Thousands of canceled flights may vex travelers

Despite the number of cancellations, consumer advocates say most travelers still don't realize their flight might not be waiting for them at the airport. With the summer travel season under way, people should keep a number of things in mind, they said.

Be prepared to get bumped. Come to the airport early, bring your printed itinerary with you and keep your cell phone charged.
Know your rights. Read the airline's "Contract of Carriage" policy. Copies are usually available online or at the carrier's ticket counter.
Make sure you have an assigned seat. "If you don't have an assigned seat, you are the most likely candidate for not getting on the flight," Hanni said.
Know alternate routes to your destination. "If your flight's canceled, it's a lot easier if you can walk up to the agent and say 'What about American through Dallas' or 'How about Continental through Houston' or whatever," Trippler said.

That's exactly what Roger and Pat Bate did when their flight was canceled recently.

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When she got the cancellation notice, Pat pulled out her cell phone and started making calls. The two had been at a religious leadership training seminar in Louisville, Ky., and were aching to get home.

The Continental employee had told them to come back to the airport the next day, but Pat was having nothing of that. She had checked flight offerings with several other airlines by the time they got to the ticket counter.

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"We were very much aware of the fact that getting obnoxious and angry is not going to make it any better," she said. "We said let's give them the opportunity to serve us."

Together with the ticket agent, they found a flight on Delta to Cincinnati. Then they took Continental to Houston. The Bates got home more than six hours later than they had originally planned, and Pat's bags didn't make it until two days later.

"They mis-tagged my wife's bag, and it went to San Francisco," Roger said. "It was pretty chaotic."

The two laugh about it now. They will be back at the Houston airport in September for a trip to Europe, and Pat said she will not be so surprised this time if she gets bumped.

"I have to admit, in our much younger days, we were very full of ourselves, and if they didn't jump high enough or move fast enough, we would have been all over them," she said.

"But looking back, I realize it wouldn't have gotten us out of there any faster."

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