Travelers at airports around the country are stuck in limbo amid a nationwide ground stop.
More than 10,000 U.S. flights have been delayed as of 7 p.m. ET on Nov. 13, according to flight tracking site FlightAware.
Not all of those are due to the ground stop, but that number will keep ticking up until the Federal Aviation Administration resolves what it calls a "temporary telecommunications outage."
In the meantime, travelers may be wondering what they may be owed for their trouble.
The short answer is nothing.
What am I owed if an airline cancels my flight?
Department of Transportation rules require airlines to offer travelers a refund if their flight is canceled for any reason, regardless of ticket type, if they choose to no longer fly.
If they choose to continue their trip, they are entitled
to penalty-free rebooking on the same airline.
If a cancellation is outside of the airline's control – as is the case with ground stops and weather – the only thing travelers are owed are rebooking or a refund.
If the cancellation is within the carrier's control – for example, due to staffing issues or maintenance – travelers may be owed more compensation:
- Some airlines (Alaska, American, Delta, JetBlue, United) can rebook travelers on a partner airline at no cost.
- Nearly all major airlines will offer a complimentary hotel stay and ground transportation to and from the hotel for overnight cancellations.
- All major airlines will offer a meal or credit toward a meal to travelers who have to wait more than three hours for the next flight.
Am I owed compensation if my flight is delayed?
Travelers whose flights are significantly delayed – by at least three hours for domestic flights or six hours for international flights – are entitled to a refund if they choose to no longer fly.
If they decide to stick it out, they aren't owed anything extra if the delay is outside the airline's control, like with ground stops.
If the significant delay is considered controllable, then travelers are entitled to compensation similar to that for controllable cancellations. Note this is not cash compensation, and will be more like hotel, meal and transportation vouchers, depending on the airline. Detail can be found on the DOT's Airline Customer Service Dashboard.
Also note, even when nothing is owed, airline customer service representatives may have the power to provide meal vouchers, mileage credit or other compensation on a case-by-case basis, so it pays to be courteous and doesn't hurt to ask.
What is the Cancellations and Delay Dashboard?
The DOT's dashboard shows what airlines have pledged to provide customers affected by controllable cancellations or delays.
The online dashboard uses a simple green-check or red “X” format so travelers can see, at a glance, which airlines guarantee services such as free rebooking, meal or hotel vouchers, ground transportation or other accommodations in those situations.
Airlines not listed on the dashboard post their customer service commitments on their respective websites.
What can travelers do?
Derek Cann, a flight expert at Going shared these three suggestions:
- If you're already at the airport and need to rebook, go through your airline’s app or website instead of waiting in line at the gate, or try to do both simultaneously and go with whichever is fastest.
- If you haven’t left for the airport, stay put until your airline confirms a departure time. A ground stop pauses flights; it doesn’t cancel them, and many flights will still go once it lifts.
- If you don't have to travel immediately, check your airline’s travel advisory page for a waiver so you can rebook for later travel without having to pay fare differences or fees.
Contributing: Zach Wichter
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Stuck in the FAA ground stop? Here's what airlines owe you
