Missed connections

[travelplanner70]

I have a flight booked from Rochester, NY to Madrid with Delta. There is 1.5 hours between connecting flights at JFK. I almost fell off my chair when I saw the flight we take out of Rochester has such a bad on-time departure record, the web site gave it a zero rating.

I called Delta and asked why they would even book a flight that in all probability cannot be made. The response is that they have no control over their codeshare flight which is Freedom Airlines out of Rochester. I replied that it still carries the Delta name and flight number. When I asked if I could take an earlier flight that would give a longer layover, Delta responded that I would have to pay a change fee.

Then I thought I better buy travel insurance that includes missed connection. I am not sure how reliable Four Corners insurance company is. It is the only one that will reimburse for fights that are delayed 3 hours or more.

As you can imagine, I am most dismayed. :annoyed:


Any suggestions?

 

[Talent312]

Ordinarily, I'd say that a 1.5 hour layover for a connection at JFK, would be doable. However, when you begin a journey from a small regional airport, its reasonable to think that the flight might be delayed or cancelled. Delta's feeder-airlines are notorious for cancelling flights at the drop of a hat.

I'd bite the bullet and pay the change fees for an earlier flight and some piece of mind. I would not want to risk a departure to Madrid on such a connection.

Several years back, we had Delta tickets for a trip to Rome, IT, originating from a small airport in the South. The first leg cancelled, so they put us on a later flight to Atlanta. Once there, a Delta agent rerouted us to Rome via Frankfurt on Lufthansa. We considered ourselve extremely fortunate to arrive the same day originally scheduled, when a one-day delay seemed more likely.