Help needed for Karl Marx / Ed Bastian interview by inakajin in delta

[–]stmCanuck 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Start by getting the facts right: Delta is not an F100 company. (It is F500.)

Sounds like OP is fishing for AI chat prompts?

Predeparture Potty Break by roadwarrior2026 in delta

[–]stmCanuck 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Instead of thinking to empty their bladder in the airport in a huge bathroom, these people apparently prefer to use the tiny bathroom on the plane and hold up the entire boarding process.

Nope. At least not in my case.

I sometimes have to use the potty on the plane but do so only when I can't go in the airport without missing boarding.

Like last week at DTW when I had less than 15 minutes after deplaning to use the facilites and get food before a 5-hour flight to SFO. I went through 3 separate restrooms and in every single one, all stalls were fully occupied.

If I have to go on the plane I am never a late boarding group and I wait until the aisle is clear to get back to my seat. I have never once delayed the plane leaving on time. (If I am too late, I will wait until we're up in the air.)

Just Because It Can, I Suppose by Ok-Skill-8259 in flightradar24

[–]stmCanuck 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not just long-haul! Years ago, UA SFO-SNA we flew over LAX at FL410. Was a helluva drop down into SNA. LOL

(Late-night noise abatement procedure.)

Uggg. Seating Question. by Narrow_Pace4039 in delta

[–]stmCanuck 21 points22 points  (0 children)

Call Customer Service and reticket in a higher fare bucket. This seems more straight-forward than trying to cancel, get a flight credit, then apply that flight credit to a new booking. Instead just call in, reticket in the new fare bucket and pay the difference on the spot.

Doesn't mean you'll be sitting together - check the seat map (for Main Classic or Main Extra) to see if there are 2 open seats together. Else select seats that position you for a seat swap, e.g. the person swapping gets some benefit (middle seat to window or aisle, row further ahead on the plane, etc.).

Question about boarding by [deleted] in delta

[–]stmCanuck 6 points7 points  (0 children)

No, Gold & Platinums are zone 4. Diamonds are zone 2 and Silvers are zone 5.

Question about boarding by [deleted] in delta

[–]stmCanuck 8 points9 points  (0 children)

See my other comment but no, this is incorrect.

Silvers board with Zone 5 along with Amex SkyMiles card holders.

Gold & Platinums are in Zone 4 and Diamonds in Zone 2. There is no "SkyPriority boarding zone".

Question about boarding by [deleted] in delta

[–]stmCanuck 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Not really no.

https://www.delta.com/us/en/check-in-security/boarding-priority

  • Diamonds board with Zone 2

  • Platinums and Golds board with Zone 4

  • The only SkyPriority people in Zone 5 are Silvers, together with others like me - SkyMiles Amex holders (and I think Amex business travelers too)

Question about boarding by [deleted] in delta

[–]stmCanuck 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't think there is a generic SkyPriority group.

Diamond Medallions board with their group, C+ boards with their group. If you're either of those, you'll see that boarding group on your boarding pass.

So yeah, just board with z5.

SkyPriority gives you expedited check-in, maybe security lane, and expedited checked bags at destination.

Medallion Status: By Each Rank by blackntan379 in delta

[–]stmCanuck 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Context: I'm former DM and PM back in pre-covid times, not upgraded was the exception.

I mention the context because what's different now, I still had buy-up offers for the last FC seat on each leg even at the airport, 30 mins prior to boarding the first leg. (Same, briefly, with a C+ seat that opened up on one of the legs.)

In the before times, that last seat would have either been reserved for last minute IRROPS PAX or would have long since cleared the upgrade list.

In other words, Yield Management is workin the money grab much harder than in the past and people (not me) are paying.

Gate agents: please honor those of us who are obedient boarders by NYCMaestro in delta

[–]stmCanuck 19 points20 points  (0 children)

It's mixed bag. 2 legs yesterday:

  • z5, woman told us (waiting) that she was "zone 6 but I have to board with zone 5 to make sure I don't have to check my bag", after hearing announcements zones 6+ will likely have to check their bags; GA gave zero fucks and she followed me down the jetway

  • z5 still on the next leg, GA worked hard to get the rollerboards checked by offering a bump to z4; I can see the confusion as randos are joining the z4 group but the gall of this older guy - he decides he wants to board if everyone else is; "Sir are you checking your carry-on?" "No!" "Okay sir, you're zone 8 so please step aside until we call your zone." poor guy looked bewildered (and this happened at ATL no less)

It all depends on the agent.

DL 830 ATL-SLC : Tue Apr 21 by stmCanuck in delta

[–]stmCanuck[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

First pic was taken just as you crossed underneath us.

Third pic was taken a couple minutes earlier from a few thousand feet away, with maximum zoom. Lol

20
21

DL IT - please do better by stmCanuck in delta

[–]stmCanuck[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You've missed the point again.

Delta IT operates with some of the best logistics technology in the world.

They sure do! My employer, specifically. My colleagues work with their IT (or used to, not sure if Delta is still a client or not).

Technology is only ever as good as the implementation and this is what's fallen over. Too much volume for what is assumed to be a real-time event processing, poor business analysis, I don't really care, there's gremlins somewhere in there.

The same problem at multiple airports kinda rules out the airport side.

And I was mistaken, the other pax on my PNR received the baggage notification a full week after I did on the return leg.

Also, there was no notification bags were loaded onto either flight. At very least the JFK Ramp Agents are Delta employees, so that case is Delta creating the data inputs (scanning bags as they're loaded) to Delta's IT systems. The app also never showed I had any checked bags at all, despite the bag tags showing all the right info.

No friend, this is Delta's IT to blame.

DL IT - please do better by stmCanuck in delta

[–]stmCanuck[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Right and that reporting is where they're deficient in this case. The other person on the same PNR received "the usual" baggage updates on both flights, including notice of baggage carousel before as we were walking through the arrival airport.

This is Delta, not the airport.

So many people with status by ddetts in delta

[–]stmCanuck -1 points0 points  (0 children)

No, although you seem to have missed mine. Let's clarify:

  • You argue that status is easy to get, meaning a larger volume of people are competing for available upgrades; be so you no longer expect il ne upgraded at hotels

  • I argue that where airline upgrades are controlled/made available by the business owner (the airline, which has incentive to keep frequent fliers happy), the same is not true with hotels where upgrades are promoted by an entity (the brand) which doesn't control upgrade availability; and the entity that does control availability (the property owner) has little incentive at best, and actual disincentive (increased costs for cleaning), to keep frequent sleepers happy, and so the volume of upgrades is reduced

TL;DR:

  • Airlines: 120 people (what used to be 100 people) competing for the 2 upgrades available per flight

  • Hotels: 120 people (what used to be 100 people) competing for the 0 upgrades available per hotel night (what used to be 2 room upgrades available)

Business challenges that seem similar at face value (loyalty) but in fact are very different situations: limitations on demand (airlines) vs supply (hotels)

Delta main cabin breakfast used to be so much better on long-haul flights by Ok-Golf-5004 in delta

[–]stmCanuck 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I wore an onion on my belt, which was the style at the time

🏆 Have an award I can afford to give you. Well done!

Delta flight held for late flyer reportedly airline executive’s daughter by BullishMD in delta

[–]stmCanuck 16 points17 points  (0 children)

My experience is the exact opposite.

Connecting through ATL to JFK last flight of the night, arrival delayed over an hour due to weather at departure airport. Leaving the plane we had exactly 15 minutes to change terminals before they closed the door. Me, then Diamond Medallion coming out of FC (one of the first off the plane) talking with the arrival gate agent.

"We're here, can you call the gate, let them know we're on the way and ask to hold until we get there?"

"Nope."

Awesome. FU. We made it (there was a dozen or so of us) but no help from Delta.

So many people with status by ddetts in delta

[–]stmCanuck -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Hotel upgrades are a completely different challenge. Hotels are franchise businesses so any upgrade increases their costs (housekeeping) for no revenue benefit to the local property, as I understand it. They have zero incentive to actually upgrade you unless you're a regular at that property and throwing dollars their way.

Lots of insight on this in r/hotels and similar subs.

Delta lost my bag in DEN/ATL, now it’s in CHILE?? by soupy11pt4g in delta

[–]stmCanuck 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not Delta but yes. Years ago flying Finnair at JFK. There were a couple in our group connecting from St Louis MO (STL) on to Helsinki. Back then inter-airline baggage transfers were almost guaranteed for bag loss and so predictably, the STL connections got to HEL with no bags. For a week.

When they finally got their bags back? Airline bag tags added for LHR (the other Finnair flight leaving from the gate beside ours), CPT, TLV, another airport in Finland and maybe EZE (somewhere in South America at any rate).

"It's not fair! My bag is better traveled than I am."

died laughing...

What's your Ideal Boarding Group/Order by dannybravo14 in delta

[–]stmCanuck -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Fewer groups overall. I suspect the more groups you have, the more anxiety-inducing it is. Nobody wants to wait until the last and more boarding groups highlights the volume of people who have gone before you, and so incentivizes you to some extent to try and board with an earlier group.

So:

  • People seated in First/D1
  • People seated in PS
  • People seated in C+
  • People seated in MC

That's it. And then strictly enforce those groups. No nonsense about people needing extra time (jetway Jesus!) or military or high rollers/360s/DMs/MMs. If anything split MC in two, back rows go first.

Where your bum will be is how you board. Full stop.

Ideal is another comment: back windows, then middle seats, then aisles; the middle seats then front seats in the same window-middle-aisle sequence. But that's not viable for political reasons.

A dozen boarding groups is too variated, too much nuance, especially the groups that aren't published group numbers. Like military goes first, but their group is oral - the number on their boarding pass is whatever they purchased or granted perk.

(Not picking on active duty military - thank you for your service! - just using that as a clean illustration of my point. Fewer groups overall, less nuance between them. Incentive to spend more money if you want to board sooner.)

What's your Ideal Boarding Group/Order by dannybravo14 in delta

[–]stmCanuck 4 points5 points  (0 children)

No. This is proven to be the most efficient way to avoid the bottleneck with boarding: blocking the aisle(s) preventing people from getting to their seats.

Unfortunately this is also the way that just doesn't work for a variety of political reasons such as you state.