Need advice: United changed our nonstop flight

[Pearl64]

First of all, thanks to all responses.

 

We are going on the Solstice Jan. 28, 2013. Our original flight left PIT at 7 am Jan. 22 on a nonstop flight to SFO. Yes, we would have had a long layover in SFO but we thought the direct flight was our best option flying in winter. But, United changed our flight to one leaving an hour later but connecting in Denver with only one hour between flights. If all goes well, this would work. But we are talking January. the only other option is O'Hare which is even worse. Should we take this option? Also, it is on an embraer commuter plane. We will have one checked bag each plus a carryon and a personal item. We will be gone until the first part of March so we really can't limit the baggage any more. On that smaller plane will we be able to get on with the carryon and personal item? On these smaller planes is Economy Plus worth the extra money?

 

United suggested going through Houston and then to LAX. I do not know if there would be a change fee. I know the ontime performance of these flights to Houston from PIT is always questionable and they are on the smaller planes. The flight is already costing us plenty as it is. Should we even consider this option?

 

If we were to fly to SFO the day before, would there be fees? Should this be an option?

 

There is a direct flight out of Cleveland that we could take but will United charge us to make these changes? And, is this even an option since it is winter?

 

We are flying in four days early to be sure we are in Auckland for the cruise. I made the original flight arrangements with Air New Zealand. Is that with whom I should deal with this? I was trying to change our seats to Economy Plus when I noticed the change. United never informed me. I realize there are changes but certainly they could have informed me of the change. AirNewZealand did on their minor time changes.

 

Again, thanks for your responses.

 

Pearl

[6rugrats]

1. On these smaller planes, most roller boards must be checked. IMO, E+ not worth the money.

 

2. An hour connection time at DEN is fine, if your first flight arrives on time. I would not change to ORD.

 

3. UA changed your flight; there should be no charge with your circumstances for you to choose different flights.

 

4. Research what flights work better for you, and ask UA to change you to what you want. Ask for a supervisor if the agent is not cooperative. Hopefully, you have not already accepted any flight changes.

 

5. No airline is responsible for notifying you about your schedule changes, always check your itineraries on a regular basis.

 

Good luck.

[MMDown Under]

First of all, thanks to all responses.

 

We are going on the Solstice Jan. 28, 2013. Our original flight left PIT at 7 am Jan. 22 on a nonstop flight to SFO. Yes, we would have had a long layover in SFO but we thought the direct flight was our best option flying in winter. But, United changed our flight to one leaving an hour later but connecting in Denver with only one hour between flights. If all goes well, this would work. But we are talking January. the only other option is O'Hare which is even worse. Should we take this option? Also, it is on an embraer commuter plane. We will have one checked bag each plus a carryon and a personal item. We will be gone until the first part of March so we really can't limit the baggage any more. On that smaller plane will we be able to get on with the carryon and personal item? On these smaller planes is Economy Plus worth the extra money?

 

United suggested going through Houston and then to LAX. I do not know if there would be a change fee. I know the ontime performance of these flights to Houston from PIT is always questionable and they are on the smaller planes. The flight is already costing us plenty as it is. Should we even consider this option?

 

If we were to fly to SFO the day before, would there be fees? Should this be an option?

 

There is a direct flight out of Cleveland that we could take but will United charge us to make these changes? And, is this even an option since it is winter?

 

We are flying in four days early to be sure we are in Auckland for the cruise. I made the original flight arrangements with Air New Zealand. Is that with whom I should deal with this? I was trying to change our seats to Economy Plus when I noticed the change. United never informed me. I realize there are changes but certainly they could have informed me of the change. AirNewZealand did on their minor time changes.

 

Again, thanks for your responses.

 

Pearl

 

Having flown extensively in the US during winter, with your hub system, I'd fly the day before. Contact Air NZ direct. There shouldn't be extra charges because United cancelled the direct flight.

[bolt]

We also had flights on United that have been cancelled. We were rebooked by United on flights that are not even possible to make. So I called them and they rebooked our flights leaving earlier in the day. This is in February and I also am concerned about weather in Denver. Fortunately we are flying to NO 3 days early. They also did not contact us I just happened to be checking our flights which I do every few weeks just to be sure.

 

Good luck with the flights

[MMDown Under]

 

5. No airline is responsible for notifying you about your schedule changes, always check your itineraries on a regular basis.

 

Good luck.

 

I find that statement unbelievable. I'm sure many people wouldn't know that!

 

I wonder if it is just certain airlines.

 

When I book a flight on line, I have to fill in a contact phone number/email address for the airline to contact me, as well as similiar details for my destination contact details.

[kenish]

When I book a flight on line, I have to fill in a contact phone number/email address for the airline to contact me, as well as similiar details for my destination contact details.

 

True, but 90+ percent of the time, they will not contact you about schedule changes (at least here in the USA).

[kenish]

the only other option is O'Hare which is even worse. Should we take this option? Also, it is on an embraer commuter plane. Pearl

 

United operates Embraer RJ-170 's on that route. The RJ-170 is hardly a "commuter" plane...it's one of my favorite airliners. Seating is 2-2 on the aisle with full-size bins and underseat areas. You won't know the difference between it and a 737, A320, etc. except for the 2-2 seating. They don't "ramp check" carry-ons like they do for the smaller RJ-135/145

[novice99]

United suggested going through Houston and then to LAX. I do not know if there would be a change fee. I know the ontime performance of these flights to Houston from PIT is always questionable and they are on the smaller planes. The flight is already costing us plenty as it is. Should we even consider this option?

 

If we were to fly to SFO the day before, would there be fees? Should this be an option?

 

There is a direct flight out of Cleveland that we could take but will United charge us to make these changes? And, is this even an option since it is winter?

 

 

Pearl

 

Our return flights on Feb05 from Ft Lauderdale to Edmonton with layover in Houston were also changed. We received an e-mail informing us of it. I didn’t like the change from one to over four 1/2 hour layover in Houston. I looked up a flight that was leaving later from FLL but was more expensive (over $200pp) and asked for it. They changed it without any additional cost.

I was suspicious that they bumped us from the flight we booked originally but hearing that it happened with other flights too it looks like they cancelled flights.

[Ashland]

True, but 90+ percent of the time, they will not contact you about schedule changes (at least here in the USA).

Then I must be lucky and have always managed to be in that 10% group ;)

[Pearl64]

Thanks to all who offered suggestions for our flight dilemma. We are now leaving a day before our original departure and getting a nonstop flight to LAX where we will spend the night and then take the AirNewZealand flight the next evening. There were no fees involved. We would have had a day to spend in San Fran but now are spending the day in LA. It does break up the trip. At least the resolution is something we can live with. The gentleman from ANZ was fantastic and said United does this all the time. He understood the snow issues and was quite helpful.

 

All is well until United decides to make further changes.

 

Pearl

[turtlemichael]

True, but 90+ percent of the time, they will not contact you about schedule changes (at least here in the USA).

Must be the US. Qantas emails me on even a 5 minute change. Come to think of it, I got an email from American a few weeks ago about changes to itineraries I have booked.

[PennyAgain]

Well, it is the US for sure. I fly so much that I have a couple apps on my iPhone that keep me more or less up-to-date on changes in flights and times....

 

but I still check often.

 

Make no assumptions with travel arrangements and you will be much happier.

[MMDown Under]

Thanks to all who offered suggestions for our flight dilemma. We are now leaving a day before our original departure and getting a nonstop flight to LAX where we will spend the night and then take the AirNewZealand flight the next evening. There were no fees involved. We would have had a day to spend in San Fran but now are spending the day in LA. It does break up the trip. At least the resolution is something we can live with. The gentleman from ANZ was fantastic and said United does this all the time. He understood the snow issues and was quite helpful.

 

All is well until United decides to make further changes.

 

Pearl

 

Pleased you got good service from Air NZ and were able to solve your problem.

 

(J Paul Getty Museum is well worth visiting, if you are looking for something to do on your day in LA.

 

http://www.getty.edu/museum/ )

[cb at sea]

We had flights and planes changed on us a couple weeks before our last flight....a representative actually CALLED me on the phone to notify me of the changes, and get new seat assignments! I thought that was super! In the past, we've been notified of changes via e-mail.

[kag19]

We had flights and planes changed on us a couple weeks before our last flight....a representative actually CALLED me on the phone to notify me of the changes, and get new seat assignments! I thought that was super! In the past, we've been notified of changes via e-mail.

 

Delta just changed our reservations without notification. Flight time changed just slightly so no big deal there but they also changed the terminals and they moved my husband and my seats so now we are not sitting anywhere near each other. No notification of any of the changes. Tried to change seats online but there is nothing available and the rep I spoke to online said there was nothing they could do about it. Irritating! :mad: Glad I checked though because I would have ended up at the wrong terminal in the airport.

[waterbug123]

Delta just changed our reservations without notification. Flight time changed just slightly so no big deal there but they also changed the terminals and they moved my husband and my seats so now we are not sitting anywhere near each other. No notification of any of the changes. Tried to change seats online but there is nothing available and the rep I spoke to online said there was nothing they could do about it. Irritating! :mad: Glad I checked though because I would have ended up at the wrong terminal in the airport.

 

What airport do you board the plane?

[FlyerTalker]

I would have ended up at the wrong terminal in the airport.

I cannot think of where DL would have changed your terminal. The only possibility is at JFK, where DL has operations in T2, T3 and T4. However, they are all connected airside and there's a landside connection so I don't see the issue.

 

Could you be talking about different concourses at ATL, which all have one landside terminal?

 

Curious minds want to know.

[Fattony]

Must be the US. Qantas emails me on even a 5 minute change. Come to think of it, I got an email from American a few weeks ago about changes to itineraries I have booked.

 

Let's just say the bottom line is that you can't bank on the airline notifying you (and some people miss message that end up in their spam filters), so you need to keep track yourself to make sure you're aware of any changes.

 

An ovenight at LAX isn't too bad. Have dinner at the Encounter restaurant. You can often get good deals on hotels through Hotwire and Priceline. We usually got for 4-star hotels and have not been disappointed except once Priceline said we wee in the Sheraton Gateway and then literally at the last minute said we were at the Radisson. Getty Center is a good idea. Manhattan Beach is also nearby.

[kag19]

What airport do you board the plane?

 

Flying out of Detroit. I am going to have to call and verify since I think what I am looking at on their website is the terminal we are flying into and not the terminal we are leaving from. Very confusing.

[FlyerTalker]

At DTW, DL operates ONLY from the McNamara (South) terminal. There are three concourses (A, B & C), but all are accessed through the same check-in facility. You may be reading about your arrival airport, but since you provide no further details -- no further answers.

[waterbug123]

Delta just changed our reservations without notification. Flight time changed just slightly so no big deal there but they also changed the terminals.....Glad I checked though because I would have ended up at the wrong terminal in the airport.

 

Flying out of Detroit. I am going to have to call and verify since I think what I am looking at on their website is the terminal we are flying into and not the terminal we are leaving from. Very confusing.

 

As Flyertalker said, Delta only uses one terminal at DET, so you would not have ended up at the wrong terminal for check in, even with the flight change. Maybe you are confusing "terminal" with "concourse?"

Where are you flying TO? Whose website are you looking at? Delta's or your destination airport?

[kag19]

As Flyertalker said, Delta only uses one terminal at DET, so you would not have ended up at the wrong terminal for check in, even with the flight change. Maybe you are confusing "terminal" with "concourse?"

Where are you flying TO? Whose website are you looking at? Delta's or your destination airport?

 

I have flown Delta many times out of DTW so that is why the confusion when I was looking at the details on Delta's website and saw a different terminal listed. Spoke to Delta and the terminal they are showing on their website is the arrival terminal for my flight and not the departure. Just seems a bit strange that they would list the arrival terminal and not the departure terminal. Why not show both just to avoid confusion? They had no explanation for why I was not contacted about the change in flight time or why they had moved our seats so our party is no longer sitting together. They just said I would have to try and see if I can get seats together if we check-in at the counter. We usually do online check-in so I guess we will have to go there and see how long the line is and go from there.

 

Lessons learned - Always check your flight details because the airline will not always contact you!

[waterbug123]

I have flown Delta many times out of DTW so that is why the confusion when I was looking at the details on Delta's website and saw a different terminal listed. Spoke to Delta and the terminal they are showing on their website is the arrival terminal for my flight and not the departure. Just seems a bit strange that they would list the arrival terminal and not the departure terminal. Why not show both just to avoid confusion? They had no explanation for why I was not contacted about the change in flight time or why they had moved our seats so our party is no longer sitting together. They just said I would have to try and see if I can get seats together if we check-in at the counter. We usually do online check-in so I guess we will have to go there and see how long the line is and go from there.

 

Lessons learned - Always check your flight details because the airline will not always contact you!

 

 

Out of curiosity, what terminal is the Delta website showing for your aircraft's arrival?

[kag19]

Out of curiosity, what terminal is the Delta website showing for your aircraft's arrival?

 

Delta's website is only showing the aircraft's arrival terminal on both flights. The first terminal they show is Terminal 2, which is my arrival terminal and then showing the McNamara terminal on my second flight, which is the flight back to Detroit. Strange how they are only showing the arrival flight terminals and not the departure terminals. The question arose because we are flying with some friends who have never flown out of DTW so they wanted to know where "Terminal 2" was there. Slightly confusing to travelers not familiar (and those who are) with the airport.

[waterbug123]

Delta's website is only showing the aircraft's arrival terminal on both flights. The first terminal they show is Terminal 2, which is my arrival terminal and then showing the McNamara terminal on my second flight, which is the flight back to Detroit. Strange how they are only showing the arrival flight terminals and not the departure terminals. The question arose because we are flying with some friends who have never flown out of DTW so they wanted to know where "Terminal 2" was there. Slightly confusing to travelers not familiar (and those who are) with the airport.

 

You've got me totally confused now. You say they are only showing you the arrival terminals for your flights, so that would mean that this "terminal 2" is the terminal where you arrive at your destination, after departing from Detroit, right? So in other words, "terminal 2" is NOT where you would depart from in Detroit, right? So I'm not sure where the confusion lies; you said originally that they changed terminals on you and you were flying out of a different terminal than usual, but this post doesn't say that at all. :confused: