Hurricane Updates: Flights Canceled, Expanded Waivers

Hurricane Updates: Flights Canceled, Expanded Waivers

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As anticipated, the projected severity of the Tropical Storm in the Gulf of Mexico has increased, with forecasts calling for not only high winds but a devastatingly destructive amount of water across the Gulf Coast.

Check out this map from the National Hurricane Center with the anticipated amounts of rainfall:

Significant amounts of rain (much less a hurricane) can cause systemwide disruptions, so if you’re scheduled to travel in the coming days you’ll want to take precautions, even if you aren’t routing through Texas. Major storms like this will typically put a huge stress on flight operations, with rolling delays and even cancelations in unexpected areas, as airlines can’t get crews and planes to the right locations.

Change your flights for free

At present, dozens of flights have been canceled to/from Houston and Corpus Christi. Given the current forecast, those numbers will almost certainly increase, even if there somehow isn’t major damage (we can all hope).

Airlines started to issue waivers for travel a few days ago, but in some cases they were rather tepid. Delta, for example, was only offering narrow changes for travelers destined for Houston. That’s now been expanded to Austin and Houston, and for travel through Monday. Other airlines have also added cities and modified date ranges, so you’ll want to check out the specifics for your carrier.

In general, the airlines are going to accommodate you if you’re able or willing to move your plans around — after all, they don’t benefit from having cranky passengers stuck in the terminal either. There are nuances to each policy though, so you can see the individual policies on the airline sites.

You can find the current change rules for each airline here:

Keep in mind that as the severity of the storm increases, the parameters of the waiver can change. Given what we’re seeing with the forecast, I wouldn’t be surprised if the date ranges on these waivers are expanded again, at a minimum.

And if you have travel planned to coastal Texas next week, I’d highly recommend rescheduling if you can — even if the airports are functional on Monday/Tuesday, many of these cities are going to be stressed by the demands of the storm, and it will take time to recover. Areas of Corpus Christi may “potentially be uninhabitable for weeks or months.” And Texans who need to evacuate their homes could use those hotel rooms too.

Tips for rebooking

Regardless of the reason for flight cancelations, phone queues can get ugly fast. Given that many people need to rebook at the same time, you might be able to get new plans confirmed more quickly by using an alternate method.

Try the club lounge

Don’t leave this until this weekend, but if the situation changes and you’re already at the airport, start with the lounge agents. They tend to have fewer passengers to deal with than the gate agents, and thus may have more time (and more patience), when it comes to rebooking your flight.

Reach out on social media

I’ve had good luck changing flights by sending direct messages to American via Twitter. Several other airlines have a Twitter presence as well, and while they might not be able to fix your reservation, it’s worth trying:

Avoid the domestic call centers

If you’re willing to spend a few dollars on Skype or Google Voice credit, calling the international call center for an airline can often save you an hour or more of hold time.

Almost all of these call centers have an English-speaking option, but you can also call Australia, or even just Canadian numbers can get you through faster.

¿Hablas Español?

If you have a rudimentary understanding of Spanish (like, just enough to get through the computer system), you can try the Spanish-speaking numbers. Again, fewer people calling means shorter hold times, and the agents typically speak English as well.

  • American Airlines Spanish line: 1-800-633-3711
  • Southwest Spanish line: 1-800-VAMONOS
  • United Airlines Spanish line: 1-800-426-5561

Be your own advocate

This is maybe more a life philosophy than one specific to travel disruptions, but it holds true — no one cares about you (or your travel) as much as you do.

So be nice, but ask questions, present alternatives, be prepared to book your own hotel rather than waiting in line with a hundred other people for a voucher, and so forth.

If you stand around and wait, you will almost certainly have a worse time than those who are actively finding solutions to the situation.

Check your credit card coverage

If you purchased your tickets with a credit card, you may have some additional protection and benefits when your flight is delayed. Check with your credit card company, or see our list of popular travel cards with good delay coverage.

These cards will often cover your hotel, or the cost of a new flight, and so forth, so it’s good to know both the benefits and the requirements to file a claim.

Bottom line

This is looking to be a VERY serious storm. As I say every time we have a weather event, you want to be as proactive as possible in these situations. Pay attention to your flight, along with the status of your inbound aircraft, and be prepared to react quickly and creatively.

If you have plans to travel to the region, I’d suggest rescheduling now, as it looks like the ground situation is going to be messy at best. And keep in mind that even if you aren’t traveling in, to, or through the storm corridor, your aircraft might be, so you could still be impacted by this storm.

This isn’t a situation you can control, but you can lessen the impact on your life. The best thing to do is pay attention, and be as proactive as you can.

If you’re in the path of the storm, please be safe!

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  1. stuart Guest

    Just heard from KHOU 11 in Houston, and that Bush Intercontinenal and Hobby Airports are closed down indefinitely.

  2. Parker New Member

    Wow no need for crappy comments y'all. On a more positive note, thank you Tiffany for the very thorough and informative post. I always get halfway through your posts, think wow this is really detailed and thought out, then scroll up and notice you wrote it. (Ben, I also love you, and appreciate your lighter style.)

  3. Ken New Member

    HKG feels your pain right now. I'm feeling it waiting for my rebooking. Thanks Cyclone Pakhar.

  4. William Y. Guest

    N, did you have anything substantive to add or was it just the usual ad hominem screeching from the holy elites?

  5. N Guest

    you people are sick douchebags

    go back into your hole so you can complain in peace about how libtards are keeping you virgins at 55 years old

    god what has this country become? racist bigoted animals in every corner of the internet

    even here, where i just want to read about f*cking travel and how i can use my credit card points to fly first class

    instead, on a post about hurricanes i get you f*cking a**holes saying racist and bigoted bulls*it

    just go the f*ck away

  6. William Y. Guest

    The only thing we really know is that CNN will host a 7-people panel on why the President helped a. too much; b. too little; c. too early; d. too late. Examples of these headlines:

    a. "Pangender Penguin Budget Slashed Amid Trump's Texas Turmoil!"

    b. "VANGATE: Did Trump Deliberately Withhold Help for African-American Interpretive Dance Group's Van?"

    c. "OMG: Trump Goes To Texas Prematurely; Is It Because He Was Fucking The 20 Y/O Intern?" (SJWs...

    The only thing we really know is that CNN will host a 7-people panel on why the President helped a. too much; b. too little; c. too early; d. too late. Examples of these headlines:

    a. "Pangender Penguin Budget Slashed Amid Trump's Texas Turmoil!"

    b. "VANGATE: Did Trump Deliberately Withhold Help for African-American Interpretive Dance Group's Van?"

    c. "OMG: Trump Goes To Texas Prematurely; Is It Because He Was Fucking The 20 Y/O Intern?" (SJWs always project)

    d. "Did Trump Wait To Help Because He Was Re-Animating His Fellow Nazi Adolf Hitler? More At 8!"

    ... that being said, I hope you can live with the banter, Tiffany :) And thanks for the comprehensive and very helpful overview here.

  7. Red Guest

    @Debit don't be a bitch and don't be the kind of person who knows the correct shit and still spits the wrong shit.....

  8. Debit Guest

    Fake news. There is no hurricane. Please do not respond if you hear cries of help coming from Texas.

    Its probably lies. Let neighbor take care of neighbor and not rely on the government.

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The comments on this page have not been provided, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any advertiser, and it is not an advertiser's responsibility to ensure posts and/or questions are answered.

stuart Guest

Just heard from KHOU 11 in Houston, and that Bush Intercontinenal and Hobby Airports are closed down indefinitely.

0
Parker New Member

Wow no need for crappy comments y'all. On a more positive note, thank you Tiffany for the very thorough and informative post. I always get halfway through your posts, think wow this is really detailed and thought out, then scroll up and notice you wrote it. (Ben, I also love you, and appreciate your lighter style.)

0
Ken New Member

HKG feels your pain right now. I'm feeling it waiting for my rebooking. Thanks Cyclone Pakhar.

0
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