Flight Delayed? Do These 3 Frequent Flyer Steps
Ok, calm down. DO. NOT. PANIC. Everything is going to be alright! I’m going to share with you the steps frequent flyers know to take when their flight gets delayed.
Stop what you’re doing and PAUSE
As “DELAYED” pops up on the screen, don’t feed into the roller coaster of emotions and anxiety that your fellow passengers around you are going through. We are going to think logically. Keep in mind that the airline is not trying to screw you over or spite you like the crazy person to your left is mumbling under their breath. The airline is just trying to keep you safe! They did not create the weather front that moved into the city you are flying into or make their own plane break on purpose.
This mishap is now going to cost the airline big time, which is the total opposite of what they were planning for.
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Now that you have that in the forefront of your mind, put a big smile on your face and take a walk away from the craziness.
Emily! Stop joking around! I’m freaking out! What’s that going to do?
Girl! It will calm you down. Delayed and cancelled flights are things you have NO control over. You DO have control over calming your nerves.
- First - Get Space And Call An Airline Agent
Get some distance! Get away from the craziness. Everyone is going to flood the service desk, but YOU, you my girl are smarter than that. Take a minute to go get a coffee or go get a beer. (Two of my favorite things that help me relax.) Do whatever it is that will help you relax.
As you chill out and sit down at the bar or cafe area, now is the time to move into action. Grab a pen and paper, or a napkin, and call customer service. Here’s some tips on how to get an agent on the phone.
This tip is probably the most valuable one out of all the steps. The phone agent is going to have a lot more control over your situation. Think of them as the eye in the sky. They can see all of the different things going on in the airports AND in the sky, including all the plane delays.
The phone agent will do the best move for you, as well as the airline. They can see the long term problem. To them, your flight may look like it’s going to get cancelled and they may put you on a different flight (sometimes with a partner airline). Maybe the next flight the desk agent is moving everyone onto (to fix the short term problem) is about to have a big snow storm delay it. The desk agent doesn’t realize that, because they have just had ten people yelling in their face and complaining.
The phone agent will be able to see things clearly and adjust accordingly.
Another perk is that they are also always NICE! If you are nice back to them, they will most likely help you out however they can. They are better than the desk agent, not only because of their general good mood, but this is the agent that also has all the time in the world to make you happy.
Knowing this, why not ask for some perks?
Ask for your preferred seat, or maybe even ask if they are willing to bump you up to first class. Ask if there is anything they can do on their end to make up for the inconvenience. If you have an unusually long wait, can they offer you a flight credit or refund, an airport food credit, or even airline lounge access?
It’s not super easy to get, something free from a phone agent but it doesn’t hurt to ask. I know for sure that if you don’t ask, the only thing for sure you will get is nothing.
Feel good knowing you took some of the stress off of the desk agent. Here’s an article that explains just what they wish you knew about them. They could have been dealing with delays all day. Imagine sitting behind a desk dealing with ornery people. Plus, if YOU stand in that line, YOU have to hear everyone around you yell at the agent which I always find super annoying. It’s not their fault either!
Either way, know that something is going to be done to help your situation. And, if you’ve taken previous advice of mine technically you don’t need to be wherever you are going until much later anyways. Click Here For My Article – How To Travel Once A Month
- Second - Stay Away From The Crazies
Don’t sit at the gate counting down the hours until your next flight. The others’ negative energy WILL rub off on you.
In fact, now that you have your next flight lined up, you know exactly how long you have to entertain yourself. I love airports! (Don’t make fun of me but…) I feel like I’m living in the future or something. I know, I’m weird, I’m waaaay too into traveling.
Question – Emily, what am I going to do to entertain myself for hours at the airport?
Last time I was at the airport I randomly found the same socks I was wearing... kind of like a treasure hunt... so get out there and explore people! #adventure 😅
Depending on the airport, you may be able to find plenty of things to check out around you. Each one is uniquely different, and some of them have full-on malls! There’s shops, food, massage spots, all sorts of stuff. If the airport doesn’t entertain you, entertain yourself. Download a new game or watch a movie on your phone and make your own entertainment with the airports free WiFi.
If you have a lot of time, it may be worth it for you to purchase a day pass to one of the airport lounges (you don’t have to be a member!) and just chill out.
Do you have an airline’s credit card? They are valuable tools at the airport. Generally they give free or discounted lounge admittance as part of their perks.
It can be nice to sit down at a restaurant instead of relying on snacks and fast food. Chill out with a book and wine and dine yourself. You may even be able to catch some of the game that’s on too if they have TVs. It will be much better energy there than waiting at the gate with all the angry people who got delayed and want to talk about how annoyed they are.
- Third - See What They Are Willing To Offer!
Once it gets a little closer to the time of the flight, everyone should have settled down. It’s safe to go to the gate now.
As I wait for my next flight, I like to listen in here and there to people’s (now positive) conversations. You may have an opportunity to get even more vouchers.
You may overhear, “Well I got my flight fully refunded.” or “I got a credit.”
Listen in, but don’t join in the banter. If they were able to get something that you weren’t able to get over the phone, now is the time to go to the desk agent and ask for what the other passengers got. The agent will not know that you already got stuff through the phone agent. Most likely, they are just handing out vouchers to whoever presents a their plane ticket. (Again, this is rare.)
But, that’s not all! Ladies, since your flight was delayed, now they have to try and get all of those people onto another plane, as well as seat the people who already had a ticket for this flight. This is the perfect opportunity for calm and collected you to get a free trip!
The chances are that this flight is going to be overbooked/ packed. Can you push your flight back another hour or two? Girl, you’ve already put in a few hours of waiting, what would a few more hurt? If you can, then this next part is for you.
The airline is going to ask for volunteers to take the next flight instead (because this flight is now most likely overbooked.) They may even offer first class seats for the next flight.
Don’t take it.
You want to use one of your frequent flyer tools (patience) and wait until you hear a money offer. Airlines always offer money. Seriously, I’m not kidding! Depending how desperate they are, they may offer a lot of money!
They usually start with an offer around $100. If no one takes the offer, they gradually up the amount. Don’t accept the first voucher amount they offer.
But Emily, I’m down for some extra money!
You need to treat the experience as an auction. Everyone else in the room is another bidder so keep your eye on them. One trip of mine got delayed while I was on my way to Vegas. I was offered $300 (in the form of an Amex Gift Card) to take the next flight. Another time, I was offered $800, during Christmas season, just to volunteer my seat and take another later flight. (But they were able to fit me in last minute so I didn’t get the $800.)
See how I did that? I turned a delayed trip into a free trip!
- What To Do If Your Flight Gets Cancelled...
If your flight ends up getting cancelled all together, we can still turn this around! The airline actually HAS to offer you things like food voucher if you have to wait over 3 hours to your next flight and possibly complimentary hotel accommodations for a passenger affected by an overnight cancellation. Click Here for a direct link to the exact regulations for each individual airline via the transportation.gov website. From there, you can see the database of things you are SUPPOSED to get for the inconvenience!
- Let's Review...
- Remember that you are the customer and that you are being inconvenienced.
- Then, take a breath.
- Nicely, work the system.
- Entertain yourself.
- Go for the free vouchers.
I tried to keep it short in case you are reading this while your plane is delayed. I hope this helped to calm you down and remind you that flying is just like any other business. No one is purposefully trying to ruin your day. Things happen that are out of everyone’s control.
Also remember that It’s always BETTER to be SAFE than to be sorry… and the airline is only acting in your best interest.
I hope you were able to handle your delay with a clear head and make the most of it! Let me know which tip helped you the most!
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