Is my flight cancelled? How to check your flight status before leaving for the airport?
Even in a bit less turbulent times, flight schedules were altered every day. And even such a huge travel disruption as the flight cancellation could have happened as unexpectedly as, for example, tarmac delay. However, with a majority of flights worldwide already grounded, there is no assurance that the one which you were about to catch, wouldn’t be also suddenly postponed or cancelled.
by Skycop team
- 2020-05-08
- 8:26 AM GMT
So how could you prepare for such a situation and be ready for even the most unpleasant disruption with as little odds of turning your trip to even bigger disaster as possible? There is no simple answer here as all the circumstances here are in a state of constant shift. Yeah, there’s nothing as stable as change here today and we all probably already know that. However, there is one thing we would strongly advise you on. Stay informed and gather all the necessary data on your journey in a strict timeline.
How can I be sure that an airline will contact me in an event of flight disruption?
Even if your flight is cancelled due to extraordinary circumstances, in such an event, the airline should inform you about the changes in your travel plans as soon as possible. European Union Regulation (EC) 261/2004 and the corresponding legal acts in other regions as well as the national law in certain countries obliges the air carrier to take adequate care of you in the event of flight disruption. That also implies if flight cancellation happened due to a government-imposed lockdowns, travel restrictions or some other force majeure the airline has no control over.
That’s why both the airline itself and the travel agents usually won’t let you book a flight without providing a telephone number you can be reached at. So be sure to update it if there was any change involved. You can do so by changing your contact details in the ‘reservation’ or ‘manage my booking’ section of the Client Zone page on the airline’s (and usually, also a travel agent) website.
Can the airline contact me via email or social media channels?
While the latter option is usually used by the carriers and travel agents for the official communication – or, in the case of major full service airlines – for ‘on the matter’ conversations via, for example, Facebook Messenger platform (that generally applies only if you reached to the carrier yourself), the email in an event of flight disruption is a part of general practice which applies to everyone. So be sure to update this section of your contact details as well if you have given some email address you do not use while making a booking or have changed it afterwards.
One way or another, do not forget to check your inbox regularly if you do not receive push notifications with every email. Also, consider checking your spam folder at least before leaving for the airport as even some of the most important stuff occasionally ends up right here.
How to check your flight status before leaving for the airport?
And, last but not least, the airport page. It is – and for a long time has been – the place, where you can find the latest information on your flight yourself. It’s like the flight information board at the airport itself, but you can check it’s status here without actually leaving for the terminal. Found out that your flight is delayed? Rearrange your plans accordingly, but try your best not to delay your trip for the airport in such a situation – sometimes the delay time can be altered and your flight can depart earlier than it was announced before. Is your flight cancelled? Contact the airline immediately if it hasn’t already contacted you – even with a huge amount of requests due to an ongoing situation, all the passengers of the flights that were about to depart in less than 72 hours are subject to a highest priority for any airline. It is still obliged to take care of you in any case.
It is also worth having the latest version of your air carrier’s mobile app installed on your smartphone. That way you will be not only always updated about your flight plan and any eventual changes related to it. The airline’s app will also give you an opportunity to take relevant actions if you will be in need to rearrange your journey if something unforeseen will happen. Not to mention the ability to faster pass the checks, find the gate or generate the mobile boarding pass.
And what about a disrupted flight compensation?
At these times we at Skycop are working extremely hard to protect the rights of air passengers who have faced a flight disruption even if it had taken place due to extraordinary circumstances. However, most of the recent flights that got cancelled or delayed, unfortunately, aren’t claimable because the reason for such cancellation was totally outside the airline’s control.
However, when we receive the application for a disrupted flight compensation, we take it into consideration with an individual approach. We are also always ready to give the proper advice for all the passengers on their rights and what they should do to minimize inconveniences which could eventually take place. Skycop also invites you to recall your past flights which were delayed by more than 3 hours, cancelled or overbooked so you could claim the compensation you are probably entitled to.
