My experience has been that despite how nice you are to the ticket counter or gate agents, no one gets these seats until they process the standby list. Then all of the infrequent flyers get them and we slugs are stuck in middle seats.
This is something DL needs to change.
Originally Posted by vinnmann
It is luck. They say that the gate agent is the only one that can assign bulkheads and exit rows. However, I have heard reports that sometimes the check-in counter get access to these seats and they may be all gone by the time you get there. So, ask at check-in, ask at the DL booking desk in terminal E, and if still no success, ask the gate agent. Good luck