The Fox 19 story said that the Airline argues that this frees space up for paying passengers. I have never flown for free on Delta. I have always had to pay, in one form, or another, for any seat I sat in on DL. For example, award seats have value in the form that it cost to get them in the first place. And SWU seats are the same. Besides paying for the original coach seat, I am also paying, over time, for the right to fly in those seats. Maybe the airlines real motivation is to create a larger employee class?