Originally Posted by Paplover

Non-revenue passengers, generally airline employees or families, are entitled to the best seat available on all Delta flights as a perk of employment. They are either not paying at all or a fixed (low) fee regardless of seat. Giving them a D1 seat that no one has paid for does not cheapen the brand since they are not paying for it anyway. On domestic flights, they rarely get F seats (except for Sheena) due to Medallion upgrades. For D1 flights, there are no free upgrades, all revenue passengers pay either with $, GU certificates or SM so there are more empty D1 seats available for non-revenue passengers. In talking with employees, this often makes it easier for them to get on international flights than domestic flights since they fly standby.