cardood

+1

Signed,

Lowly Silver

SLC 4217

OK,

I have read all 15 pages and have not seen a single question about gate checked bags on RJ's. As a DM who flew 145+ segments last year and 95% with carry on luggage, I have a bigger delay with gated checked bags on RJ's. Is there anyway to add those bags to Sky Priority? Some of these planes (900'sa and soon 700's) have FC, so shouldn't baggage on theses planes also support Sky priority?

Juanefny

My understanding is that already bags checked in regional jets are already being priority tagged.

DevilDog438

SLC 4217 was asking about gate checked baggage (planeside valet on smaller cabin aircraft), not ticket counter checked baggage. Baggage checked at the TA or curbside gets the priority tag. I have never seen a priority tag added to the pink gate tag routine.

mersk862

Still, as many stations that use jetways and don't have bag elevators (like DTW/ATL have), it would be great to have a special tag that could signal for those bags to be put up on the jetway first - maybe two different colors of pink tags - the normal pink tags for all, and a yellow tag for those SkyPriority members.

DevilDog438

Would have to be some other color than yellow or green, as the "gate-checked to destination baggage claim" tag is a kind of fluorescent yellow.

Not disagreeing with the notion, but I do doubt that we are ever going to see anything like it. Too difficult for DL to enforce with the various Connection partners would be my guess at the justification for not doing this.

StayingHomeIsBetter

Guess again, not so for plane-side checked luggage.

I don't care of it is first to get to the jetway... I just want it to make the same flight I am on.

But... then there was the time that the baggage handler decided on his own to direct all of the plane-side checked baggage to the carousel. He didn't speak enough English to explain why he did so.

thebigfish

In reading most of this thread, it does very little to make me not want to look at other options.

I will be @ 44,000 miles by this time next month - I'll make Gold for the first time ever shortly after that. Some of you say "what's the big deal? Fly more." Well, some of you are gold, plat or diamond for several years and then something changes and you're done.

I've been Silver for a long, long time. 400,000 miles worth on NWA. (If you calculated some of the others, including a big chunk of UA, it's double that) NWA took care of me. Decent upgrades and generally speaking, good customer service. What Delta is doing is certainly rewarding it's most frequent currently flying flyers, but if you're treated poorly as a Silver compared to other airlines, what makes management think many of those Silvers will grow?

The only things holding me back right now is the lifetime membership in SkyClub and the use of MSP as my main point of departure. It sure isn't Delta's TATL experience ... nor I suspect, the clustermuck that loading is going to be.

TBF

brazzleman

The easiest fix to this planned rollout is to have the gate agent just add a zone zero:

-board the first class cabin
- then board zone 1
- then board zone 2
- then board zone 3, 4
- then board zone gate lice (penalty box for those who try to board in the wrong zone; GA can also put any annoying passenger in there prior to departure)

dnrmil

My head is spinning also. While I've been lurking here for quite a while, I haven't been an active participant and have only posted when I've had a question or problem. I've mustered up the nerve to respond to this thread just to share my opinion.

I try to have the attitude that I appreciate any benefits I receive out of free programs and only get offended when the actual service that I paid for isn't up to par. I learned long ago that benefits such as this are not a requirement but something provided to gain loyalty.

While I'm GM with Delta I can say that my upgrade percents are lower as gold than as silver. I will admit to being a little disappointed at times but at the end of the day I received what I paid for - a coach seat. But I'm glad for seating in the front of the plane and I haven't been stuck in a middle seat in years.

I love the free checked baggage (I always check bags) and enjoy it even better when the priority tags work. I was on a recent trip to Vegas when my priority bag was the very last bag after everyone else had left. I was leaving to go to the baggage office when it came along. I just had to laugh, not stew over my poor treatment. I like the early boarding and really don't think the changes are going to cause that many problems. I already see those with zone 2 boarding in with zone 1 and the GA's haven't turned them away. They seem to call the zones fairly close together, and I think people prefer to stow their bags close to their seats so the early boarders aren't the ones using open space in FC, it seems to be the later boarders and the FA's send them up there at times. I also see the GA's hold up boarding when the jetway is moving slowly which I assume they do so that we are not stuck out there especailly when it's very warm or very cold.

I will also appreciate the other snack options in coach when not upgraded (which is 90% of the time) since I have peanut allergies. I've never asked for anything differently, have just politely declined.

Basically I consider a benefit a gift and realize that it may change at any times. I have a choice of who to fly and for the most part I try to use Delta because I'm satisfied with their service and want to maintain my status. I'll never make PM as my work region doesn't require long cross country or international fligths.

Sincerely,
A Satisfied Delta Customer who appreciates the upcoming changes.

TTT

Welcome to the posting world dnrmil!

Very well said! You should post more often^

Juanefny

Do the biscoff cookies have peanuts?

Gargoyle

No.

Wheat flour, sugar, vegetable oils (contains one or more of soy bean oil, sunflower oil, canola oil, palm oil), soy flour, brown sugar, leavening (sodium bicarbonate), salt, spice (cinnamon).


(note: this chart refers to a serving of 5 small Biscoffs, 31 grams. The DL two pack of large Biscoffs is 25.5 grams, so adjust numbers accordingly)

Sabai

Gee, I hate to be a skunk at this garden party, but this just seems to be more obfuscation to distract from the very meager offerings of Delta’s Nowhere Near Best In Class SkyMiles program.

Delta corporate seems to think that in lieu of a frequent flyer program that offers tangible benefits, applying more and more layers of “enhancements” to the travel experience will distract customers from realizing what a poor value SkyMiles is. What Delta and SkyMiles fail to offer is: Easy and reasonable redemption of miles for international premium class travel; functional information technology systems; and an award calendar that doesn’t demonstrate how little Delta management values or understands the importance of a functional website. Signature cocktails and leather seat covers are obviously a much higher management priority than contemporary information systems. Good thing these rubes aren’t making technology investment decisions for Amazon.com.

“Sky Priority” costs Delta far less than giving SM the same value that is on par with DL’s competitors. Drink chits, curbside check-in, boarding priority, etc. - I get all these being PremEx on UA, which theoretically is a notch lower than my PM status on DL. However, my miles on UA are far more valuable than the pile of SkyMiles that I have - most of which were earned on NW, an airline that had many tangible flaws, but WorldPerks was way ahead – millions of miles ahead – of SkyMiles as a value proposition.

Sorry, I’m just not “excited” as others may be. Delta has smeared as much lipstick as they can on the pig that is their loyalty program, and now they are going for the mascara and eye-liner.

Much ado about very little.

Scotty66

I am happy to hear of the changes with the new program and I do hope they work out as they have planned.
As an international traveler I am disappointed that they have not come up with a program to equal UA and AA for international upgrades for their top elites. Now before anybody answers my post with a rip about if I cannot afford to fly up front I should not expect it. If UA and AA feel it is worth taking care of their elites with an upgrade policy, then it is a valid program. I love Delta and have been a PL for many years and now DM, but as I have so many international trips to take this year I cannot help but feel disappointed that they do not find this an important issue. In all my years I have never even considered switching airlines, but if the others reward their elites with upgrade options, then I have to consider it.

I am hoping that SMinsider will post some insight to this situation to give others in my same situation some idea of the future.

I Loving Delta and hope to stay with them.