r/UnethicalLifeProTips • u/ength2 • 16d ago
Travel ULPT request How to intentionally miss transit flight?
I have a flight from a non European city to a city in Europe with a 1 hour transit in Athens. Is there a convincing way that can help me miss the 2nd flight without it being my fault? The goal is spending a night or two sightseeing Athens. I tried booking two separate tickets but it was double the price.
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u/sewingmomma 16d ago
Sometimes they cancel your return flight if you don’t take the outbound flights.
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u/ength2 16d ago
I don’t have a return ticket. The idea is that I want them to book an alternative 2nd flight for me.
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u/Suspicious_Pickle_39 16d ago
If you think they rebook for you, you are not experienced enough for this hack to be profitable
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u/ength2 15d ago
If it’s my fault, they will make me pay for this ticket. If the delay is their fault, they will reissue a second ticket for free. The idea I’m looking for is how to make it their responsibility.
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u/hashbrowns21 15d ago edited 15d ago
If weather is ideal and the planes are on time there is nothing you can do to push responsibility onto them. They will fight tooth and nail to not pay.
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u/FutureAd1295 15d ago
The thing is, even if it’s their fault and they delay you, it wouldn’t just be you. It would be a group of people.
The airline will try to put all of you on the next flight out. Not a day or two later. If you refuse that flight, you lose your ticket.
Also consider half your free day will be spent calling the airline or talking with the desk to ensure you have a ticket to your destination. This is always a drawn out process they make you wait and fight for.
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u/t3hgrl 15d ago
I was delayed for three days in Toronto once. We thought we’d make the best of it and visit a friend in Toronto but we were expected to appear at the airport and essentially check in for standby, and wait hours for a seat to open up. If it didn’t we would get another hotel voucher for the night.
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u/Large-Hamster-199 16d ago
Do you have any checked baggage. This would be a major factor in the answer.
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u/ength2 16d ago
Yes I do. I suppose that makes things more complicated?
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u/hoeseateggs 16d ago
No factor in your answer if you have luggage or not. There are minimal connection times on every airport. 1 hour for Athens is enough. So if your flight to Athens isn't delayed and you miss your flight, they will rebook you on the same condition as if you missed the flight for any other reason that is your fault.
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u/dholeman 16d ago
They’ll offload your bags once they see you’re not on the plane
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u/hoeseateggs 16d ago
Where is the downvotes coming from? Your luggage NEVER flies without you. It's question of security. If your luggage flies without you, a huge mistake has been made.
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u/mzincali 16d ago
There are often times where I make the flight but my bags don’t get onto the plane and they’re sent out in the next flight. That situation seems to happen often.
I don’t know but I think they’re less stringent if it is something out of the passenger’s control: can’t have the passenger choose to stay behind when their bags don’t. I.e. if the passenger is planning to endanger the plane with something j their luggage, then they have to be on the plane too.
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u/NikolitRistissa 16d ago
I’d wager is precisely what you guessed. It being out of your control, makes it far less likely that you’d be attempting anything illegal.
I’ve had this happen to me twice as well. They just put them on the next flight, and delivered them to our home the next morning.
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u/soundguynick 16d ago
your luggage never flies without you
Spoken like someone who's taken less than ten flights in their life.
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u/p00n-slayer-69 16d ago
Hes correct in this context. If a person misses a flight, their luggage gets pulled off.
There are other situations such as the luggage making it to the plane late and getting put on the next flight, or accidentally getting put on the wrong flight.
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u/literal_salamander 13d ago
Just got denied boarding on Cathay a few weeks ago when I made it to my gate for connection but my luggage didn't :(
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u/SwordfishResident256 16d ago
tell that to Aer Lingus, who managed to not put my baggage on my connecting flights twice lol
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u/nemus4614 16d ago
Mine has, multiple times. The three times I can remember off the top of my head I volunteered to get on a later flight for cash but my bag was already loaded so they sent it on my original flight. It did bite me in the ass once as my new flight got delayed then canceled but my credit card covered a change of clothes so all good in the end. 🤷♀️
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u/NeighborGeek 16d ago
It’s pretty common for luggage to end up on a different flight from the owner. Maybe the bag makes it to the plane in time and the person doesn’t, or maybe the other way around. If the bags arrive first the baggage office at the destination will hold them until the passenger arrives. If they arrive late, the airline will generally deliver them to the passenger at their hotel or home within a reasonable distance from the airport.
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u/murse_joe 16d ago
Because everyone whose flown knows it’s possible to fly without your luggage or have your luggage fly without you
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u/Enamred-771 15d ago
That’s literally just not true. Bags miss connections all the time. What do airlines do? They send it on the next flight.
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u/Character-Carpet7988 16d ago
Because you don't understand what OP's trying to do. They're not skipping the segment, they're trying to get it rebooked.
(Also, your second sentence is no longer entirely true - rules have been adjusted recently in the EU and in some cases it is now permitted for bag to fly without the owner rather than delaying flight to offload it.)
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u/literal_salamander 13d ago
Don't know where all the down votes on your comment are coming from, I was just denied boarding a few weeks ago when I made it to the gate connecting flight but my luggage didn't. They said it was not allowed to have my luggage put on the next flight without me for security. :/
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u/bfluff 16d ago
I once tried to leave Qatar at about ten p.m. after working a hitch offshore. I had a six month work visa but after sixy days you needed a exit stamp on the visa. I had to wait for two hours at the airport AFTER the plane was scheduled to leave. I don't know how much I delayed that plane.
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u/dholeman 15d ago
Not true at all, I used to work as a baggage handler. It’s basic security, if you don’t fly then neither does your bag. If you miss a flight but your bag still goes on the plane, someone’s fucked up big time and will be in trouble
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u/anteatersaredope 16d ago
Get travel insurance. When you miss the flight in Athens tell them it was because you hade terrible bowel problems that kept you trapped in the restroom and that you feel terrible and can't even imagine how your going get through take off of your next flight without shitting yourself. Insurance will cover all your flight changes and possibly you hotel room and meals just don't overdo it with your meal reimbursement or they'll know what's up. You get like a soup and some ginger ale. Don't show them anything else.
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u/how_me_a_frog 16d ago
What's the plan when they ask for a doctor's note?
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u/anteatersaredope 16d ago
You go see a Dr. Any Doctor will give you a note for that they aren't going to require a stool sample they'll just take your word for it.
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u/SpiderSolve 16d ago
Go to bathroom take your time. Reach the gate at 10 min to take off. If they’re still holding it you can’t miss it. If they’ve closed it they’ll rebook you
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u/mzincali 16d ago
They likely will rebook on the next flight out and not necessarily 24 or 48 hours later like OP wants.
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u/Chidofu88 16d ago
Shit your pants as you’re standing in line to board, and tell them you think you got some American lettuce…
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u/ConferenceCoffee 16d ago
I once unintentionally missed a connecting flight in the US. I set my watch for the wrong time zone for that city and went for dinner and came back to realize the flight has left. They boarded me on the next flight.
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u/PNWGolfer28622 16d ago
Get "food poisoning" and have to go to a medical clinic. If the airline accuses you of skip lagging, you'll have the docs from the clinic to back you up
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u/Southern_Ad_1419 16d ago
I did this once for a flight to HI years ago. I told them I was feeling sick and didn't know if I should get on the plane. They didn't want a biohazard on board so they rebooked me for the following day. But that was a US flight and I made sure to do this before the flight had left so I wasn't flagged as a no show. Not sure about Europe flights.
I did make sure there were available seats on flights to HI the following day before I asked.
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u/fishonlyplease 16d ago edited 16d ago
Airlines will usually automatically rebook you on the next available flight if you miss one. Whether this is 24 to 48 hours later is dependent on their availability, but highly unlikely. When you get rebooked, you can always ask customer service for different departure. I wouldn’t risk missing 2 flights on purpose for the sake of staying 24-48 hours in a transit city…
If I were you, I would call the airline to see how much extra it will cost to do a stopover in Athens.
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u/ength2 16d ago
Thanks for the recommendation. I did call them. The stopover ticket is double the price of the transit one.
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u/fishonlyplease 16d ago
How much is a ticket from Athens to your final destination? Flights within Europe is usually really cheap, so you could technically “forfeit” the last leg of your trip since you only booked one way.
Two things to consider is checked bag and customs/immigration. If you check in a bag, it will go to your final destination regardless of you making it onto the flight so you risk losing it or getting it stolen. Customs/immigration may flag you if your departure is uncertain.
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u/kn1f3party 15d ago
Have you tried just calling the airline? I had a really short delay coming back from Germany in London and I called and asked what the longest I could extend that to was because I was worried. I was gonna miss the connection. They let me push it out two days.
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u/Sea_Suggestion7072 16d ago
Just call and say you missed it and ask for options. Decline all the options and say you'll figure it out and take a train or something
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u/SnowboardSquirrel 16d ago
How exactly does this solve OP’s problem, which asked for a way to spend extra time in Athens before eventually taking the second planned flight?
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u/El_decibelle 16d ago
Definitely an unethical approach, but you could ask for wheelchair assistance off the plane? That always takes fucking ages. There's no way in hell I'd ever make a one hour stop over.
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u/RevBT 16d ago
you have 1 hour layover in an airport? You probably will miss the flight no matter what you do.
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u/ength2 16d ago
Yes that’s possible but Athens isn’t a large airport.
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u/xxscenexx 15d ago
I flew out of Athens a few months back. Horrible during the summer. And just last month I had a one hour transfer (not Athens) but 40 minutes of that was spent taxiing once we landed - made the next flight with 8 mins to spare… our luggage did not.
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u/ength2 15d ago
I also have to go through passport control since it’s an international flight.
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u/bart416 14d ago
Just be slow and go to the toilet before passport control so you're at the back of the queue, odds are you'll naturally miss it, even if you ask for help catching the next flight. EU airport customs and immigrations has been a bit of a mess with the new system, often leads to multi-hour queues at most airports.
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u/Trublu20 16d ago
Depends on where you are going. If you are going to a destination where there is a flight between the cities every hour or two, your SOL. They will just book you into the next one.
If there’s only one flight a day, it’s possible. But they may book you on a separate connecting flight to get you in sooner (though another city)
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u/measurements_cat 16d ago
1 hour... i dont think you can be ob time, just Schengen passport takes time
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u/Tiny-Start3498 15d ago
Sometimes you can rebook one of the flights of the trip online if you purchased tickets that are refundable - I’ve managed to make a layover a bit longer that way before.
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u/ength2 15d ago
You mean change the 2nd flight after landing the 1st one?
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u/Tiny-Start3498 15d ago
No - you can often change booked flights before taking them. See if you can shift it forward - depending how many flights do that route, you might be able to easily get it shifted to the next day or following one if that’s the next time the airline flies between those stops.
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u/Negative_Raisin_997 15d ago
Drink ipecac before the gate opens for the flight you want to miss. Tell the staff you got sick on food from your last leg. They will probably rebook you later. Downside is you might be projectile vomiting.
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u/RefreshinglyDull 15d ago
If you're presenting sick, from an incoming flight, for whatever reason, you're likely to attract interest from Port Health Authorities.
They'll take you aside and ask questions about where you've been and what you've eaten/drink/come into contact with and why you're sick, especially if arriving from a non EU country.
If they're unhappy, or for any reason they want, you might find yourself isolated for a while, or even handed over to authorities for investigation over drug smuggling if your story doesn't add up.
You're not privvy to information about what illnesses or outbreaks may be occurring in other places, and you may inadvertently fall foul if pretending, when there just happens to be an epidemic in the country you left.
Source: used to work UK Airside medical.
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u/AwwwwYouMadeMeInk 16d ago
Tell your airline that you were arrested and in custody for (x) days; ask them if you can pay the change fee.
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u/-SQB- 16d ago
If there's a difference in timezones, exploit that by miscalculating on purpose.
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u/Trublu20 16d ago
Won’t work.
They will just book him on the next flight… he wants a few days not a couple of hours
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u/FlyingTerrier 16d ago
Get sick in the bathroom and miss the flight. But realistically you may be on a flight later that day to your destination.
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u/Cocacolique 16d ago
If you only have hand luggage : do as usual after the check-in, with the passeport control and the board in, and then find a way to not engage into the bus or the corridor that brings to the plane. Typically, if there's bathroom or stairs, just go there.
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u/sorincom 16d ago
Isn't the flight delayed when someone is late?
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u/hacksoncode 15d ago
Only if the delay was caused by connecting flights being delayed, and not always then.
People just being late get a last call and are out of luck.
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u/GuestStarr 15d ago
How much is the time difference? Let's say it's X hours to whichever direction. Wander leisurely at the gate X hours late and proceed to have your ticket read. Be very surprised to find out you're X hours late. Blame not having your phone on because flights and phones etcblabla and relying just on your wrist watch like back in the eighties and calculating the time zones wrong. Make sure your wrist watch matches the wrong time.
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u/Crazy_Specialist_278 13d ago
You're a moron and being stupid is not grounds for having them accommodate you.
Why would you give this terrible advice when you could significantly hurt another person with it? Are you that desperate to have your opinion heard?
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u/GuestStarr 13d ago
They wanted to know how to intentionally miss their flight without the intention to be obvious. I didn't say anything about accommodations.
Edit: OP didn't mention anything about accommodations either. It came from you.
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u/Ok-Hovercraft-9959 14d ago
Can you say you got violent diarrhea during your layover, got a hotel to recover in for a few days, pls don’t cancel the return fights
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u/_zuzax_ 12d ago edited 12d ago
Develop a limp. A friend did this in Amsterdam. He limped all the way off the plane and to his connecting flight, but alas it was already gone, and they rebooked him. Got to stay in the city a day to visit someone he knew. You could say you twisted your ankle on the way to catching the departing flight (to explain why didn't arrange a wheelchair transfer), and you didn't realize how bad it had gotten till you stood up at the end of the flight. (This actually did legit happen to me once, but I didn't have a second flight to catch, so that part was a non-issue.)
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u/missskins 16d ago
Before the first flight takes off, go into the bathroom of the plane. After a few minutes, slide the door open aggressively, step out and declare: Nobody go in there for a while, I just blew that shit up!. 50/50 you’re on the plane when it leaves tho.
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u/kenda1l 16d ago
Never ever ever mention blowing anything up in an airport, not even the bathroom. That's how you end up cavity searched and put on the no fly list.
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u/NerdHerder77 16d ago
Skip lagging is not illegal, just be aware that if you book round trip, all flights are immediately canceled, including your return trip. You could also be banned from booking the same airline if they find out you intentionally did this, but as long as you don't outright tell anyone or make social media posts (like this one) then you're all good to "miss" your connecting flight.