Your flight was cancelled. What to do in the first ten minutes.

Updated: October 8, 2026. Wording about U.S. rules last compared with the DOT pages linked below on October 8, 2026. Rules can change.

When an airline cancels your flight, the notice is the easy part. The hard part is the next hour: the app that will not load, the line at the counter, the phone queue. This is a short checklist, in order, for the first ten minutes. It does not depend on which airline you fly, and you do not need any app from us to use it.

1. Confirm it is really cancelled (minutes 0 to 2)

Open the airline's app, its website, or the email or text it sent you. Look for the word "cancelled" (or "canceled") next to your exact flight number and date. The airport board can be out of date, and a delay is not a cancellation.

Cancelled or only delayed?

A delay changes the time. A cancellation says cancelled, and the app may show a rebook button or ask you to contact the airline. If you only see a delay, keep checking: airline data can lag, and a long delay can turn into a cancellation.

2. Open two doors at once (minutes 2 to 5)

Do these two things in parallel, not one after the other.

The airline's app or website

Some airlines let you choose a new flight yourself. If yours offers options, look at them now, and read step 4 before you tap anything.

The phone line

Call while you check the app, and put the phone on speaker. Use the number in your booking email or on the airline's own website.

If you are at the airport

Join the line at the airline's desk as well. Whichever answers first wins.

3. Have what they will ask for (minutes 5 to 8)

What to have ready

• Your booking code (also called a confirmation code or record locator, usually six letters and numbers).
• The cancelled flight number and date.
• Photo ID, and your passport if the trip is international.
• The payment card you used to buy the ticket.
• The phone number and email on the booking.

Decide what matters most

Arriving first, the lowest cost, or the shortest trip. Knowing your answer before someone picks up lets you reply quickly.

What to ask for

• "Please rebook me on the next available flight."
• "Can that include another airline?" Airlines differ, so ask.
• If you live near a big city: "Is there a seat out of another airport?"

Before you pay for anything

Before you pay for a new ticket, ask your airline what it will do for free. It may rebook you at no charge.

Rebooking, meals and hotels are promises each airline makes for disruptions it controls. Check what yours promised on the DOT dashboard.

4. Check any new itinerary before you accept it (minutes 8 to 10)

Take a minute. A new itinerary can look fine and still cost you hours.

• Arrival: the date and the time you actually land.
• Airport: is it the same one? How would you get there from where you are?
• Connections: how long between flights, and is it the same airport?
• Bags: will your checked bags travel with you? Ask.
• The rest of your ticket: a return flight, a hotel, an onward leg. Ask what the change does to them.
• Who is flying you: if it is another airline, ask whether it is on the same ticket.

Money back or voucher?

In the United States, if an airline cancels your flight and you decide not to travel, federal rules generally say you can get your money back to your original payment method, even if the cause was weather. If you booked through a travel site instead of the airline, ask that site about the refund.

The DOT page lists these as significant changes for refunds: leaving 3 hours or more earlier (domestic) or 6 hours or more earlier (international), arriving 3 hours or more later (domestic) or 6 hours or more later (international), a different origin or destination airport, or more connections than your original itinerary.

This is general information about U.S. rules, not legal advice. See the DOT refund page for the current rules.

Before you accept a voucher or travel credit, ask whether you can have your money back instead.

5. Keep a record

• Screenshot the cancellation notice and any new itinerary.
• Keep the confirmation emails.
• Keep your receipts (food, hotel, transport) in one place, such as one folder or one photo album.
• Write down the time, the name and any reference number from each call or chat.

Whether anything is reimbursed depends on the airline and on your own insurance or company policy. This page makes no promise about it.

6. If you are traveling for work

Tell whoever is expecting you early, even before you know the new time. A short message is enough: "My flight was cancelled. I am sorting a new one and will send the new arrival time as soon as I have it." Check your company's travel policy, or ask your travel desk, before you spend your own money.

7. Where Still Flying fits

Still Flying is an early-access project. You add a flight and it checks that flight. If the flight is delayed by 30 minutes or more, it emails you an alert. If it is cancelled, it emails you up to three replacement options to compare. Airline data can lag, so check with your airline too.

It is in test mode. The options come from a test flight database, and nothing can be booked or charged for real yet. It cannot help with a cancellation you are dealing with today: use the steps above and your airline. Availability is never guaranteed.

If you would like to know when real bookings open, join the waitlist.

Join the waitlist

No account, no password. We use your email only to tell you when real bookings open. Read the privacy notice.

Questions

What should I do first when my flight is cancelled?

Confirm it in the airline's app, website or email, not only on the airport board. Then open the app and the phone line at the same time and use whichever answers first. Have your booking code, photo ID and payment card ready.

Should I call the airline or use its app?

Both, at the same time. Some airlines let you choose a new flight in the app. Keep the call on speaker while you look. Use the number in your booking email or on the airline's own website. Whichever answers first wins.

What should I have ready before I call?

Your booking code, the cancelled flight number and date, photo ID, the card you paid with, and the phone number and email on the booking. Also decide what matters most: arriving first, the lowest cost, or the shortest trip.

Can I fly from a different airport or on another airline?

Ask. Airlines differ in what they offer, and the airline decides. If you live near a big city, ask about other airports, and ask whether another airline is possible. Before you accept anything, ask what it does to the rest of your ticket.

Should I take a voucher or ask for my money back?

In the United States, if an airline cancels your flight and you decide not to travel, federal rules generally say you can get your money back to your original payment method, even if the cause was weather. If you booked through a travel site instead of the airline, ask that site about the refund. Before you accept a voucher or travel credit, ask whether you can have your money back instead.

What if I'm already at the airport?

Do the same things, and add one: join the line at the airline's desk while you check the app and the phone line. Whichever answers first wins. Keep your bags and documents with you, and keep your receipts.

How do I know if my flight is cancelled or only delayed?

A delay changes the time. A cancellation says cancelled next to your flight in the airline's app, website or email. Airline data can lag, so if you only see a delay, keep checking. A long delay can turn into a cancellation.

Can Still Flying rebook me today?

No. Still Flying is in early access and bookings run in test mode: the options come from a test flight database, and nothing can be booked or charged for real yet. For a cancellation today, use your airline. You can join the waitlist for when real bookings open.