Originally Posted by Dallas49er
As an aside- I sat next to a senior Delta FA last week, and in conversation, she mentioned that that good old fashioned letter still works-the recipient gets great recognition and a one time top priority pass for standyby (vs other NRSA's, not us) for them and thier companion. Evidently these passes are like gold dust, especially to those who are more junior, more motivated, and less jaded by their seniors.
Oh, if it were only so!
There are five different boarding priorities for Non-Revs...
S4 - the lowest - "Friends & Family Certificates", or Buddy Passes as they are called. These are the tickets employees can give out to their friends.
S3 - next step up - Every employee has an unlimited supply of these. Can be used to fly anywhere as many times as you wish. No limit!
S2B - next step up from S3 - this is the "reward" for an Above & Beyond card. They expire within a year and can not be used on international flights.
S2 - second higest level - Each employee gets a limited supply of these each year.
S1 - top of the line - These are extremely rare. They come by once in a blue moon, and when they do, they are usually given out system wide or by department.
So, that poor junior flight attendant that got a nice letter is probably still sitting at the airport waiting to get on that flight... Because the grumpy ol' pilot or the nasty senior flight attendant just "upped" the nice girl by using an S2 to get ahead of her anyway.