'Defensive Flying' Tips
Most airline trips are uneventful.
However, you can take steps to reduce even further your chances
of encountering problems. Here is some advice for "defensive
flying."
- When selecting a flight,
remember that a departure early in the day is less
likely to be delayed than a later flight, due to
"ripple" effects throughout the day. If you
book the last flight of the day, you could get
stuck overnight.
- If you have a choice
between two connections and the fares and service are
equivalent, choose the one with the less-congested
connecting airport. This reduces the risk of
misconnecting. Also consider potential adverse
weather when choosing a connecting city.
- Consider paying by credit
card, which provides certain protections under
Federal credit regulations. For example, in all
recent airline bankruptcies passengers who had
charged their fare and were not provided service were
able to have their credit card company credit their
account for the amount of the fare.
- If possible, pick up your
ticket from a travel agency or from one of the
airline’s airport or city ticket offices.
Airline procedures for replacing a ticket that you
claim was lost in the mail can be inconvenient.
Safeguard your ticket after you receive it; it is an
accountable document and has value, much like cash.
Keep a separate record of the ticket number.
- Bring a photo I.D. when
you fly. For security reasons, most airlines are
requiring such identification at check-in. Also,
airlines don’t permit tickets to be sold or
given to other persons. Make sure your name on
the ticket is exactly the same as it appears on the
I.D.
- As soon as you receive
your ticket, check to make sure all of the
information on it is correct, including your name.
Have any necessary corrections made immediately.
- Keep checking your fare
after you buy your ticket. Fares change all the time
and if that same fare goes down before you
fly, the airline will often refund the difference.
But you have to ask.
- Call a day or two before
your flight to reconfirm your reservation. Flight
schedules sometimes change, and while airlines
usually call to notify you if this happens, it’s
wise to double-check.
- Check in early. Airlines
rescind specific advance seat assignments 30 minutes
before scheduled departure, even if you already have
your boarding pass. You can lose your entire
reservation if you haven't checked in 10 minutes
before scheduled departure time on a domestic flight
(longer on international flights). Allow time for
traffic and parking problems. If a flight is
oversold, the last passengers to check in are the
first to be bumped, even if they have met the
10-minute deadline.
- Check your ticket
immediately after checking in for each flight on your
trip. Airline agents accidentally lift two coupons
instead of one on occasion.
- If you are
"bumped" because your flight is overbooked,
read the Overbooking Notice in your ticket, then ask
for a copy of the rules mentioned in that notice.
This information applies to oversales, where your
flight operates and leaves you behind; it does not
apply to canceled or delayed flights.
- Before agreeing to accept
a travel voucher as compensation for being bumped,
ask about restrictions. For example, with some
vouchers you can't make a reservation until a few
days before you want to fly.
- Put a tag on the outside
of your baggage with your name, home address, and
home and work phone numbers. The airlines provide
free stick-on tags. Most carriers also have
"privacy tags" which conceal this
information from passersby.
- Put the same information inside
each bag, and add an address and telephone number
where you can be reached at your destination city.
- Verify that the agent
checking your bags attaches a destination tag to each
one. Check to see that these tags show the
three-letter code for your destination airport.
Remove tags from previous trips to avoid confusion.
- If your bag arrives open
or unlocked, check immediately to see if any of the
contents are missing or damaged.
- Report any baggage
problems to your airline before leaving the
airport. Insist that the airline fill out a form
and give you a copy, even if they say the bag will be
in on the next flight. Before leaving the airport,
ask the airline if they will deliver the bag without
charge when it is found.
- Open your suitcase
immediately when you get to your destination. Report
any damage to contents or pilferage by telephone
right away. Make a note of the date and time of the
call, and the name and telephone number of the person
you spoke with.
Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings
U.S. Department of Transportation
1200 New Jersey Ave, SE
Washington, DC 20590
http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov
