Delta Fares

My airline seat assignments have "disappeared" from my itinerary. Can I still check in online?

I bought roundtrip Delta Airlines tickets for my family on December 5, and I'm 99% certain I selected seats for all four segments. I just logged in to check the status of the flights and discovered that the assignments for the first and second segments are not showing up. There is only 1 seat available on one plane, the other has no seats available. I know about overbooking, so don't explain that to me please, but I want to check in as early as possible to better my chances of getting on the airplanes. Will I be allowed to check in online without the seat assignments? Also, if you know, please comment on whether I'll be able to get confirmed seats for the second segment before leaving on the first flight...If I'm going to get bumped from the second flight, I'd rather sleep in my own bed than in an airport in a strange city with two children! If anyone has had this happen to them, or works for an airline and knows the answer to this, I'd appreciate your replies.

Public Comments

1. Airlines regularly oversell their flights. If you are certain you had seat assignments, you may have to call Delta in order to check on them. However, if you have a confirmed reservation for you and your family, call Delta and give them the reservation number for your flight. Generally, online checkin can't be done until 24 hours before the flight. While it shows that no seats are available, airlines will sometimes block seats, so they won't show as being available. Also, check on seats in the exit rows. You have to be over 15 and be physically capable of helping someone in an emergency.
2. You gotta get on the phone. It's probably nothing major. Since you bought your tckets so long ago, I suspect it's a change of aircraft equipment. Call and find out.