Mythbusting: The Real Deal with Rule 240
Blame Peter Greenberg. About a week ago, the travel guru wrote an article hyping Rule 240, which used to govern interline agreements on airlines. Basically it said that airlines couldn't keep you captive in the terminal if they cancelled your flight; they had to put you on the next one out. But the rule no longer exists in that form, as Greenberg himself admits in his story.
That didn't stop the piece from getting picked up elsewhere, with people claiming that "invoking Rule 240" would solve all your canceled-flight woes regardless of the airline you're on. Wrong. Your trip on any given airline is always governed by a contract--called the contract of carriage--and if you act like a jerk, there's no way you'll get anything more than what that document mandates.
So what's a flyer to do? Know your stuff before you get to the airport.
