What happens if you purposely miss your connecting flight?

Consequences of Intentionally Missing a Connecting Flight

Intentionally missing a connecting flight can have severe consequences, including the cancellation of your remaining itinerary and potential penalties. Here’s what happens if you purposely miss a connection:

Cancellation of Remaining Itinerary

If you miss your connecting flight, the airline will typically cancel your subsequent flights as well. This is because most airlines have a “no-show” policy, which means that if you do not show up for one flight on your itinerary, the remaining flights will be automatically canceled.

Ticket Voiding

In some cases, the airline may void your entire ticket. This means that you will not be entitled to any compensation or reimbursement for the unused portion of your ticket. Voiding is often done if the airline believes that you intentionally missed your connection to circumvent their systems.

Penalties

Airlines may also penalize passengers who attempt to circumvent their systems by purposely missing connecting flights. These penalties can include:

• Change fees: The airline may charge you a fee to change your itinerary or rebook your flights.
• Additional costs: You may have to pay additional charges for meals, hotel accommodations, and other expenses incurred due to the missed connection.
• Future travel restrictions: Some airlines may restrict future travel on their flights for passengers who intentionally miss connections.

Why Airlines Penalize Missed Connections

Airlines penalize passengers for missed connections to prevent unauthorized stopovers and hidden city routing.

• Unauthorized Stopovers: An unauthorized stopover is when you purchase a ticket from point A to point C but intentionally “stop over” in point B without purchasing a separate ticket for that leg. Airlines prohibit unauthorized stopovers because they lose revenue when passengers only use a portion of their ticket.
• Hidden City Routing: Hidden city routing involves purchasing a ticket from point A to point C but disembarking at point B and not continuing to point C. This practice allows passengers to pay a lower fare than they would if they had purchased a direct ticket from point A to point B. Airlines penalize hidden city routing because it results in lost revenue and can disrupt their flight schedules.

Conclusion

Intentionally missing a connecting flight can have significant consequences, including the cancellation of your remaining itinerary, potential penalties, and ticket voiding. Airlines have strict policies to prevent unauthorized stopovers and hidden city routing. Therefore, it is important to be aware of these policies and to comply with them to avoid any negative consequences.