seriously? get over yourself.....

Have you never been late for work because of unexpected commute situations? It's just a fact of life. I used to live less than 4 miles from my office at a previous job, and I still had days where I was late because something way out of the norm happened. Had one case where it took nearly 2 hours to get those 4 miles. Was I supposed to live in the office to avoid that?

I know may DL pilots in ATL, and I'm sure LAX is the same way. The area around the airport is pretty undesirable and there are many nicer areas some distance away. Since pilots don't have to commute every day like the rest of us, it's very common to live a fair distance away which increases the risk of traffic tie-ups. But one of the benefits of being a pilot is not having to commute. I'm sure there are penalties, like all jobs, if this is a habit, however.

As to ATL, I thought a lot of DL employees of all levels were now living south of the city to avoid the traffic. College Park is low rent, but plenty of nice areas further south.

Yes, 285 around town can add an unexpected 2 hours. I have no problem leaving for a major vacation a few hours early to be safe, but I will be damned if I would do this every work day.

And DL pilots do not live in Smyrna, they live in Vinnings :p

Yes, I have been late for work--but that does not involve a multimillion aircraft with hundreds of people looking to travel to meet loved ones, make important appointments, or lord knows what else. Read the many threads about planes not held for one or two passengers who are a minute or two late to the gate, even if the doors are closed before departure time.

And I completely sympathize with being late due to illness or unforeseen mechanical breakdown, like engine trouble or a flat tire. And again, I do appreciate the honesty expressed by the flight deck.

But I also am expected to be at my job on time, and if inclement weather is forecast, I leave early and have alternate routes planned. And yes, in my field, it is expected you live "at the office" if need be to get the job done.

And no, I would not want to live next to LAX (although there are some really nice neighborhoods by MSP), but I still don't find that to be a valid excuse to be late.

so go ahead and write in to DL and ask for some compensation since you were so inconvenienced and his delay was obviously due to gross negligence.

OP, please make your presence known to me if we are ever in the same vicinity because I don't want to be anywhere near you when your karma catches up with you.

Your posts reek of more-superior-than-thou, more-responsible-than-thou, just-more-of-a-worthy-human-than-thou.

I'm sure (by your clear posts) that the next time you are late for anything there will be a perfectly justifiable reason and you will hold no blame or responsibility. I can tell this pilot has NO chance redeeming himself with you.

I am honestly thinking that you expect this pilot to book a hotel room near the airport "just in case". I'm guessing your fares as well as mine would increase if this were expected of pilots.

Hah! Karma and I have it going on!

Then you surely know how sneaky karma can be. You've pretty much guaranteed a flat tire, engine trouble, or massive multi-car pile-up that will make you late for your next life-saving commitment. ;)

Seen on a bumper sticker a few years back: Your karma ran over my dogma!

One day this past winter there was snow/ice in the Atlanta area which caused a huge chain-reaction accident on I-285 (the perimeter hwy around the city) & I-85, within a few miles of ATL around 6 a.m. Delta sent an employee bus to the scene to collect people because a large % of the people involved worked for Delta, other airlines, and various airport businesses. Yes, that's a rare occurrence, but balance the people who gained from what happened that day with today's inconvenience for the OP.

Though personally, had I been in that wreck, I would have been looking for an excuse to call in sick! From the news reports it was traumatic for alot of the folks who went through it.

+1,000 [RANT] It boggles the mind to think someone believes it's so important that every flight taking off every day be less than 20 minutes late. So important that the tens of thousands of pilots and FAs (since the plane can't leave without them either) should live close enough to the airport so they aren't ever delayed by traffic.[/RANT]

Surely Delta has strict standards for timeliness / tardiness to adhere to, and this 757 First Officer wouldn't have made it NEARLY this far in his career if he was habitually late! I'm sure it's documented in his permanent record, should it become a regular thing!

As to your not being happy, what else could or should Delta have done? It seems to me that you want to hear yourself gripe. Hope you feel better now that you vented a little! I've said it before, and I'll say it again . . . . If this is the worst thing that happened to you traveling this year, you've had a good year!

DYKWIA is amazing in these threads lately.........I mean Jeff know's I'm the most important customer afterall and treats me accordingly - why someone else should think their more important is just amazing to me :D

As if they wanted to give an excuse to begin with? What one person may find
an excuse, though, another may find to be a justifiable reason.

But...whatever makes you feel better. Good luck on your next trip.

I want to live in that weird all-glass-windows restaurant near LAX, the one you can only get to if you stumble upon the right combination of wrong turns to get out of the airport.