snowboard1219

Obviously it's not that big of a deal or you would be flying another airline

glbetrotter

Oh, but I am (flying another airline)! Just need to burn the piles of DL miles I have before they lose all the value ...

snowboard1219

Well don't let the door hit you on the way out... And thanks for the improved ug percentage

glbetrotter

Very smart and mature, spoken in the spirit of a true DL loyalist.

As for the UG, I have never been your competition. I pay for what I want.

snowboard1219

Obviously not, if you are complaining about delta's swu's.... It's honestly one of the most frustrating things to me.. I completely understand the frustration at the tod's upgrades at ua because the complimentary upgrades are a published benefit for elites...but delta clearly lays out their terms and conditions for upgrading to b/e.. If people really don't agree with it why don't they protest with their wallets? Take their business elsewhere instead of complaining about being unable to upgrade to business?

glbetrotter

Not sure what the first quote has to do with my posts. And don't remember complaining about SWUs. They are meaningless on international routes, so DL should not tout them as a great benefit for their top tier flyers. That I may have stated, but this is just a fact, not a complaint. Anyway, this thread was about the non-competitive upgradable fares (into a not truly premium product) -- both statements are factually accurate.

As for voting with my wallet, you are absolutely right. My $$ are not flowing into DL's coffers this year as much as before.

bubbashow

Well, I would venture to guess that if you are not going to be a future customer, DL doesn't care if you "loose" value or not. =-)

glbetrotter

DL does not care, period, regardless whether one is going or not going to be a future customer. It thinks that it is a seller's market right now and that it will last. While the former may be true to some extent, the latter ain't. Nobody in their right mind would pay the prices they are charging for BE or UG to BE from YBM when a comparable or a superior product is available for the same money or even less on other carriers.

And thanks for catching the typo.

5khours

Unfortunately, my time machine is broken so I'm stuck with what's available today. DL was five years late in introducing flat bed. They currently have only 45 flat-bed aircraft vs. 120 for UA.

And you're right. If you have to slum it on a 2-class aircraft, there should never be middle seats in the premium cabin, which BTW happens to be true for all three majors.

mbarreto

I guess it's REALLY been a while. DL 764 J cabin (as well as reconfigured 763 and 747s) > UA 772 F (unless ur lucky to get one of those reconfigured 772s), and > (by a huge margin) to UA>J.

If you compare to CO new J, then it's not that different, but the fact that DL offers direct aisle access in any seat is a winner for me (and I assume most other business travellers).

I flew last week on UAs new J class, and on the 772 it's 2x4x2 seating, whereas Y is 3x3x3. Just by looking at these numbers you can see that it's not that great of a product.

The fact that DL has direct aisle seat on the 777, 764 and on all newly configured 747 and 763 (and in a few years in the whole Intl fleet AFAIK), makes DL the clear winner for me. Paying $7k and being stuck in a middle seat on a 10hr flight for me is unnaceptable.

5khours

Two questions -

1) Why would you pay $7k for an airline ticket.

2) And are you really paying for it or is your employer paying?

(I'm betting the 2nd question will answer the first as well.)

Oh and one other thing. If you're spending $7k and were flying UA, you wouldn't be in J anyway since you can easily use miles or your SWUs to UG into F.

avidflyer

I am sorry but that is a Red Herring. It is only relevant if you get one. I have flown UA J 9 times and had an aisle every time (not even close). The only time you will get a middle is if you get the UG at the gate for the most part. If you do you can always turn it down but why, for the exact same price as DL Y, would you turn down a Lie flat with a monitor that is 3X as large as DL? I keep hearing this 2-4-2 argument and it is just not true. The UA seat itself is a 6' 6" long lie flat...even for tall folks it is amazingly comfortable.

5khours

+1. I've had a least 50+ trips with flat-bed seats on UA and have never been in a middle seat except the flights with empty seats where I used the aisle for sitting and the empty middle seat for sleeping.

mbarreto

I don't use miles or SWU, as I don't have that many on UA... and I'm a miles hoarder!

I do get stuck in a middle seat sometimes, since I tend to book last minute (as in, same day or day before) travel. Even when I get an aisle seat, I have people climbing over me, which I'm not too fond of.

And the fact that the new J cabin on the 772 (which I tend to fly the most on UA) is 2x4x2, means that half of the seats don't have direct aisle access, and 25% are middle seats.

As for the lie flat, I find both UA, CO and DL equally comfortable. I know some people don't, but I do.

As for the monitor... I'm usually either working or sleeping anyways, so I don't care either way.

Btw, I'm actually flying UA 772 J in a few hours today, but it's not the newly configured. I'm on an aisle in the middle (12D), on the 2x3x2. That means someone will either climb over me or over Mr. 12F

But I do agree with the DL Y price vs UA J. If it's the same price, it's a no brainer

mbarreto

Well, it's three questions, but I'll give it a shot!

1) Bc sometimes (specially at the last minute), that's what it costs... I could be wrong, but I believe that's what I paid for last month ORD-PVG... I do remember paying close to $10k a couple years ago, but can't remember what the route (or airline) was...

2) Most last minute trips are paid for by my employer, but sometimes I gots to goes and it's on my owns... Usually my assistant will book most of my flights.

The bonus question: As I said above, I'm a miles hoarder! I almost never use miles for me, I either keep them or I book something for family or GFs...