Travel Situations
I Missed My Connection: The First Hour
Where to go, what to ask, and how your options differ on a single ticket versus separate tickets.
Missing a connection feels like a crisis and is usually a queue. What determines the outcome is how your ticket was issued and how quickly you get in front of someone who can rebook you.
Go to the transfer desk, immediately
Follow signs for Transfers or Flight Connections. Do not go through immigration unless you are told to - leaving the transit area can make rebooking harder and may create a visa problem.
If there is a long queue, do two things at once. Stay in it, and simultaneously call the airline's phone line or open the app. Phone agents and app rebooking often work while you are still forty people from the desk.
Single ticket
If both flights were on one booking, the airline is responsible for getting you to your final destination. This is true even when the connection was on a partner airline.
What you should expect:
- Rebooking onto the next available service at no cost
- Your checked bags forwarded automatically to the new flight
- Meals and, for an overnight delay, a hotel and transport where the rules or the airline's policy provide it
What to ask for specifically:
- The next flight, on any airline the ticket allows
- Alternative routings, including to a nearby airport
- Written confirmation of the new booking, not just a verbal assurance
- A meal voucher and hotel accommodation if the wait crosses a night
- Confirmation of where your bags are
Agents work from what they are asked. A passenger who suggests a specific alternative routing frequently gets it, because the agent no longer has to search for one.
Separate tickets
If you booked two flights independently, the second airline has no obligation to you. The fare is, strictly speaking, gone.
That said, it is worth asking. Some airlines apply a discretionary "flat tyre" or missed-departure policy and will put you on a later flight for a change fee, particularly if you arrive at the desk promptly and explain what happened.
Then look at your travel insurance. Missed departure cover exists precisely for this and typically requires that the delay was caused by something specified in the policy, with documentation from the first airline.
Self-transfer booking products sold by some agents include their own guarantee. Contact them, not the airline, and do it while still at the airport.
Getting proof
Whatever happens, get written evidence that the first flight was late. A screenshot of the app, the delay confirmation email, or a printed statement from the desk. Insurance claims and compensation claims both depend on it.
Overnight stays
If you are staying overnight, ask about the hotel before you leave the desk. Chasing it later rarely works.
If you have to book your own room, keep the receipt and book something reasonable rather than the cheapest or the most expensive option available. Reimbursement is typically limited to what is judged reasonable.
Check whether your checked bag can be released. On many overnight rebookings, bags stay in the system and you will not see them until your destination, which is worth knowing before you plan the evening.
Managing the rest
Tell whoever is meeting you. Adjust accommodation bookings, since a no-show at a hotel usually forfeits the first night. If you have a car hire reservation, move the pickup time.
And when the dust settles, read our guide to connections and layovers before booking the next tight transfer.
