Need to schedule flight with son so we can sit together on the return leg.

Does he have a ticket already? Today a flight from Detroit to Amsterdam 6 months away is unlikely full in January 2019

If not try booking at the same time and pay the option to choose a seat.

You always get some range of hours of time to cancel an international flight when you book it. I am not sure what Delta's policy is.

I have done this twice on different airlines when I went to Europe before my husband but we returned on same flight together. I just bought the two different tickets right after each other. In both cases, I selected a seat for the return for myself, wrote it down, and then was able to select seat right next to me on a separate ticket for my husband. I tried to maximize my chances of this working out by not picking seats in the front of the plane but several rows back from what had already been reserved.

Beth

So on he will go Amsterdam to Detroit, meet you, then fly the return leg of the flight to Amsterdam with you?

I would talk to the airline - you mentioned delta, so call them. Other airlines could work as well. They can probably link your records so changes are made together.

For this I would book with the airline itself, not another website. That way the airline (delta) provides service not the booking site like orbitz.

In general, if he books flights on Delta then he can select a seat when he books. You book the same flight and select the seat next to his. Then you both will need to keep an eye on the flight to make sure it or the seat assignments doesn’t change. This takes coordination - picking a flight that works for both in terms of price, time, etc.

I agree to book directly with Delta instead of a 3rd party. Do NOT book their lowest fare category as you can't choose your seats ahead of time. If funds aren't tight, I'd book Comfort+ as well. DO talk with them and get your tickets linked. If you are not already SkyMiles members, I'd sign up as well so you can use your your SkyMiles number on your ticket.

As long as you book a normal Economy ticket and not a Basic Economy ticket, Delta lets you change seat selection as many times as you want to at no cost(though some seats like exit rows do require an additional fee if you don't have elite status with their frequent flyer program) . You do need to keep an eye on things because Delta does tend to to a lot of schedule changes and 'equipment swaps' (where, say, they change the type of 767 jet scheduled for a given flight to a different 767 type that has an ever so slightly different seat map) so you need to check both PNRs (Passenger Name Record- think of it as a virtual folder that can contain multiple tickets for identical routes purchased together) and make sure you're still seating where you want to.

Delta is also known for 'schedule change Saturdays' so there can be a bit of weirdness if you're trying to look at a ticket when their IT is working on such things in a live database, so any rechecks on your part are best done Monday-Friday

This is assuming that Delta is the operating airline and it's not a case where Delta sells the ticket as part of a code-sharing agreement but you're actually on a KLM flight, where different seat selection rules may apply.

"This is assuming that Delta is the operating airline and it's not a case where Delta sells the ticket as part of a code-sharing agreement but you're actually on a KLM flight, where different seat selection rules may apply."

Oh Selkie! This is an excellent point! Yes, to have the least problems make sure your flight is operated by Delta. If it's operated by KLM, book directly on the KLM website. I've had difficulties in the past with seat selection on a KLM flight booked on the Delta website. I used the SkyMiles member phone # to get it straightened out but it took some doing. That was a rookie mistake I'll not repeat!

Thank you all! I knew I could get good information on the Forum.

I will book the tickets. I will use Delta. I will get Premium+, or whatever they are calling it this month. And I will keep an eagle eye on Delta.

Based on my experiences flying Delta internationally (two round trips so far this year):

• "Basic economy" tickets don't seem to be offered on international flights, so that might not even be an issue. But if they are offered on your flight, you obviously don't want to get them if it's important to be able to choose your seat.

• In my opinion, "Comfort+" is not worth the money unless you are very tall and really need the additional legroom. You get a few extra inches of legroom, and that's it - it's not like the "premium economy" cabin offered by some other airlines where you get a nicer seat or other extra amenities. And it can cost up to $200 per flight. (That price, however, sometimes jumps around randomly, so if you do want to upgrade but don't like the price you're initially offered, you might try waiting a few weeks and then checking back.)

• For some reason, Delta holds back many of their seats in the economy cabin and only releases them about 45 days before the flight. So if you go to choose your seats and it looks like you can't get two seats together (or if it looks like your only option is to take the two seats in the middle of a row of four), keep checking back during the month or two before the flight. You might find that a whole bunch of aisle and window seats suddenly become available.

I was a little confused by these statements in your question:

"I will fly back to Amsterdam with him." Does this mean you are not flying RT Detroit-Amsterdam-Detroit?

"This is crucial because I need help." If you are flying back from Amsterdam to Detroit without your son, how will you get help on that return flight?

It sounds like you are only concerned about sitting together on the Detroit-Amsterdam flight. What am I missing?

When I have wanted to fly one leg with a family member, I have booked one-way tickets so the leg with the family member is booked together. I was told by United that they could NOT link tickets that have been bought separately. So for an upcoming trip I booked a one-way for my daughter IAD-LAX, a one-way for me SFO-LAX, and two one-ways LAX-IAD for our return.