ILovetheReds

I would assume the same thing. Unless I SDC'd onto a flight or purchased the ticket last minute after the FO window sweep. It ticks me off in those cases when I am on a high fare and don't get upgraded when an FO does on a cheap ticket, but no reason to be upset at the flyer for taking advatnage of their benefits. If Delta would hold back upgrades on FO's until the gate that wouldn't be an issue.

Ebes1099

He said he was checking them all in at T-24 when he was offered the upgrades, not at the gate.

kitkat77

I was once offered a checkin upgrade as an FO, probably 2 years back. I think it was $50 for RDU-LGA. I did take it, actually, and was immediately upgraded and it was treated as F including the baggage allowance.

I was a newbie though, then, and had no idea about FT or gate upgrades or priority order, or even any clue what my fare was.

ILovetheReds

I hope this was a glitch on Delta's system. If it isn't and they are going to start offering $100 upgrades to non-elites on cross country trips on a T fare, they should at least offer the same to elites at check in.

If Delta starts offering upgrades for $100 on T fares on long hauls at check in, why even bother with status?

met19

I agree that FC is overrated. But there are some benefits, generally get off the plane and get checked luggage first which is useful when traveling with a pet.

Now onto my DYKWIA story.

Was flying back to JFK from SAN with my little dog in a carrier in first under the seat. Was flying with him to see how he does at my sisters place in NYC in case I get the good ole deployment orders in the future. He had some sedation on board and generally was very quiet. I prepped little cards and treats for the FC cabin and the cabin crew in case he made noise- a la- its my first flight, hope i don't make a racket, but in case i do enjoy this chocolate.

The gent behind me- don't know his status- picked up little card I placed in the seat back- and immediately started to rant about animals shouldn't fly in cabin. Went to the lead FA and continued to rant- Pets shouldn't be in cabin over and over. Lead FA stated according the DL policy dogs/cats in crate are allowed underneath the seat and the owner and dog have tickets. Back and forth and eventually the phrase/threat "Do you know who I am and how much I fly on Delta" was issued. A few miles issued and the gent sat back down in an annoyed huff.

I'd like to point out my dog was much quieter than the DYKWIA on board.

ILovetheReds

I have also had heard nasty comments before when flying with cats. Most of the passengers are friendly and sometimes people will want to see them and I have a couple people interested in the breed (we have a couple of Tonkinese cats that we show sometimes and we flew to get our youngest cat when he was a kitten from an out of state breeder).

I have heard a couple people raise a stink that animals shouldn't be allowed in first class or once someone even went as far as to say a plane before when pets have been on a plane.

I have had two instances where I was flying in first and people complained about severe cat alergies. The one time I was with my wife and we were both on paid first class tickets and the person complaining was on an upgrade and she was told she could get reseated in economy towards the back of the plane and suddenly she said she was able to deal with a cat for four hours near her She didn't even sneeze one time and seemed as healthy as the rest of the cabin when we landed

The other time I was upgraded as a diamond on a pretty high fare and the guy seated beside me was complaining he was allergic to cats and couldjn't be near them. He had a gold tag on his bag so I assume he was a gold. He was told that they could move him back to economy and he started pulling a DYWIA saying I was travelling with a cat and should be moved back to economy instead. Apparently in this situation being a diamond I outranked him even though he had the alleged allergies. Again he was suddenly able to tolerate the cat and didn't seem to have any reaction at all but as we were taxiing on landing he called his wife and was talking in a rea`lly loud voice complaining to his wife that pets had no business being on an airplane and he was going to complain to Delta, etc

You should have told the DYKWIA that not only did you pay an absurd fee to have your dog with you, that you also had to check a bag because the dog was considered your carryon even though you paid a hefty fee and he wasn't taking up bin space

Nice gesture giving chocolate and cards to the other passengers BTW.

I can't believe he got miles issued for his tantrum.

met19

I like the story about the DYKWIA GM. Luckily my dog is hypoallergenic. I should've pointed out the fee I pay and the fact that I had to check a bag. Usually go with small laptop bag and 22in but one needed to go under as the dog goes under the seat and the laptop bag overhead.

He was grumbling to his seatmate about it quite a bit. His seatmate, but on noise cancelling headphones to listen to tunes at one point.

My seatmate made a comment as he continued some ranting that she was sure there was a seat in econ if the DYKWIA wanted without dogs nearby. She was pretty chill about the dog. Most of the FC cabin and the FA's appreciated the card and chocolate- i found it effective to decrease possible tension in the cabin if the dog whined.

gooselee

The vocal pet-in-cabin opponents always come across to me as people who don't realize they are still on a form of public transportation where other people have concerns/preferences/needs as well.

My story - I'm allergic to cats, but just to the point of where my eyes get itchy and I start sneezing a lot. For a flight of 2 hours or less, I just deal with it. Maybe I'll mention it to the owner and IME they are always polite enough to keep the cat tucked away or whatever for the short flight.

The only time I asked to move, I was in paid F on a longer flight (ATL-LAS). After the cat boarded, I just told the FA I was allergic and asked what my options were. She was great in asking others if they'd be willing to switch, and the owner was very understanding. She ended up moving the cat up to row 2 and putting me in bulkhead EC where I unexpectedly still got a meal and drinks from F (and the guy from EC got a seat/drinks in F). In all, I feel like me, EC guy, and cat/owner all had a pleasant/better flight than otherwise - it really just takes a bit of flexibility and understanding. I knew I was inconveniencing others, but I also knew I didn't want to be miserable for 3/4 of that flight and would have taken a seat in the way back if I had to.

WestSideBilly

I can see having an issue if you're actually allergic to cats (though most people I know who are allergic to cats only have issues if they come in contact or very close proximity - e.g. sleeping on a couch where a cat has slept), but it seems like the solution is to move a bit further away (swap sides of the plane with someone who doesn't care?).

tampa2euro

Oh yea, especially since each of us checked 3 bags each and the other guys were about to pay for economy comfort, I think it came out to be about the same amount as the F upgrade which allowed all of us 3 bags each for free and not to mention free booze.

tampa2euro

Trust me, they all paid me back! We were coming back from a conference and each of us had 3 checked bags, and were about to pay for EC seats, so $100 was just about the cost of checking all the bags etc. so why not get FC if it were available ?

gooselee

If a non-status pax is checking 3 bags, wouldn't that come to well more than $100 in fees? The third bag alone is $125.

Bicostal

So why is it that Delta bans peanuts on some flights but not cats?

javabytes

Didn't think they do... don't they just create a buffer zone of a few rows? And that's a bit different anyway, it's not really a ban, they just don't serve peanuts (though one would have to be quite a DYKWIA to eat their own peanuts they brought on board anyway). It's not like DL supplies in flight cats.

gooselee

We're excited to announce our new Feline Elite* product. Purchase with your Delta American Express to get double miles and a 20% discount.

*Actually just Whiskas slopped onto a cold woodgrain tray.