How to Rebook Your Flight

In the summer months when severe weather (thunder storms, hail, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc) is rampant, the likelihood that your flight is delayed and/or canceled, unfortunately increases.  So in our pursuit to keep you "in the know," we went in search of some of the best flight rebooking tips we could find.  Our search landed us on this insightful "how to" article from Frommer's and from it we extrapolated the following section on how to expediently rebook your canceled flight. 

Airlines will always recommend calling their toll-free reservations number, even if wait times can be excruciatingly long and their systems risk shutting down under high call volumes. If this is the case, the best way to go is the airline's website, according to Kate Hanni, executive director of the consumer protection organization FlyersRights.org.  "You can see if you've been automatically rebooked (now a standard practice), reschedule a flight, or cancel your reservation altogether," Hanni says.

If you want face-to-face customer service, the gate or ticket agent is the traditional option. "It's a good idea to become your own information pub, says Rick Seaney, CEO of FareCompare.com.  "Sometimes the airline personnel don't know any more than you do. Get on your smartphones, laptops, or iPads, and look at airport status updates, weather reports, and flight schedules. If you help them help you, then you can get through the line faster."

A good resource for those without Internet at their fingertips is the FlyersRights.org hotline (tel. 877/359-3776). Phone operators offer travel advice in all forms: they'll look up flight availability, interpret contracts of carriage, and locate ground transportation.

Other wait-reducing tips: "Make a beeline for airport club lounges -- they have dedicated ticket agents, usually two of them," suggests travel guru and million-mile flier John DiScala of JohnnyJet.com.  Elite-status fliers can call the priority number on the back of their membership card.

Travel agents -- many with 24-hour concierge lines -- can also ease the hassle of rebooking, though not without a fee. "Agents have all the same flight information as the carriers but no line of frustrated passengers," says Jacque Salentine Busby, president of the Milwaukee-based Luxe Travel Deals. "Plus we can more readily rebook you on another carrier if necessary."

Which airlines have you had the best success in rebooking flights quickly?  What tips can you offer for rebooking that aren't addressed in this post?

Fee free?

Yesterday we asked our facebook fans and twitter followers which part of the flying process (outside of the fare itself) would they like to see fee-free.  We received some very constructive feedback from everyone, of the 15 responses received, half of the respondents were frustrated with baggage fees and the other half were an assortment of suggestions related to change fees, parking rates, and the return of free meals and drinks.

Many of the respondents offered tips on how to avoid fees and we'd like to share a few of those with you:

• Know your airline's baggage weight limits and size restrictions.  These vary per airline, so for the airlines serving MDT we've compiled their baggage policies into one convenient quick links location for you.
• If you can travel with just your carry on, do so.
• Pack your own food or snacks in your carry on to avoid having to purchase snack packs or meals while in-flight.  Be sure to review the TSA's policies on what you can/cannot pack in your carry on!
• Purchase a beverage in the terminal once you've cleared the security checkpoint.
• As much as is within your control be certain that your scheduled travel dates actually work for you.  Not all extenuating circumstances can be planned for or know about in advance, but if you know your schedule is "iffy" wait until you have as many of the details worked out as possible before you book your trip.
• If you can buy (book) your airfare on a Tuesday as opposed to over the weekend, you're more likely to save money on the cost of the airfare.  Read this recent article from The Economist magazine for more insight on the best times to purchase a plane ticket.

In summation, our fans and followers find that the more prepared you are for your flight in advance (knowing your food, packing, and air travel needs ahead of time), the better. 

Do you have any travel tips and cost saving measures to add?  Do you think there's a better model for airline fee structures?

Air Travel, Socially Speaking with @AAAESean

Introducing the 6th guest post in this new fly HIA blog mini-series, a discussion on how social media has altered the way we travel. Today’s guest blogger is Sean Broderick, a career aviation journalist and public relations pro who currently handles external communications for the American Association of Airport Executives, whose members represent some 850 airports. His responsibilities include managing the association’s Facebook page and Twitter feed.

Airports Shifting From Just Providing Connections To Making Them

One day this past July, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) suffered a partial power outage in two of its three terminals. The outage lasted about 90 minutes and affected certain key functions, including ticketing and concessions.

During the brown-out, followers of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) Twitter stream, @DCAirports, were kept abreast of the situation, including whether boarding passes could be printed on-site. They also were told that MWAA’s Web site was down, and that flight status checks should be done on individual airline Web sites.

This is but one real-life example of what Steven Frischling astutely notes is a shift in airport attitudes—a shift that is perhaps most visible on social media platforms. As he said in a blog post earlier in this series, “Social media has finally allowed airports to…have a voice of their own,” rather than relying on “the voices of others around them speaking for them.”

From my perspective, social media’s evolution hasn’t so much created this attitude shift as help expedite, illuminate, and solidify it. For years, airlines were the air travel industry’s principal brand-builders and loyalty-creators. From frequent flyer programs to dedicated business-class lounges, it was airlines connected with passengers. Airports simply provided a place for passengers to connect.

For a list of reasons long enough to fill another blog post, those days are over—and I think that’s a good thing. For everyone.

Airports are working diligently to onnect with their customer base, often in tandem with airlines. In the social media arena, for instance, market-specific fare sales are pushed via airport Facebook pages, which is logical. If you live in Harrisburg, does it make more sense for you to seek out good travel deals on, say, Delta’s Facebook page, or on HIA’s? Put another way, which one of those Facebook pages is better equipped to deliver information that’s relevant to Central Pennsylvania residents?

As for the airlines, they now have permanently rooted local partners—the airports they serve—cultivating meaningful relationships with existing and potential customers. What better way to jump-start a new route, promote a fare sale, or simply strengthen a connection than to tap into this pipeline?

Passengers—the most important part of the travel equation, of course—are finally getting recognized, catered to, and served by the one variable in their own travel equations that’s sure to remain constant: their local airports. Think about it: for the last 40 years, the greater Harrisburg community has been served by dozens of airlines, but only one commercial-service airport: HIA.

So how can passengers benefit from this shift? Social media is a pretty good place to start. “Like” the Facebook pages of airports you frequent, and follow them on Twitter. Yes, this basically grants them permission to market directly to you, and the smart airports will. But the really smart ones will go well beyond the sales pitch—their marketing and communications plans will incorporate customer service, partnerships with tenants (like airlines and concessionaires) that have useful information for you, and the type of general relationship-building effort that makes airports valuable partners, not just self-motivated service providers.

Most importantly, remember that social media is, well, social. Provide feedback, both positive and negative, via the channels that airports use. Participate in the process, and they’ll be obliged to reciprocate. The result will be a better-informed traveler—and a better travel experience.

Which airports and airlines are you actively engaging with on Twitter and Facebook? Where are you turning to to find answers to your air travel related questions?

Air Travel, Socially Speaking with @BLBoitson

Introducing the 5th guest post in this new fly HIA blog mini-series, a discussion on how social media has altered the way we travel. Today's guest blogger is Brenda Boitson a local writer from right in MDT's backyard! Brenda's writing which covers a wide range of topics, including travel, can be located at Associated Content.

A few years ago, I stumbled upon the site http://www.airfarewatchdog.com. I was thrilled to be able to use it to find cheap tickets for a 2 stop, two week trip to San Francisco and Seattle. Now, I can access Airfare Watchdog’s latest and greatest rates just by reading my Twitter stream. While I have not had much time to travel by air in the past year, it has been a great resource to find cheap flights on trips I may want to take in the future.

This is just one of the ways that social media has brought air travel to the forefront of my mind when booking a trip. I have thoroughly enjoyed following two heavy tweeters, @HIAairport and @Runwaygirl to name a few, to see what is happening in the air travel industry, and at my favorite local airport. I can find out about the latest improvements, new non-stop flights, the greatest new planes on which to travel, and better yet, I have been able to win a few goodies too!

In the past year, I have enjoyed three writing travel weekends, all within the state of Pennsylvania. In the near future, however, I am working to book more writing weekends in Vermont, Harper's Ferry, and Montreal. While some I can access just as easy by car, I am looking forward to using my social media resources to book the Montreal trip in particular. With just a click to HIA’s Facebook page, Airfare Watchdog’s twitter stream, or connecting with sites that offer promotional flight deals, I should be able to find a great fare at the right time to complete my journeys.

Traveling via air has often left me feeling alone. When I did my multi-leg journey to San Francisco and Seattle, I traveled alone and did not get a deep sense of appreciation for being a customer of those airlines. With social media access, I can tweet directly to the airline representatives and get a near-instant response on questions I have about flights, baggage, meals, and extra fees I want to be aware of before takeoff. Even if I’m sitting in the waiting area outside of my gate, I can tweet or comment on the carrier’s social media pages, and take care of any concerns I may have.

I spend countless hours on the phone at work, so to be able to use social media to eliminate that extra phone call, means less stress for me. It is often easier for me to type up a question for a company, and check back for a response when I have the next opportunity to check my replies via Twitter, or my wall on Facebook. It saves me lots of time, energy, and makes me feel much more connected than being put on hold.

Social Media is the new wave of customer service. If done right, air travel questions and concerns can and have become exponentially easier to handle for everyday travelers. It is a great way to connect with your customers on the good and bad things about traveling, to resolve issues immediately, and also to receive feedback on things that may be improved. Carriers and airports can continue to learn much by connecting with their clients through social media sources, and I believe customers will feel a greater sense of appreciation for giving them their business.

Brenda mentions that she can get customer service issues resolved quickly with the advent of social media. Have you an experience of getting an question, complaint or issue resolved by a company employing social media?

Making Your Travels more Pleasant?

Today we had the opportunity to participate on a live local radio talk show, WITF's Radio Smart Talk*. The topic of the morning was Improving Air Travel. Callers had the chance to not only speak with an airport representative, but a flight attendant from United, along with a communications staff member from US Airways. Some of the callers offered feedback on what they'd like to see as additional services and amenities from the airlines, and a few callers offered examples of how their travels were rendered good or bad based upon how airline personnel responded to the traveler's needs.

Majority of the discussion on this morning's show was what airlines and the Transportation Security Administration can and is doing to lessen the hassle of air travel. However, we're curious about your feedback on what you'd like to see improved within the four walls and roof of the the terminal. Is there something (a service, amenity, vendor, etc) we don't offer that you think is integral to your experience? Is there an aspect of the in-terminal experience that you've witnessed or partaken of at another airport that you would love to see at MDT?

Bear in mind, that we're not able to control any aspect of your travel once you leave your seat at the gate and enter the plane or when you take your shoes off at the security checkpoint. We can however implement change in decor, music, etc. What are your thoughts?

Or, have you had an experience at MDT worth forgetting or remembering? Tell us about it...constructive feedback, positive or negative, gives us the opportunity to address areas of concern or praise that we may not have been aware of!

While we're talking about change, have you used the new info center kiosk located in bag claim? Next time you are wandering around the airport, waiting to pick someone up, or flying out of MDT, or if you just like checking out new technology, stop by the Information Desk (first floor of the terminal, in bag claim) and check out the new kiosk!

*Take a moment to listen to the audio from this morning's show, and participate in the discussion on the show as well!

Guest Blog: Codesharing Explained

We have asked a few select guest bloggers to join us on this blog as part of a six week mini series on hot button aviation topics that effect you, the traveler. These guest bloggers will no doubt enrich your travel experience by bringing in their own various perspectives and experiences from different horizons. Today we would like to introduce Brett Snyder as the third guest blogger*.

Brett is the President and Chief Airline Dork of Cranky Flier LLC. He self-describes as having the airline bug since he was young. As a kid, he never missed a chance to go to LAX and pick up airline timetables. His grandmother even took him to an airport hotel for my birthday one year so he could watch the planes land. By the age of 12, he had become a travel agent and soon after was volunteering at Traveler’s Aid.

Brett has worked in several places in the airline industry:

• USAir Sales Intern (1996-1997)
• America West Sales Intern (1997-1999)
• United Dulles Operations Intern (1999)
• America West Pricing Analyst/Sr Analyst/Manager (1999-2002)
• Eos Intern (2003)
• United Marketing Planning Product Manager (2004-2005)
• PriceGrabber.com Business Director of Travel (2005-2007)

Today, his main focus is his blog along with his Cranky Concierge air travel assistance service. He also freelances and consults for other companies. To see a list of everything Brett's doing today, visit his ethics page. You can also follow Brett on twitter, @CrankyFlier.

Today Brett will explain the a concept employed by airlines, Codesharing.

Codesharing. That word seems to strike fear in the hearts of travelers. Ok, maybe that's a bit of an overstatement, but for many, it is a great annoyance. Airlines love that they can sell tickets to people traveling from Harrisburg to Outer Mongolia all on one airline, but customers hate it when they find out that they aren't getting what they bargained for.

Not long ago, codesharing was confined mostly to regional relationships. You would book a flight on Northwest, but you might end up on a flight operated by Mesaba, for example. At least that plane was painted in Northwest colors, so you actually knew that this was affiliated somehow. But then, the airlines realized there was more money to be made.

Soon airlines began codesharing with other airlines. The practice has exploded now to the point where some airlines are finding they need more than 4 digits worth of flight numbers even though they operate nowhere near 10,000 flights.

Let's look at Harrisburg (HIA), for example. Theoretically, HIA is served by 6 airlines: Air Canada, AirTran, Continental, Delta, United, and US Airways. Do you know how many airlines actually serve the airport? Thirteen. Seriously. Only AirTran flies all their own airplanes to HIA. For the rest, it's a smorgasbord of fun. I pulled some random dates in January found this:

• Air Canada - all flights operated by Air Georgian
• Continental - all flights operated by Commutair
• Delta - all flights operated by Pinnacle, Freedom, or Atlantic Southeast
• United - one flight operated by United to Chicago, rest operated by TransStates or GoJet
• US Airways - one flight operated by US Airways to Charlotte, rest operated by Piedmont, Mesa, or Air Wisconsin

As if that's not confusing enough, you can buy a ticket on a US Airways flight under United's code. Heck, you can buy a ticket on Air France to Harrisburg but it's actually a Delta marketed flight operated by Freedom.

Let's say you're a Mozart fan and you want to fly from HIA to see his home in Salzburg, Austria. I found one option on United 8035 connecting to United 8833 and then United 9484. Guess what? That first flight is operated by GoJet, the second by Lufthansa, and the third by Austrian. Not one is operated by United itself. It's enough to make your head spin.

So what are you supposed to do about it? The good news is that if you pay attention, it's easy to figure this out. Airlines are required to disclose who is actually operating your flight. Once you find who is flying the plane, you can then do some research to see if it's an airline you actually want to fly.

• If you're worried about comfort, go to a site like SeatExpert or SeatGuru.
• You can also try SkyTrax for more info on service.
• If you're concerned about safety, go look up each airline at the Aviation Safety Network

Remember, if you don't like what you see, then keep looking for another flight. Happy travels!

*The opinions expressed in this blog are not necessarily those of Harrisburg International Airport.