FYI, ATL paid $30M for the dirt to put under the fifth runway. Surely 1,200 lbs of sand isn't free, plus the cost of fuel to fly it to JFK (and back?). I'm very curious how this could be the most profitable solution in this situation. And is this a regular occurrence on this route/equipment?

Can Delta routinely not sell all available seats without adding counter-balance weight? That might explain why the last few seats are only sold at outrageous prices!