With many of us traveling for the holidays, experts are offering these tips for avoiding and navigating flight delays. Thanks to Huffington Post:
- You can track your airplane- If you download the mobile app for the airline you’re flying, you’ll get notifications about gate changes and delays before they’re announced at the airport. And you can use it to follow your plane’s travels before arriving at your airport. Other travel sites like FlightAware and Flightradar also let you keep tabs on your plane’s progress
- Earlier flights are less likely to get delayed- And if something happens and your morning flight gets canceled, you tend to have more options for rescheduling on the same day than you would later in the day.
- Flying nonstop lowers the odds of being delayed- Since there are fewer flights involved, your chances of being delayed go down. If you can’t get a nonstop flight, try to connect through a city that offers lots of flights to your final destination so your chances of getting rebooked on another flight are better.
- Pay attention to weather- Being aware of bad storms can help you know when to expect potential delays, especially during the holidays when winter storms can be an issue.
- Check the on-time percentage for your flight when you book- Airlines are required by federal regulations to share the on-time flight performance data on their websites. So when you make a reservation, you might want to go for an airline with a higher on-time percentage.
- Build in a buffer for important trips- Delays are going to happen, so if your travel stakes are high, like you’re trying to get home for the holidays, try to give yourself some extra time in your plans, just in case you’re hit with a delay.
- And whatever happens, don’t take it out on airport workers- No matter what you have to deal with while flying, taking it out on airport employees probably won’t help make it any better. Try to be patient in stressful situations and it will make for a better travel experience.