Flight reconfirmation

August 10, 2007 3:05 AM

What's the point of having to reconfirm flights, usually 24-72 hours before departure?

Sometimes it's not even easy: locating the phone number of the air company can be tricky in some places, or one can be in the middle of nowhere without a working phone. What sort of bad things can happen if one fails to reconfirm a flight? Since some companies don't require confirmation, I have trouble understanding the rationale behind this requirement.

posted by elgilito to travel & transportation (16 answers total)

I have only ever re-confirmed once or twice in my life, in cases in which I had reason to believe the flights might have been delayed or canceled.

I think the reason for this is not your convenience but the airline's. They reserve the option of rescheduling your flight, and if you don't find out about it, it's your fault, because you failed to reconfirm.
posted by bluejayk at 3:19 AM on August 10, 2007

I've never reconfirmed. If there's some obvious reason (eg weather) why the flight might be delayed or cancelled, I've checked the carrier's website.
posted by TrashyRambo at 3:29 AM on August 10, 2007

I've never reconfirmed either. Which companies have required you to reconfirm?
posted by saturnine at 3:42 AM on August 10, 2007

It's for your 'convenience', so they can reschedule/cancel flights as needed and you'll be apprised of the situation before you show up at the airport.

I suspect it is also related to their practice of over-booking flights... the number of people who confirm might be a good indicator of the number of people who will actually show up for an over-booked flight.
posted by foobario at 3:43 AM on August 10, 2007

If you ordered a special meal, it's a great opportunity to remind them of this, because if they've "somehow" "lost" those details, reminding them when you check in won't get you a new meal.
posted by methylsalicylate at 4:15 AM on August 10, 2007

I've never thought it to be mandatory in the US, but I recommend it when traveling internationally. I once had Air Afrique cancel my ticket on an oversold flight because I had not confirmed it 24 hours ahead of time. They promised they could get me on the next available flight... in 3 weeks. Eventually they put me on another airline, but not without significant hassle.
posted by itstheclamsname at 4:55 AM on August 10, 2007

I've flown extensively overseas and not only have I never reconfimed, I have never been asked to.

Then again, I've never flown Air Afrique.
posted by Dagobert at 5:08 AM on August 10, 2007

Saturnine:Which companies have required you to reconfirm?
Most of them... Last time it was Cathay Pacific but in my experience the practice seems widespread in international flights.

Thanks for the answers so far. I was under the impression that it was mostly due to overbooking - and indeed itstheclamsname confirms that the problem exists. However, it looks that the reconfirmation requirement is mostly a CYA procedure for the travel agents in case of schedule changes: this article explains it a little bit. "The reason travel agents insist on reconfirmation is to cover themselves in the event of the airline having to make a schedule change, the details of which cannot be conveyed to the passenger in time. To protect themselves from claims for missed flights, most online travel agents, travel clubs and flight brokers now have a clause in their conditions of booking requiring passengers to take responsibility for reconfirming their flights. What they really mean is that passengers should "confirm" their flight is still operating."

This may explain why other people haven't been asked to reconfirm if they bought their tickets directly from the airline rather than from a travel agency. In any case, it seems a good practice to reconfirm (i.e. actually asking whether the flight is still OK), but on the same time it looks like not reconfirming shouldn't be a real problem most of the times.
posted by elgilito at 5:14 AM on August 10, 2007

elgilito is right. I used to have to reconfirm my travel-agent booked tickets internationally all the time, in the late 80s and early 90s.

I haven't flown intercontinentally since the popular advent of internet-purchased-tickets so I have no idea now, but that would seem like you wouldn't need to reconfirm.
posted by mckenney at 5:20 AM on August 10, 2007

Nope, reconfirming has no impact on your ticketed status on major international airlines. Anecdotally, I have been travelling internationally for the last twelve years at least ten times annuallly.

Although, if you feel compelled, use it as an opportunity to reinforce any preferences you might have, ie seating, meals etc...
posted by michswiss at 6:45 AM on August 10, 2007

I think these days so many people use electronic tickets and print boarding passes at home electronically before they leave that is has negated the need to re-confirm.

I would think that the act of checking in electronically is the "now" version of calling the airline and reconfirming your seat.
posted by worker_bee at 6:50 AM on August 10, 2007

This isn't really done anymore, although it used to be the norm decades ago. I am a frequent flier and I haven't done this in probably 15 or 20 years, flying both internationally and domestically, with no problems. Airlines do reschedule flights though, and sometimes just days before the flight. Reconfirming might be useful to know about these, but it is easier to just sign up for email trip advisories.
posted by caddis at 7:15 AM on August 10, 2007

My job requires lots of domestic travel; I'm AA Executive Platinum. I don't think I've ever reconfirmed a flight, unless there was weather issue.

Forget reconfirming, but do get to the airport early - especially if you're flying on a discounted ticket or you're not a frequent flyer with that airline.
posted by 26.2 at 8:11 AM on August 10, 2007

I work for a study abroad company and we strongly recommend our students to reconfirm their flights 72 hours in advance. Sometimes airlines change the departure time a little bit, things like that. We've actually avoided a couple disasters ("computer glitches" that caused someone not to be in the system that we were able to fix in advance rather than on trael day) this way.
posted by ORthey at 8:57 AM on August 10, 2007

I've never reconfirmed a flight but this bit me in the butt in Bolivia. I was supposed to fly out to Lima then onto to NJ and Toronto with Kingston ON as my final destination but the flight to Lima left 3 hours before it was supposed to, just before I'd gotten to the airport. The ticket woman's excuse was that I didn't reconfirm. They booked me on the next flight (the day after) causing me to miss the next four flights and incur about $200 in rebooking fees.

My advice to you would be to reconfirm in "non-first world" countries as they seem to make up the rules as they go along.
posted by LunaticFringe at 9:23 AM on August 10, 2007

Three flights, I missed three flights....I can't count.
posted by LunaticFringe at 9:23 AM on August 10, 2007