How I turned a five-minute schedule adjustment into a far more pleasant flight itinerary

Points and miles can be a fantastic way to enjoy cheaper and more comfortable flights. However, redeeming them often means limited options compared to purchasing a ticket outright. Airlines typically offer a restricted award availability, particularly during busy travel periods and popular routes.

This often requires making sacrifices, such as flying at less ideal times or navigating more complex travel routes.

Yet, as my experience illustrates below, you can occasionally transform a hassle — like a schedule change — into a more enjoyable trip. Here’s how I achieved this on my recent flight from Australia to Malaysia.

A challenging yet manageable flight

Originally from Australia, I plan to return home for my annual Christmas visit at the end of this year. Since it’s quite a long journey, I like to add a trip to another destination within Australia or the Asia-Pacific region, making it a two-for-one adventure.

I've been holding onto a collection of Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles for a couple of years, which come with a hard expiration date of 36 months from when they were earned (or transferred from a bank program, in my case). They were set to expire in February 2025, so I needed to redeem them for a trip within the next year. When I discovered a business-class seat on a connecting flight from Melbourne, Australia, to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with a stop in Singapore, I seized the opportunity.

However, the flight I booked departs at a rather inconvenient time of 7 a.m. on New Year's Day, which isn't exactly ideal after the previous night's celebrations. Fortunately, I received some good news that would broaden my options: a schedule change.

Two schedule adjustments

It’s not unusual for airlines to make last-minute changes to their schedules to accommodate factors like aircraft availability, demand fluctuations, and route adjustments.

Over the past month, I've received notifications from Singapore Airlines regarding two schedule adjustments.

The first change delayed my arrival in Kuala Lumpur by just five minutes. This seemed acceptable, so I went ahead and accepted the adjustments.

The second change moved my departure time from Melbourne up by five minutes to 6:55 a.m. At that moment, I thought, "Maybe I should try my luck and ask to switch to a later flight that day. Surely that won't work." Turns out, I was mistaken.

Leveraging a schedule adjustment to my benefit

Typically, a "significant" schedule change is required to allow for rebooking on a different flight. This varies by airline, but generally, your departure or arrival time must shift by at least one hour, or a direct flight needs to change to a connecting one. (United Airlines is quite accommodating, permitting rebooking for changes as brief as 30 minutes.)

The email I received indicated that I could either accept the modification or contact the airline for alternatives. So, I did my homework ahead of time and selected my preferred itinerary, which would leave almost four hours later than initially proposed — at a convenient 10:35 a.m. — and reduce my layover in Singapore from three hours to 90 minutes.

While this won't allow me much time to enjoy Singapore Airlines' exceptional lounges at Singapore Changi Airport (SIN), it certainly streamlines my transit. Plus, if I'm delayed on the first leg of my journey, I can relax knowing I can catch a later flight on the Singapore-to-Kuala Lumpur route, the busiest international corridor in the world.

I informed the agent that the schedule change — that incredibly inconvenient five-minute adjustment — no longer fit my travel plans, and I wanted to switch to a later flight. I provided her with the specific flight numbers and departure times for the two flights I was interested in.

Although there was no Saver-level award availability on those flights, she escalated my request; after 23 minutes on the line, a new itinerary was emailed to me.

The bottom line

What is deemed a "significant" schedule change can vary from airline to airline — and even between individual customer service agents — but it’s always worth attempting to modify your flights for a more comfortable journey.

My suggestion is to regularly check your email for any schedule updates, simplify the agent’s task by researching your preferred itinerary beforehand, remain courteous, and be prepared to accept a negative response.

After all, you won't know unless you give it a shot.