Yes, it is possible to cancel a Delta flight that was booked using SkyMiles. However, there are some important things to consider when canceling award flights booked through Delta’s frequent flyer program.
Overview of Canceling Delta Award Flights
In most cases, Delta will allow you to cancel an award flight booked with SkyMiles and redeposit the miles back into your account. However, depending on the type of ticket and when you cancel, you may have to pay a redeposit fee and you may not get all of your miles back.
Here are some key things to know about canceling award tickets booked through SkyMiles:
- You can cancel online through delta.com or by calling Delta reservations. You’ll generally need to cancel at least 72 hours before departure to avoid fees.
- How many miles are redeposited depends on the type of award ticket and when you cancel.
- Medallion elite members and SkyMiles Credit Card holders get more flexibility and lower/waived redeposit fees.
- Partner award tickets have different rules and fees for cancellations and changes.
In most straightforward cases – canceling a standard “MileSAAver” award ticket at least 72 hours in advance – you should get all your miles back minus a redeposit fee, if any. But for other types of tickets or last minute cancellations, you may only get a partial mileage redeposit.
Cancelling Standard MileSAAver Awards
The most common type of award flight booked with Delta miles is the MileSAAver award. These are the “Low” level awards that require fewer miles for travel.
When you cancel a standard MileSAAver award ticket more than 72 hours before the scheduled departure time, here is what happens:
- All miles will be redeposited back into your SkyMiles account.
- A mileage redeposit fee applies:
- Diamond, Platinum & Gold Medallions: $0 redeposit fee
- Silver Medallions & Delta SkyMiles Credit Cardholders: $50 redeposit fee
- General SkyMiles members: $100 redeposit fee
So for Silver Medallions or SkyMiles Credit Cardholders, a 5,000 mile award would have 5,000 miles redeposited minus a $50 fee. For general members, the 5,000 mile award would redeposit 4,900 miles after the $100 fee.
Note that redeposit fees are waived for Diamond, Platinum and Gold Medallions when canceling MileSAAver awards 72+ hours before departure.
Canceling Within 72 Hours
The rules change if you cancel your MileSAAver award within 72 hours of the scheduled departure:
- Miles will be redeposited minus a redemption fee equal to the amount redeemed for the ticket. For example, canceling a 10,000 mile award would only redeposit 5,000 miles.
- The regular redeposit fee also still applies on top of the redemption fee, except for Diamond Medallions who pay no fees.
So in this short cancellation timeline, many members would get zero miles back after paying both redemption and redeposit fees.
Canceling Other Types of Awards
The main alternative to MileSAAver awards are the “Medium” and “High” level awards, which cost more miles but have more availability.
Here is what happens when you cancel these other types of SkyMiles award tickets:
Medium Awards
- Canceling 72+ hours before departure redeposits 75% of miles minus the applicable redeposit fee.
- Canceling within 72 hours redeposits 50% of miles minus fees.
High Awards
- Miles are non-refundable for High awards except for Diamond Medallions.
- Diamond Medallions canceling 72+ hours out get 75% of miles back without fees.
- Diamond Medallions canceling within 72 hours get 50% of miles back without fees.
As you can see, the rules get less flexible for the premium class award tickets when you cancel. You can avoid surprises by picking MileSAAver awards when possible.
Partner Award Cancellations
SkyMiles can also be redeemed for award flights on Delta’s partner airlines like Air France, KLM, Virgin Atlantic and more. The cancellation rules for partner awards vary:
- Air France/KLM Flying Blue – Ticket is non-refundable. No miles redeposited.
- Virgin Atlantic – Ticket is non-refundable. No miles redeposited.
- Virgin Australia – 75% of miles redeposited if canceled 72+ hours before departure.
As you can see, partner awards tend to have less flexible options for cancellations and changes. Be sure to review the specific airline’s rules before booking.
Steps to Cancel a Delta Award Flight
The process to cancel a SkyMiles award flight is straightforward:
- Log into your Delta account online or call reservations at 800-221-1212.
- Select the “My Trips” section to view your upcoming reservations.
- Find the award reservation you want to cancel and select “Cancel Trip.”
- Confirm that you want to cancel the entire itinerary.
- Miles will be redeposited to your account based on the rules outlined above. Allow 7-10 days for redeposit.
- If a redeposit fee applies, that will be deducted from your total miles balance.
You can also cancel a single segment of an award itinerary instead of the full trip. The same cancellation rules will apply based on the timing for that specific flight.
If you booked your award ticket by phone through a Delta agent, you will likely need to call in again to cancel. But for online bookings, the Delta website provides an easy self-service option.
Using SkyMiles for New Tickets
Once your SkyMiles have been redeposited after canceling your award ticket, they are available to use towards a future award booking.
You can search for new award flights on Delta.com and redeem your miles again. The options will depend on your updated miles balance after the cancellation.
If you had booked an expensive business or first class award originally, canceling may leave you with enough miles for a new international trip in economy. Or for domestic trips, you may now have miles for several one-way flights.
Here are some examples of redemptions available at various SkyMiles balances:
Miles | Sample Redemptions |
---|---|
5,000 miles | One way U.S. award flight |
15,000 miles | Roundtrip U.S. award flight |
35,000 miles | One way business class to Europe |
60,000 miles | Roundtrip economy ticket to Asia |
Even if you only get a partial miles redeposit after a cancellation, you can combine them with new miles earned to book your next award trip.
Minimizing Lost Miles When Canceling
To reduce the risk of “wasting” your SkyMiles, here are some tips when booking and canceling award tickets:
- Book MileSAAver awards when possible – they offer the most flexibility.
- Aim to cancel at least 72 hours before departure if you can.
- Book one-way awards when practical to only cancel the unneeded segment.
- Book award travel on Delta metal instead of partners when you might cancel.
- Check your future flight credits if you must cancel – you may be able to redeposit unused portions.
Applying some of these tips should help minimize losses if you need to cancel your Delta award flight later on.
Using SkyMiles for Other Options
In some cases, it may not make sense to redeposit your SkyMiles after a cancellation. If you end up with a very low balance, or don’t plan to fly Delta again soon, you have alternatives to redepositing miles.
Here are some other options for cancelled SkyMiles:
- Magazines & Newspapers – Miles can be redeemed for print and digital magazine and newspaper subscriptions starting at just 300 miles.
- Gift Cards – Trade miles for gift cards at over 35 different retail brands.
- Merchandise – Shop electronics, home goods, jewelry and more in the SkyMiles Marketplace.
- Donate to Charity – Miles can be donated to one of Delta’s partner charities including Habitat for Humanity and American Red Cross.
While the value per mile may be low, these options can be better than letting miles expire. You can also combine small amounts of miles with cash for gift cards and merchandise.
Conclusion
Delta SkyMiles members can cancel award flights and redeposit the miles to use for future travel. However, rules vary based on the type of ticket, time until departure and elite status. Canceling MileSAAver economy awards at least 72 hours out returns all miles minus redeposit fees.
To avoid losing all your miles, aim to cancel as early as possible and pick flexible ticket options when booking awards. Even if you can’t fly again soon, smaller amounts of miles can be redeemed for magazines, retail gift cards, merchandise and charity donations.
By understanding the SkyMiles program rules, you can minimize mileage losses and retain value when you need to cancel an existing award reservation with Delta.