Will me miss our connection tomorrow?

[Anonymous]

DH is all stressed out and making us all miserable. We have a 45 minute layover in Newark, going to Aruba. We land in terminal C at Newark but flight to Aruba is terminal A. He insists there is a 90% chance we will miss the flight to Aruba. I don’t think United would have offered this flight if we were guaranteed to miss the connecting. What does DCUM think?

[Anonymous]

it’s going to be very very tight. Your husband is right to be stressed.

[Anonymous]

Change your flight up to EWR. There are multiple flights per day. Why cut it close?

[Anonymous]

Airlines sell flights that have iffy connections all the time. The connection you describe is going to be very tight. If your flight is on time, you will likely make it, but you'll want to hustle. If your flight is delayed at all, you almost certainly won't make it. Are you checking luggage? That could be a concern. Is there another flight to Aruba that day?

So, your DH is right to be stressed, but I'd say more likely than not you will make it assuming you land on time. Check to see how often the flight to Newark is delayed.

[Anonymous]

How many people are you traveling with and how old are they? Your flight lands at a certain time but then it takes time to get off the plane. On the other end you need to be on the plane before the departure time. So you probably don’t really have 45 minutes. The website for EWR also seems to say you’ll need to reclear security at Terminal C.

[Anonymous]

Is the connecting flight also on United or is it a codeshare. If it’s a codeshare and you miss it which airline do you blame? I’d call United, explain the problem and get on an earlier flight. EWR is always a mess regarding delays in and out.

[Anonymous]

Why didn’t you pay to fly direct from IAD or BWI? Newark is always to be avoided, no matter the connection time! Oh well, you can always overnight there and go the next day.

[Anonymous]

Don’t check any luggage.

Are you seated at the front of the plane? If not, pay to change seats.

[Anonymous]

-Dont check luggage
-Let the FAs know about the tight connection, they can radio the other plane and let them know to wait for you and possibly let you off first.

Flights generally start boarding 45m prior and close 20 mins prior. So really, you only have 25m. Make sure you wear your running shoes!!

[Anonymous]

Our last connection at Newark was a nightmare. There were two busses involved, if that tells you anything.

[Anonymous]

Call United and ask for an earlier flight to Newark. Tell them you are afraid that if you miss your connection and have to return home, you might need to rent a car and drive home if all the return flights are full, and that traffic would be impossible given the bridge collapse in Baltimore. They should make the change for free. If they hesitate, ask for a supervisor and repeat.

[Anonymous]

Looking at the map, it does seem like a lot of ground to cover in 45 minutes.

https://www.newarkairport.com/at-airport/airport-maps

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:-Dont check luggage
-Let the FAs know about the tight connection, they can radio the other plane and let them know to wait for you[i][u] and possibly let you off first.

Flights generally start boarding 45m prior and close 20 mins prior. So really, you only have 25m. Make sure you wear your running shoes!!

No, they definitely will not have the other plane wait for you. How would you feel if your flight from DC to Newark was delayed because they were waiting for a couple who had a tight connection? Not to mention the hit to on-time performance.

They probably won't even ask people to remain seated so you can get off first, but you can certainly mention it and ask if that's possible.

If everything goes perfectly, you should be fine. But if there's a bump in the road you definitely don't have any wiggle room.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Call United and ask for an earlier flight to Newark. Tell them you are afraid that if you miss your connection and have to return home, you might need to rent a car and drive home if all the return flights are full, and that traffic would be impossible given the bridge collapse in Baltimore. They should make the change for free. If they hesitate, ask for a supervisor and repeat.

What? There are alternate routes. Do we even know what time OP is traveling?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Call United and ask for an earlier flight to Newark. Tell them you are afraid that if you miss your connection and have to return home, you might need to rent a car and drive home if all the return flights are full, and that traffic would be impossible given the bridge collapse in Baltimore. They should make the change for free. If they hesitate, ask for a supervisor and repeat.

What? There are alternate routes. Do we even know what time OP is traveling?

Who cares if it’s true or not. Just give them a story that’s somehow, possibly, maybe, theoretically true and they can click the button for unforeseen circumstances and make the change for free. Just stick to the story and don’t overthink it!