Short layovers for connecting flights

[athena53]

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Originally Posted by SecondAttempt In some cases you may be met at your gate by a cart to swiftly get you to your next gate. It has happened to me but it has been several years. The flight attendants will also sometimes ask those without a tight connection to let others off first. I doubt the effectiveness of this though.

I've never seen anyone met with a cart- sure would be nice. I saw a flight held only once- in 2003 when DH and I were flying from Frankfurt to St. Petersburg, and we were not part of the group for which it was held (we were already on the plane). And yes, when a flight lands late, everyone seems to have a tight connection and hustles off.

I agree with the others- 25 minutes is silly. Not as silly, however, as some of the international itineraries I've seen where you fly into Heathrow and connect to a flight out of Gatwick. It's crazy that the airlines even give you those options.

[marko]

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Originally Posted by athena53 I've never seen anyone met with a cart- sure would be nice. I saw a flight held only once- in 2003 when DH and I were flying from Frankfurt to St. Petersburg, and we were not part of the group for which it was held (we were already on the plane). .

I've been met with a cart and they've held the plane for me a few times back in the day. Northwest Airlines.

But I was also consistently among their top 5 customers at the time. Even used to have a lady meet me and escort me to my next gate, baggage or club room. But that was then....

One time, DW and a niece were 3 hours late for our connection in Amsterdam (issues in Boston). As the plane door opened, a lady got on, handed us new boarding passes, wisked us onto a cart and bypassed security and put us first in line at immigration, then sped us to the new gate. Impressive.

[COcheesehead]

I’ve had bags go missing for two days on the outbound leg. Lesson learned. We carryon when we can. If we can’t, we pack at least one outfit in our carry on.
The worst case was on a return leg and the bag went missing for weeks. When we got it back, items were missing.
We both recently invested in international size carry ons from Eagle Creek. With compression sleeves, we can get a week’s worth of clothes in them.

[HawkeyeNFO]

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Originally Posted by COcheesehead ....invested in international size carry....

Investing in luggage...

[HarveyS]

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Originally Posted by njhowie American's own website is giving these 25 to 45 minute connections for this route.

I did not know that. In that case, if they are selling it they are on the hook to deliver it.

[athena53]

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Originally Posted by HarveyS I did not know that. In that case, if they are selling it they are on the hook to deliver it.

Well, the way I would put it is that if things go wrong they're on the hook to get you to your destination eventually. But it's not always pretty.

AA once changed my flight home from Mexico to one that allowed an uncomfortably short connection to the last flight of the night from DFW to my home airport. I called and asked if I could change it to a flight out of DFW the next AM (hotel at my expense). Nope. That would be a voluntary change and would have to be re-priced.

Fortunately, I was able to stand by for an earlier flight out of Cabo and they even gave me a small refund because it was Coach and I'd purchased Business Class. I checked my original flight- yes, it arrived late to DFW and there was no way I would have gotten through Customs and Immigration and made my connection.

[ivinsfan]

You can't book a longer connection then what they offer. And yes, some seem really tight. And at a big airline hub you could really have to hoof-it to your connecting gate.



My only advice here is when you are looking at a short connecting time try to book a flight as early in the day as possible. Avoid at all costs booking the last connection of the day.



As for bags who knows, we had a 60 minute connection turn into a 10 minute connection. We made it as the door was closing. As we were pulling away from the gate the plane stopped, a baggage cart pulled up, pulled out our baggage and tossed it onto the plane.

[njhowie]

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Originally Posted by HarveyS I did not know that. In that case, if they are selling it they are on the hook to deliver it.

Personally, if I were making the reservation, and was adamant about going on American, I would book the reservation the way the website gives it to me, look up a better connecting flight (assuming there is one), then immediately call and ask them to change the connecting flight. If they refuse, or want to charge more, then I'd immediately cancel for the penalty free refund within 24 hours of booking. These days, like others here, I would not accept a short connection. 45 minutes I'd do, 25 minutes never.

[Teacher Terry]

Through the years my bags have been lost a total of 4 times taking 4 days each time to reach me. Not a big deal if coming home. The last time even though I had a 4 hour layover at Heathrow my bag didn’t make it. I only took 2 small carry on bags going but at Heathrow they insisted that I check one bag because their security people were on strike. At least they didn’t lose it on the last leg of the trip going.

[athena53]

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Originally Posted by njhowie These days, like others here, I would not accept a short connection. 45 minutes I'd do, 25 minutes never.

I do check and see what alternatives are available if I miss my connection. I'm less concerned if there are 2 or 3 flights later in the day, more concerned if the one I was supposed to take is the last one of the day. I've had bad experiences with airline-supplied hotel vouchers- once for a hotel that told me when I called that they had no available rooms, one with a shuttle that they told me came around every 20 minutes (I gave up at 1 AM after over an hour of waiting), and once where I saw a couple of guys traveling on business checking in who found that the airline had booked a double room for them. They were NOT interested in sharing a room and I didn't blame them.

I'm also more relaxed about connections going home than the ones to my vacation destination. In retirement, I even have the luxury of scheduling overnights at my expense and then taking the first flight to my destination in the AM.

[Aerides]

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Originally Posted by ivinsfan You can't book a longer connection then what they offer. And yes, some seem really tight. And at a big airline hub you could really have to hoof-it to your connecting gate.

On AA's site, you can sort by overall duration, and often it will offer other connections. So, if you're willing to wait say 3 hours at a layover, the option might show up if you filter and sort for it.

AA also puts some little !! warning on short or long layovers.

Oh, for any booking on the shorter side, only do it if you can confirm your seat at booking. Getting off quickly from row 19 is a whole different ball game from getting off in row 36.

[ivinsfan]

Yes A I'd forgotten that option...back in the day I'd use ITA software for that option.. I once booked a really short connection because both flights had the same flight number..I thought it was a one stop flight with no plane change WRONG!!!

[Gremlin]

I fly every 3 weeks for w*rk and have done so for the last 20 years.
I aim for a minimum of 2 hour connections if possible (obviously not always possible)
Please do not plan on the next flight to be held for you if your first is late, no matter what airline you are on. Yes, the airline is on the hook to re route you if the connection time fails but they don’t seem to care about that when they book your flight. And holding flights for passengers is a very very rare occurrence.

My daughters learned this lesson after a 30 minute layover in DFW failed. I warned them ahead of time but the liked they cheap tickets ( and they are frequently the cheapest tickets. I can never wrap my head around the fact that the airlines are sabotaging themselves too, but gave up looking for logic a long time ago) I pay more for longer layovers because I want time to walk around, get something to drink and use the restroom and not run like a crazy person from one flight to the next.

Good luck and safe travels!

[Gremlin]

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Originally Posted by Lewis Clark I've seen flight attendants ask this several times, but have never seen passengers honor the request.

I frequently see passengers allowing others to deboard first for tight connections, and do this all the time myself. I think it helps, but there are so many factors that create the bottleneck to a speedy exit, not just the volume of people. The problem also lies with those that are slow to deboard, like the elderly or those with physical limitations or those that are just plain clueless.

[OldShooter]

Pretty much agreeing with the comments. It used to be that for each airport there was a "legal' minimum connecting time that was supposed to be safe. Whether that is still the case or whether the carriers are free-lancing I don't know.

It's not just about the connecting time, though, IMO it's also about the flights. Westbound international flights tend to be a little riskier ref arrival times because of headwinds and the length of the flight. We won't take less than an hour and a half, prefer two hours. Eastbound don't have as much headwind, so maybe a tad safer.

The other consideration is the consequences of a missed connection. When is the next flight to your intended destination and what is its booking status? An airport like ORD has flights going everywhere all the time, so are there likely to be seats? A smaller airport will offer fewer options. We missed a flight last month at CDG and ended up on another Naples flight that actually arrived earlier than the missed flight! DW did not originally book it because it was more expensive.

Finally, is it a going-home flight or an outbound? In the latter case, lost luggage can be a big problem, so we take fewer risks -- even flying out a day ahead of a group tour for example. Homebound, not so much. Homebound, I check my carry-on that is never out of my sight outbound, for example. Consequences of it getting lost are minimal.

So for us at least, there's more to changing airplanes than just looking at connection times.

[NW-Bound]

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Originally Posted by SecondAttempt It is VERY expensive for the airline if you or your luggage misses the connecting flight due to them so they will often hold a connecting flight for you if your inbound.

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Originally Posted by Lewis Clark This may be true for some airlines, but not all of them. I've had to run through airports a couple of times to make a tight connection after the first flight was late. Flight attendants on the first flight have told me the airline won't hold the second flight even if several passengers might miss the connection...

I wonder if your second flight being late would cause even more passengers missing their next connection. Hence they want to break the chain reaction.

Is airline computer scheduling/dispatching software smart enough to make the correct tradeoff?

[athena53]

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Originally Posted by ivinsfan Yes A I'd forgotten that option...back in the day I'd use ITA software for that option.. I once booked a really short connection because both flights had the same flight number..I thought it was a one stop flight with no plane change WRONG!!!

Oh, yeah- the infamous "direct" flights. They should be illegal if they involve a change of plane since you CAN miss what's really a connection. Adding insult to injury, you get mileage credit as if it were a nonstop even if your actual mileage flown is higher because of the stop.

[jollystomper]

Agree with those saying 25 minutes is too short.

Personally I do not feel comfortable unless the connection is at least 90 minutes. I have had several hour connections that delays in the first flight lead to the "let the folks with short connections off first" and then run to the gate, or spending a night in a city I did not plan to stay in .

It use to be the only reason a flight would be delayed was due to weather. But now I am seeing more delays due to waiting for the crew, waiting for the cleaning staff to come and clean the plane, waiting for luggage handlers to load luggage and other cargo items, incidents with service animals, etc. For all these reasons I prefer longer (but not too long, like the 10 hours I was rebooked on this past weekend, hoo boy) layover times.

[COcheesehead]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gremlin I frequently see passengers allowing others to deboard first for tight connections, and do this all the time myself. I think it helps, but there are so many factors that create the bottleneck to a speedy exit, not just the volume of people. The problem also lies with those that are slow to deboard, like the elderly or those with physical limitations or those that are just plain clueless.

Funny story
Flight attendants asked anyone without a tight connection to stay seated. 99% of the plane remained seated, a handful got off. This took place over about a 2-3 minute period. Flight attendants said thank you and everyone proceeded to get off by rows as normal. Out of the back of the plane a man started shouting that he needs to get off. No one pays any attention since everyone had a chance. Finally the guy yells out “karma is a B…”

[Chuckanut]

My first transfer at CDG in Paris was from an arriving international flight to flight within the EU. Little did I know that meant a short bus trip to another terminal. I found an Air France help desk where the nice lady told me exactly where to go and what to do. I made my flight and was very glad I had the 90 minutes between them. It's amazing how fast 90 minute can pass when you don't have an idea what to do next.

My second flight into CDG I had 45 minutes, but I had learned my lesson and already knew what terminal I was leaving from. Using my rocket propelled skates I zipped through the arrival terminal to the bus and then to the departure gate. I arrived with 15 minute to spare.

Frankly, I would much rather have a 2 hour wait and spend it sipping a café with a Pain Au Chocolate while I wait for the announcement to board.