Understanding Delta Airlines No Show Policy: A Guide

By Flying Rules Editorial Team Updated on 22 Jan 2026, 10:12 AM

What will happen if you miss your scheduled Delta Airlines flight? What action does the airline take? Do you need to pay the penalty? Is there any policy that helps to save the rest of the itinerary? All these questions are pretty common for a passenger who unintentionally missed their flight.

When a passenger did not show up for their scheduled flight without prior notice, the airline immediately marked them as a “no-show”. This marking automatically results in the cancellation of the remaining itinerary and the forfeiture of the ticket’s value. However, by following the “Delta Airlines no show policy”, flyers can save themselves from such a scenario. 

What Is Delta Airlines No Show Policy?

Not notifying Delta of a missed scheduled flight is known as a “no-show”. This means the airline has the right to cancel your entire remaining itinerary and impose penalties. The other serious consequences include the forfeiture of the ticket’s value.

Here is the detailed breakdown of the Delta no show policy:

• Not informing the airline, without canceling the ticket, or not appearing for the flight will be considered a “no show”.
• As soon as the airline marks the passenger as “no show”, the other remaining flights in the itinerary will automatically be cancelled.
• No show policy Delta also results in losing the ticket’s value.
• The policy applies to all tickets, both refundable and non-refundable. 
• As per the recent policy update, failing to proactively change or cancel the reservation before the flight takes off results in the “suspension” of the flight coupons. 
• As soon as the suspension is implemented, the flight ticket will have no value, and the passenger can’t be used for future eCredits.
• Arriving at the airport after 2 hours of the original flight departure will be marked as a Delta flight no show. 
• No-shows will be marked for all flight itineraries that include DL-operated flights and DL-marketed flights.

Note: Delta Airlines has recently updated its No-show policy in its Contract of Carriage. The latest update is stricter and makes it clear that no-shows will be marked on all Delta tickets, including non-refundable, award, and SkyMiles tickets, with full effect from 12 January 2026, in the event of failure to appear. 

Delta No-Show Policy Explained: Are You Affected?

Delta No Show policy is intended for passengers who choose not to travel without informing the airline of their absence. Such a careless attitude is no longer acceptable, and the airline immediately marks such passengers as no-show. (Indeed, you have till the time of 2 hours after the flight departure to unmark yourself as a no-show to save the rest of the itinerary). 

The recent update now makes it clear that no-show marking will be applied to all Delta tickets. Below is the list where the Delta no show policy applies: 

• The policy applies to both refundable and non-refundable tickets.
• The no-show marking will be applied to all domestic (within and/or between the U.S. and U.S. Territories) and international flight (to/from the U.S. or U.S. Territories) tickets.
• The airline can mark you as a no-show even if you have partially flown, in addition to wholly unused tickets. 
• Last but not least, Delta Airlines no show applies to itineraries that include the airline-marketed flights. 

The airline itself posted on Reddit about its new no-show policy update. Here, you can take a look: 

https://www.reddit.com/r/delta/comments/1qc6k04/delta_updated_their_official_noshow_policy_on_all/

How To Avoid Being Marked As A No-Show On Delta Airlines?

After understanding the No Show policy Delta Airlines rules, and where it applies, now it’s time to learn how to avoid it:

• To retain the value of your ticket by not being marked as “no show”, inform the airline in advance so that they can allot your seat to someone who needs it.
• Even if you decide at the last minute to miss the flight, you can contact the airline and cancel reservation or one leg of  Delta booking. However, it is advisable to review the cancel one leg of Delta flight. 
• The ticket booked through a travel agent requires informing the travel agent of any changes or cancellations to the Delta flight ticket before departure. Based on your request, the airline will either change the reservation or reissue the ticket, helping you avoid being marked as a “Delta no show”. 
• If you don’t have any plans to miss the flight and want to board it, check the flight status. The airline provides real-time updates regarding its flight schedules. 
• Don’t forget to check in for your flight, even if you already checked in online using the main site or app. If you’re late, Delta will assign your seat to another flyer. 
• “Irregular Operations or a Significant Schedule Change or Delay” on the airline's side is the only exception that prevents being marked as “no show”. If the passenger voluntarily misses the flight and doesn’t contact Delta or their Travel agent to change or cancel their flight, the airline automatically suspends their unused coupons on the ticket and shows their status as “SUSP”. This status will mark that coupons have no further value and cannot be used for future eCredits. 

The above-mentioned tips and details are enough to help you understand how to avoid “no show” marking to retain the value of your ticket. Apart from that, in the case of Irregular Operations, a Significant Schedule Change, or a delay on the airline's side, your reservation will be canceled, and a refund will be initiated, including the unflown portion of the ticket, even if you do not inform the travel agent or Delta. 

Note: Apart from canceling or changing the flight ticket to avoid being marked as no show Delta Airlines, a passenger can contact the airline to fix name corrections if planning to catch the flight. However, it is required to check Delta Airlines name correction policy first.

What Should You Know About Delta No Show Policy?

The primary reason for introducing the “No show policy Delta” is to ensure that non-flyers can inform the airline regarding their change in plan in advance. Informing in advance not only helps retain the value of your tickets and coupons but also allows the airline to accommodate customers who are still ready to travel and to access available seats, if anyone wants to reserve new ones or make changes to their already booked reservations.

In some cases, your flight can miss due to delays caused by arranging special services. For example, waiting for wheelchair assistance or other accessibility support. If you need to request or add wheelchair assistance on your Delta flight, make sure you arrange it well in advance so you don’t risk a no-show situation.

Navigating Delta Airlines: No Show and Schedule Changes Explained

As already stated above, tickets that are affected by an Irregular Operations Event or a Significant Schedule Change or Delay will be free from Delta no show policy. Here are the exceptions listed in “Irregular Operations or a Significant Schedule Change or Delay”, helping in retaining the ticket’s value and itinerary: 

•  Delta tickets released before October 28, 2024, for an ahead-of-schedule departure or a later arrival of 2 hours or more. 
• Tickets released on or after October 28, 2024, include an ahead-of-schedule departure or a later arrival of 3 hours or more for domestic flights and 6 hours for international flights.
•  A change in operating career, for instance, from the Delta Mainline to the Delta Connection carrier or vice versa. 

In addition, the following scenarios exempted you from Delta Airlines no-show policy: a change in routing that adds one or more stops, a downgrade to a lower class of service, or a change in the origin/destination airport.

Flying Rules Tips: If you’re traveling with a lap infant, make sure to add baby to your Delta reservation ahead of time. As, it can create last minute check-in issues.

What Are Delta Airlines No Show Fees And How To Handle Them? 

Does Delta Airlines no show fee implemented on passengers who do not appear for their scheduled flight departure? The answer is yes: the airline surely doesn’t charge any specific amount to passengers who miss their scheduled flights, but the value of their ticket is forfeited, and the remaining itinerary will be cancelled too. 

This means passengers marked as “no-show” will lose the full value of their flight ticket. However, canceling the ticket at the last minute or a few hours before the scheduled flight can help to save the ticket’s value but requires paying the cancellation fee or the fare difference for the new booking. 

If your travel plans include additional arrangements such as adding pet to delta reservation. Then, you should be sure to read the airline's pet policy beforehand and book your reservation in advance with your pet. 

Does Delta Charge A No-Show Fee For Award Or Skymiles Tickets?

The rules of no show Delta flight marking are applied to all DL-006 tickets, including award or SkyMiles. This means that whether a ticket is purchased with money, with earned miles, or with both will be forfeited if marked as “no-show”. However, the passengers do not need to pay any additional “No-show fee Delta”, as their tickets will lose their entire value. 

And, the only way to retain the value of the Delta ticket is to change or cancel the flight before the departure date. Other than that, making no change or cancellation on an award ticket booking for missing a flight will result in losing the value of the miles used. Additionally, no-shows on basic economy award tickets are likely to incur a significant redemption fee.

You should also read: What to Do If You Missed Delta Flight?

Conclusion

Without changing or cancelling a Delta ticket, a passenger won’t be able to retain the value of their ticket and may even lose the remaining itinerary. Hence, check the airline's no-show policy if you are considering not flying for any reason. Additionally, the airline won’t charge any additional Delta Airlines no show fee, but if you cancel your ticket at the last minute or a few days before departure, you might need to pay the cancellation fee. For more information, contact Global Sales Solutions or Delta Reservations.