jabez

Scotty
I would, but she's in Holland. One of the great things about FT is the willingness of most to share info.

Gui

I'm busted. I apologize. Do not know what came over me.
Clearly, at some moments one needs to be either better informed & not have ones head stuck up ones..well you get it. Actually, I had forgotten the Buddy Passes NEVER take precedent over a fare paying customer. Ergo, presumably it would never affect DL customers. I am very loyal to DL and will continue to be so. Had I been thinking clearly I would have not said a word.
Let the Buddy Passes Roll. Especially, if they are done with the spirit and intent that they were designed for and that intent is not abrogated or compromised.

MRW

and conveniently for AF NRSAs, the NonRev/GP checkin at CDG for DL flights is staffed by AF.


This really annoys me because I was once on a CDG-JFK DL flight and a non-DL NRSA seated in front of me in BE got drunk and started disturbing ("hitting on") the FAs and talking loudly. At one point the FA gave me a "that guy is so annoying" look and I mentionned it to her that the guy was NRSA -- which I knew because he had stood out at the NRSA checkin since he was wearing jeans. The FA checked the pax list and said she couldn't determine what his status was, but that for me that seemed to further that he was a non-DL NRSA (because a DL NRSA should have definitely been indicated on her list) -- also, I had earlier seen that he had a French passport.

AF, on the other hand, doesn't care in the slightest bit about DL employees. The do not match priority and once when on a intra-European flight stuck in Y, the AF FA told us we would have to wait until the end of the meal service to get any leftover snacks -- I know this can happen with a


Being a FO and having had the opportunity to fly as an S4 a few times, I have seen how the system works from both sides and I think this a benefit that DL employees are duly entitled and work hard for. The only times a paying pax could feel slighted is with the "meal excuse" prohibiting same-day intl upgrades and how with standbys a NRSA can clear directly to F but medallions with upgradeable fares must first clear into Y. Finally, a couple points of clarifications for those not in the know: those travelling on Buddy Passes and non-dependent pass holders do still pay the "yield fare and all taxes" -- which while a lot cheaper than any fare that might otherwise get you a set up front is sometimes nearly as expensive an onsale LUSer fare -- and since a seat is never guaranteed, it often means anxiously waiting until the very last moment to find out whether you'll make a flight.

[This message has been edited by MRW (edited 11-26-2002).]

B747-437B

The secondary market for "resale" of S4s is pretty bad in Atlanta. When I was in school at Georgia Tech, I knew of at least 2 "brokers" who could arrange Delta S4s at 24 hour notice for a fee (between $200-$400 depending on destination). I believe this has only got worse since the VLAs went into effect last year, since a number of inactive employees are selling their S4s to boost their income. I assume you are MCO or MFL, where undoubtedly there is less fraud going on simply because there are less DL employees. However, in ATL it is pretty bad.

GeorgeBurdell

I do believe the last poster hit the nail on the head...

There were a few very visible incidents in the past year of Delta Buddy Passes being auctioned on eBay. From what we've been told, it appears that Delta is trying to implement tighter controls on how these passes are used. I would imagine that with more impending layoffs, they are expecting a lot of passes to hit the streets.

And to those of you who are concerned about non-rev privileges...an S4 pass is the bottom of the pecking order...and they do pay.

ATLpax

They are serious about this - I have a friend who tried to use a buddy pass on Monday (given to her by a Delta employee). When she arrived at the ticket counter the agent took a red grease pen and marked "void" or something to that effect on it because the employee hadn't filled in her name and told her she couldn't use it. Luckily, she was able to get in touch with the friend who had given her the buddy pass, who (luckily) was on his way to the airport to leave on a trip. He went by the counter (in his uniform) and was able to get her activated on the list.

p.s. she got on the flight.

scotty00

This was rightfully voided...I would hope no ticket agent would validate a buddy pass that wasn't signed by the employee, as they need to be.

[This message has been edited by scotty00 (edited 11-27-2002).]

ATLpax

The employee had signed it - he just didn't write in the name of the recipient.

hackensacknj

Out at the airport tonight to convert buddy pass certificates to actual tickets, I was told by the agent that effective in February, 2003, there will be a $25 charge to change destinations once a buddy pass/ticket has been issued.

This will make them much less desirable. Generally, I get them issued for the cheapest routing from my city when I the pass and then sometime before it expires, I would change it to the city I really want to go to and pay the difference in yield fare. If $25 is going to be added, it will take the cost pretty close in some cases to a U or T fare without any of the FF benefits that come with such fares.

GeorgeBurdell

They are supposed to write on it: "must be ticketed by employee" which means that only the employee can exchange that pass for a ticket. It doesn't void it, just prevents it from being used by the bearer until the employee has exchanged it for a ticket.

Justin026

My wife flew on a buddy pass with a Delta employee friend to NYC earlier this year. I can assure FF's reading here that this is no picnic. A long weekend of anxiety about the standby game, both coming and going.

I did take the time to study the buddy pass paperwork after she got home; having learned that on Delta, the fine print is the bible of SGB. Was amazed to see a set of rules quite different from FF rules, but just as complicated and bureaucratic.

duxfan

Gee, only a $25 fee? I thought it cost the airlines AT LEAST $100 to cover the cost of changing a ticket....

Deltspygt

How easy/successful is it to use a buddy pass for a round trip ATL-LGW outbound on a thurs and inbound on Sunday?

a nonholiday thursday/sunday, so say, in two weeks...

[This message has been edited by Deltspygt (edited 01-21-2003).]

B747-437B

Depends which Thursday and which Sunday.

MRW

Call the Non-Rev Flight Listing line to find out the Space Available status for the flights you're planning on taking. Even though you need an employee # and date of hire to access the voice system, I'm not going to post the number here -- get it from the employee who gave you the pass.

Besides of course checking the actual flights you're hoping to take, I would also check the flights for this week just prior to departure to see how full they typically get at the last minute. Suggest you go for the first flight of the day in each direction so you have a back-up and take only a carry-on.