Delta Is Now Requiring Agencies to Acknowledge and Accept Schedule Changes in PNR

A new Department of Transportation (DOT) refund rule is changing how travel agencies handle Delta Air Lines flight changes.

Previously, travel agencies were only required to accept the schedule change and notify the customer of the changes. Now, Delta is requiring travel agents to enter a new OSI message in the passenger name record (PNR) following a “significant schedule change” that confirms the customer’s acceptance of the change. The required OSI message is: OSI DL ACCEPT DUE TO DL INVOL.

In a message to its travel partners seen by TMR, Delta said the change is to “confirm customer acceptance of the changes made and help to avoid unnecessary cancellation and refund should the customer’s plans change and they no-show one of their flights.”

A spokesperson for the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) confirmed the news to TMR and said conversations with Delta have clarified that the requirement applies only when the schedule change is deemed “significant,” something that wasn’t included in Delta’s original notice. The term is defined by the 2024 FAA reauthorization bill as:

• Delays of three or more hours for domestic flights
• Delays of six or more hours for international flights
• Changes involving a downgrade in cabin class
• A change in departure or arrival airport, among other conditions

The spokesperson also said that ASTA was unaware of any other carrier issuing a similar requirement. (TMR has reached out to other U.S. airlines for comment, and has reached out to Delta for clarification on the rule).

“Though we are monitoring the situation closely and are in communication with multiple airlines,” the spokesperson said.