gDolan

Writing live from the dial-up-like connection here on the 6:15 JFK-SFO. 40/40 Delta One seats taken, now that anyone can upgrade. I think 18 cleared day-of-- almost half the cabin. 767-400 with 40 seats in Delta One -- that's 20 per flight attendant. Champagne has run out already. Toilets dirtying rapidly. Advantage over B6 long gone

hi55us

#mintMoment #passMeThoseMints

pvn

half the cabin cleared on upgrades on a thursday afternoon?

KDCAflyer

I smell something, and it's not the lav.

flyerCO

Is it a 764? To SFO I can see. I'd be more sceptical if it was to LAX. Also likely Medallions are aware they can get it free now.

readywhenyouare

I'm surprised Delta is running such large equipment to SFO. No connections at SFO.

davetravels

Remedy:

gDolan

Lights flickering, previous catering from BCN-JFK still on board, complete with (Spanish) tags. Delta Private Jets membership could not be loaded via in-seat ethernet port.

(Jokes aside, much appreciation to the crew -- they've been dealt a tough hand here, and have performed very well)

Youngmiler

If you did the DPJ from NYC to Cali you would really want a super-midsize with a stand-up cabin such as the Challenger 300 or a Heavy like a G450. I find small cabins like a Citation or Learjet are best for flights under a few hours. Regardless all are expensive relatively speaking and commercial for transcon in business is a really good value proposition.

StayingHomeIsBetter

Please correct me if I have misconstrued the message... D1 has been devalued now that it is no longer limited to just paid D1? If so, I guess I can sympathize. No one can dirty up a toilet faster than a champagne-guzzling plebian on a complementary UG.

How full was coach?

If 20 UGs to D1 allowed DL to shoehorn a few more folks into coach, I am confident that the shareholders here will be quite gratified.

(Which is how I am interpreting the gracious new policy allowing D1 UGs... the likelihood that D1 was not selling out on some routes and DL realized that they were leaving ham sandwiches in their back pocket by not freeing up more coach seats via UGs.)

AANYC1981

Good to know....another reason I’m sticking with AA....with only 20J you don’t have to worry about 20 people getting upgraded and there is the separate F cabin with flagship dining on both ends.

sounds awful

gDolan

That's right--well known that there's nothing more likely to be pooled on the floor of a lav in a few hours than a glass of PDB Andre featured in an instagram story entitled "Upgraded to Delta Polaris!"

You're also right that this new policy is probably good for business,* but isn't the whole fun of flyertalk finding ways to have fun at the expense of airline shareholders?

*Although recent investor concern about PRASM trends might cause shareholders to further worry. The lie-flat TCON market has gotten really competitive, and the marginal change that drives a J pax away is not going to help Glen's revenue premium here. You could also argue that some 360 is less likely to buy a D1 ticket for that 2 PM Tuesday TCON since she know's she'll get the UG.

CPMaverick

Unless DL has stopped giving Op-Ups, then there was never such thing as a coach seat left unsold due to empty seats in J.

nrunning24

While I understand that upgrades on these flights are of benefit to the majority on this board, lets not act like a service which you can get for free is going to be just as good as one which you have to pay for. While I'm sure DL can get a few more economy seats out of the deal you would have to think there were some frequent fliers who would rather pay the D1 fare than sit in coach. I don't know what the right answer is for delta financially but lets not pretend that allowing free upgrades doesn't cheapen the product. Simple math dictates otherwise.

Mountain Explorer

Umm, DL 763s, 764s and A330s are all pretty common at SFO. The SF Bay area is hugely populated (and a very high income level too)