We all have our travel horror stories. Some of us have missed our flights due to weather or airplane mechanical issues. I’ve read accounts of getting stuck on the tarmack for over 5 hours, or getting rescheduled to a flight after the holiday season.

My travel plans were recently foiled by weather AND the airline industry. Several hours after I had checked into my flight online, I discovered that my flight was canceled. Not via phone or email, but via seatcounter.com. I initially intended to find out whether I could catch an earlier flight, but noticed that my flight was not listed. Subsequently, I verified the cancellation on my Continental Airlines account page.

Canceling a passenger’s flight without notifying them until several hours prior to departure isn’t exactly the most responsible approach. Some of us travel hours to reach an airport. Not everyone has ubiquitous internet access to check on flights. For my return flight, I checked the airline website right before leaving for the airport (I was fifteen minutes away). According to the website, my flight was “on time”. Twenty five minutes later, when I arrived at the departure gate, my flight was 4 hours delayed.

One way to avoid being stuck at the airport is to reschedule your flight prior to arriving at the airport, especially if you know that bad weather is approaching. Airlines have become more amenable to rescheduling trips prior to the delays, and typically waive the hefty rescheduling fees. If you’re not in a rush to reach your destination, you can also volunteer to take a later flight. I’ve seen a number of travelers volunteer their seats on overbooked flights in order to obtain a complementary travel voucher and even first class seats on a subsequent flight. With rising airfare costs, a free travel voucher in exchange for a flight 4 hours later seems quite reasonable.

For tips on obtaining Wifi at the airport, see my previous post.

misc travel