How can there be two of the same flights with the same flight number…that leave at different times but arrive at the same time. This is not a trick question. I recently booked 2 Virgin Atlantic flights JFK to London Heathrow- one in March 2023 and one in April 2023. The March flight leaves at 9:15AM and arrives at 8:05PM. The April flight leaves at 8AM and arrives at 8:05PM. What is going on here? Are we stopping mid Atlantic for tea and scones? or touching down in Paris for a croissant?
You are likely to get the same notice which I got from Virgin Atlantic. The email announced a time change for the reservation. In most cases with a big chance, one can cancel the flight or go with the new timing. I decided to stay with the horribly early 8AM departure and the mid Atlantic tea time (? a joke).
So what is the deal? Good Morning America covered this story. As did most industry news outlets. Flights for May, June, July and August are likely to change. Why? Before the pandemic, airlines used history and algorithms to predict traffic. Since the pandemic, and specifically for flights within 100 days, airlines have had to reinvent the wheel. New trends, new patterns are altering published schedules.
If your destination has become very popular, you might see more flights or larger aircraft. The latter can change your seating, be aware of this- you might have paid for a better seat. If your destination is not as popular, you might encounter the reverse: cancelled flights or again a different seat.
What to do? Use the airline application on your devices. Check flights frequently for time and for your seat. (We always tell flyers to keep looking at the seating chart; often a better seat pops up randomly). Read your rights on the DOT site.
Buy travel insurance especially, if you have little time/date flexibility. Make sure the insurance covers trip delay; read the trip delay sentence and read it again. Tell your tour operator of the change; they will give you a document to use for your insurance claim.
Finally airlines tell us changing schedules allows them to lower prices? Read this sentence, read it again, and again and again. Hmmm.
Travel tips from The Women’s Travel Group, award winning tour company for small group luxury tours for women. You can reach us at 646 309 5607 or via https://www.thewomenstravelgroup.com/contact/
