Should You Arrive At The Airport On Time After Your Flight Is Delayed? Here's What To Know

Flying takes you to breathtaking places that you can happily check off your bucket list. However, it can also be one of the most challenging experiences. If you're dealing with awful, stressful airports, extra-long travel times, and sleepless nights during travel, for instance, the joys of jet-setting across the world can dull. 

Receiving "flight delayed" notifications before you are scheduled to take off can be infuriating for some. For others, it could feel like a reason to sleep in, run more errands before arriving at the airport, or simply adapt a more leisurely pace to pre-flight preparations. Is it important to keep to the same airport arrival time if your flight is delayed? Or could you arrive a little late?

@beverlyadaeze

I learned the the hard way. Luckily I was able to be put on another flight that wasn't too late #airporthack #flighthack #travelhack

♬ original sound – Beverly adaeze

Experts caution against arriving late. As travel analyst Henry Harteveldt told The Washington Post, getting on a flight at the right time is your responsibility, not the airline's. Besides, planes delay flights for a number of reasons, including bad weather, mechanical problems, staffing shortages, inbound flight delays, and more. So once the problem is fixed, and rest assured the airline is working to fix it, your flight is going to have a new departure time — and it could be sooner than you think. Put more plainly, delays can be reversed. You don't want to be the one feeling miserable about taking an extra hour to shower only to have missed a flight to beautiful Dublin. There are, however, a few things to keep in mind.

For starters, enlist the help of flight-tracking apps like Planes Live, FlightStats, or Flighty, so you can virtually observe the trajectory your scheduled aircraft is taking. Check the app every now and again to make sure all is as expected. If your plane is a few airports behind, you might have leeway with arriving at your airport later than the previously scheduled time. Being mindful of weather patterns the night before could be useful too. Visit the airline's website or app to look for advisories on impending bad weather and any scheduled changes to your flight.  

If this is not your first air-travel rodeo, we're assuming you're already signed up for your particular airline's notification system — whether via email, phone, text message, or through their app. While airlines are required to notify passengers within 30 minutes of learning of a delay, keeping an eye on their system is a good idea, regardless of what you're doing in the hours before your flight. Also be aware of "creeping delays" — delays that keep increasing, which are much more unpredictable. 

Some experts say it might be okay to reschedule your arrival time at the airport if the delay is more than two hours, depending on the reason. Others think the estimated delay time doesn't really matter, and caution is best. The bottom line is, you can decide whether the risk is worth it, keeping in mind that it might not be. 

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, airlines each have their own policies about how to deal with delays and cancelations. Interestingly, domestic flight delays generally don't warrant compensation, unlike if you get denied boarding on an overbooked flight. The airline cancelation and delay dashboard has details on what U.S. airlines owe their passengers in the event of delays. 

A "significant delay" warrants a refund, by law. However, there is no proper definition on the U.S. Department of Transportation website of what constitutes a significant delay. Apparently, that part is up to the airlines. Things that are taken into account when considering the delay (on a case-by-case basis) include the hours of your delay, your scheduled flight time, and the circumstances of your particular situation. Some airlines will compensate after just two hours, while others think only a four-hour wait requires reimbursement.

Arriving late for your flight is one of the rookie mistakes you should avoid as a first-time flier – even if it feels like the mistake is on the part of the airline and its delays. However, missing connecting flights, or even your first flight, because of a delay can feel like the end of the world, so you are probably better off catching your scheduled flight. Arriving at an airport early doesn't have to be a bad thing either. You can read, catch up on emails, peruse the airport's amenities, or even exercise to kill the time.