be delayed because our plane was going to have to be de-iced and it probably wouldn't give those with short connnections to make their next flight. It was a clear day, it wasn't snowing, but yet they said there was concern over ice pellets coming down. Anyway they managed to get us on American through Chicago arriving in FT. Lauderdale 5 hours later than originally scheduled. The ironic thing about this whole ordeal was, last March we were booked on AA out of St. Maarten. The flight we were supposed to be on hadn't left Miami by the time we were supposed to leave St. Maarten. They put us on Delta through Atlanta, we arrive in Atlanta & they don't have seats for us to get to Toronto. They offered us meal vouchers, put us up in the Hilton and gave us each a $400. voucher for our next flight which is what we were using to go to Ft. Lauderdale.

[jesuis1837]

Thanks to you guys!!!! I checked this morning and found out they changed my itinary with a schedule changed but everything was wrong, i-e for example leave BTV at 11:30 to JFK 1:00 pm and then take my transit from JFK 9:00 am to PBI 11:50 am ??? They saw their mistake with that schedule changed when i called and now we will be transiting to Atlanta instead. Thank God i saw that thread before my departure!

[talkamotta]

I used to fly Southwest all the time and never had any problem. Of course, alot of thier flights are hop, skip and jump. So even if they dont have very many people on one segment they still need to get the plane to the next city/destination.

Then I started flying with Delta, United, Frontier, etc. They all do it. Change flights, etc. The bad thing is when you have one segment with one airline and the next segment of your flight with another airline. Something happens and its delayed, whatever, then its you that is S.O.L. Every instance is different, one airline might work with you and then mess you up the next time. So I try to make my trip with the same airline. In this particular case Delta didnt care if I couldnt make my inter island flight.

TUGs will make you aware of every aspect of travel. I have learned so much from these wonderful people. Checking your flights, using Costco for car rentals, where certain stores are in a particular city, the best routes to drive and my latest was which AI resorts require a certain number of guests in a particular size room. Things you just dont think about....

And the best thing is that the people on TUGs are so unselfish, they love to educate you.

[fnover]

Originally Posted by Dave M

I don't believe that's accurate, unless DL substituted an unusual aircraft for your particular flight. DL currently uses 767-400 aircraft between SLC and OGG. As DL configures those planes, the front cabin has six to eight inches more room between seats than the economy cabin does. The only exception is for bulkhead seats E&F in row 2. You can check the configuration at www.seatguru.com

The flt. we were on was between SLC & EWR and the exit row seats in the back had more room the the B/F seats at least that was my impression.

[Dave M]

Yes, there is a lot of legroom at exit row seats. That's why they are coveted so much. That's not unusual for any plane on any airline in the U.S. However, the wording of your original statement made it seem as though the standard legroom for coach on that plane was the same as for first.

You almost certainly flew on a 757-200 from SLC to EWR. As outfitted by DL, the first class seats have about 37-38 inches between rows and the coach seats (except for the exit rows) have about 31 inches between rows.

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Originally Posted by fnover

The flt. we were on was between SLC & EWR and the exit row seats in the back had more room the the B/F seats at least that was my impression.

As Dave mentioned, that is not unusual. Most airlines now only make those seats available to their elite level frequent flyers. At Northwest, should an exit row seat in coach be available 24-hours before check-in, a non-elite FF or a non-FF passenger can grab one of those seats, if they're willing to pay $15 extra.