TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Question about July Delta flights

Back in August (pre-Irma) we booked flights from Houston to St Thomas for July 4th for our BVI based sailing trip. The original schedule had us arriving in Atlanta at 9:11 (9:24 for my son flying in from San Antonio) and departing at 11:00, so there was plenty of time.

Currently Delta is running the single flight which departs Atlanta at 9:45, making our connections pretty dicey.

I realize this probably requires a crystal ball, but my question is should I change my flights (spending the night in Atlanta) to insure we make the 1 flight to St. Thomas, or should I assume that as things stabilize in St. Thomas, Delta will return to a 2 flight schedule or perhaps move the departure time of the ATL-STT leg to something we can make.

@louismcc - My last trip to the BVI was in late June on American (not Delta), but, despite allowing for a 4-hour layover, to potentially avert any delays, my trip was still problematic and I missed my ferry. Given the status of things in the BVI, even projecting into July, I would do anything necessary to avoid missing connections or being delayed. Hartsfield's not the greatest place to stay overnight, but reducing the stress quotient is well worth the extra effort.

We will fly the 9:45 am out of Atlanta for the second time Post Irma on Saturday, Jan 20th. We were hopeful after the first flight in November that this January flight would be back to historical patterns but that has not been the case yet. The flights are filled to capacity each trip. I am not confident at this point that until more land based options open up we will see the flight patterns change. The STT airport is still under repair. There is still not a direct ferry to Jost from STT. The ferries from STT are still going into Road Town only necessitating a taxi ride to West End to catch a ferry or private water taxi to Jost.

All of the above are making my crystal ball quite foggy. It is anyone's guess. Happy Planning

We are headed down first part of Feb, booked on the 9:41 am flight out of ATL to STT on Delta. Originally, we were also booked on the 11 am flight out of ATL until Delta changed it. With the change, we actually arrived in ATL from MSP after that 9:41 am flight left. We called and changed our first leg to now arrive into ATL at 9 am, so we would have approx 40 mins or so to make our connection in ATL. I think it's doable but still makes me a bit nervous since connecting in ATL can be a nightmare if your connecting gates are far from one another. Arriving at 9:11 might? Work, however 9:24 might be impossible. Can you move up your first leg? Delta changed out flight without charge since it was their schedule change

We're on the earliest flight out of Houston (son is coming from San Antonio and is on first flight out as well) so we'd have to overnight in ATL.

I think the risk is that since the flights are all slam pack full if you miss your flight it might be longer than just the next day to get a seat.

I would get to ATL a day early, stay overnight, and be ready to go in the morning.

Call Delta reservations. What time does your flight arrive in to ATL?
It appears that minimum connecting time is 35 minutes D to D (domestic to domestic) If D-I and STT is Considered as international in ATL, it will exceed legal connecting time. (Obviously STT is not Intl, as passport is not required for USA originating passenger, but it may be considered so for connecting pax).

Therefore, per your original message, you do not qualify as scheduled connection - invalid connection. Therefore it is Delta's responsibility to book you on a valid connecting flight without penalty, change fees etc, or give you a full refund.

Problem is, this will change several times as DL adjusts their schedules seasonally, and conditions change in the hurricane impacted islands. Six months out....all bets are off..

Our flight from Houston arrives 9:11, my son's from San Antonio at 9:24, so there is virtually no time to make a 9:45 flight out. In fact the first thing I noticed when I went to check the ticket at delta.com was a warning that we might miss our connecting flight. I'll probably give them a call and see what options they offer. Once on a trip down we did an overnight thing at ATL and it wasn't too bad. The worst part is the additional luggage hauling.

I would not look for Delta to add a additional flight going into the low season even if the airport opens up the slots. They are planning a Saturday only flight from JFK. Best case at this point might be upsizing the ATL flight to a 757. In addition the Bomardiar Cseries aircraft that has some truly unique performance characteristics and may have opened up additional routes from smaller cities to places like STT are delayed due to the tariff issue. The aircraft would also be capable of Eastern US to EIS flights nonstop.

As a business traveler who's flown hundreds of thousands of miles over the last 5 years, I can say, from my own experiences, that you can expect delays to occur and the airlines won't make it easier.

Call Delta and move your flight up a day.

If you have trip insurance, it won't cost you anything except a hotel room at Hartsfield. If you don't have insurance, the total expense may be well worth what it might cost you in missed flights, potential hotel stays if you can't get out that day, a lost day on the water and limitless aggravation.

Peace of mind is worth more than you think.

In light of the ability of Delta to land at EIS, why is the government adding to the runway? If the government cannot convince Delta to to a flight into Beef then it is likely no airline wants to do EIS

Just a bit more to consider....

From what I can tell, inbound flights from HOU arrive in either the B or C terminals in ATL. The outbound to STT runs out of the T terminal.

This means you'll have to get from your inbound gate, to the terminal train and then to the outbound gate (or you can make a mad dash through the hallways) in less than 20 minutes.

Seriously? Don't even bother.

I agree it's unlikely that Delta will add a second flight until next December. I would call them and go to ATL a day earlier. I frequently do this now and stay at the airport Westin. The shuttle is free and runs very frequently (plus I stay for free on points).

Call sooner than later because the flights are filling quickly with only 1 flight although sometimes seats open closer to the date if they change aircraft. I've done 3 trips since Irma and 2 trips were on 757s and only the trip flight was a 737.

Another options that might work is to have Delta change your tickets to go to San Juan. There are several flight options from SJU to Beef Island.

Regards,
Jason

I doubt the government was interested in enticing Delta. They had invested in their own airline. Delta is usually very responsive to subsidized flights. The BVI probably could have had service for several years for the money they spent. For now the issue is moot because the aircraft are on a two year delay until the US factory is up and running. Delta does however have a shiny new CS100 simulator.

Thanks for all the input. The tickets I purchased were 4 first class using Amex membership points so that should give me flight flexibility since (I assume) that they're unrestricted tickets. I looked at alternative flights to STT, such as United's non-stop from Houston, but that gets in pretty late (3:40) so catching a ferry is another issue. Flying to EIS jumps the fares way too much.

So based on everyone's advice I'm going to talk to Delta about moving the HOU - ATL and SAT - ATL legs to the day before.

When I fly thru SJU to EIS, I purchase separate tickets on InterCaribbean. The InterCaribbean tickets for the end of January were $250 roundtrip. The savings in airfare to SJU and the lack of ferry tickets usually makes the extra airfare a breakeven.

“Danger Will Robinson, Danger”
Booking separate ticket listings can save you money. It can also lead to a vacation disaster. Be careful with this technic. The cost savings would have to be really substantial to risk it.
G

I'm in agreement with @GeorgeC1 when it comes to not wanting to do separate tickets. We were stranded in the BVI years ago when the Montserrat volcano blew. At that time we were on Delta frequent flyer tickets to SJU and had ticketed the SJU - EIS leg separately. It look a lot of work, and a major fortune in phone calls, to get back home.