flyerCO

DL could've asked for HND from there other hubs. They decided on MSP. You have to ignore that each airport has a different draw to call it simply a replacement. Just like some airlines fly to both EWR and JFK., as each have different draws.

BearX220

Living on the west coast, the best of times was when NW, CO, and AS were all partnered up and you could fly all three, but build miles / status in WorldPerks.

Absolutely right.

jdrtravel

They look good in a 1990's way. They style is extremely dated.

That's not true. It was one of the first clubs to be Deltafied. It was done very cheaply and I agree it's not nice at all, but it's full of the white plastic look, and then the food service area was redone a year or so ago. All of the furniture is from the first generation of the new DL look, whereas the DTW literally still has NWA furniture (as does the MSP C club).

Jaimito Cartero

DTWflyer

I have nostalgia and miss NW, at least the 1999-2008 version of NW. I felt that NW finally had reached a level at or above its peers by 2005 in many areas, or the others were on a downward trajectory at the time.

Things I miss from NW:
nwa.com - great on usability and functionality, simple yet appealing UI, easy to find the stuff that mattered, and more ability to do things yourself versus delta.dumb 2018 edition
NW/KL alliance - so easy and interchangable; we took a step backwards with the DL/AF/KL arrangement now; much more difficult to book certain connections/ticketing, technology integration took a step backwards
Worldperks redemption - much easier to redeem and/or get better value for points redemption
NW Worldclubs - far less crowded than what has happened to Skyclubs, and I still like the decor and functionality of the Skyclubs that still resemble Worldclubs (DTW, MSP-C, MEM, ORD)
DC-9s, ARJs, SF3s - I actually really enjoyed these aircraft from a flying perspective. I know I must be weird that I actually like the SF3s.....
The hey-day of the Skyteam alliance NW/DL/CO and the ability to codeshare on each

Things I don't miss:
Dated, dirty interiors & seats (aka the 757 5500 series)
Militant gate agents & FAs that hated their jobs, hated their airline, and hated their passengers (most have retired by now thank goodness)
DC-10s always going mechanical
The schedule out of some mid-tier markets, when literally the last flight out was 4:30pm, making it more challenging for certain business trips (in the post-9/11 downsizing years)

youngdlplat

I can think of five things I particularly miss about NW, two which DL could easily bring back.

(1) Johnny Walker Black -- Much better than Dewers. It was a great scotch to drink on an airplane. Offering it would be an easy way for DL to distinguish itself from other airlines by offering something better than Dewers. DL should bring it back.

(2) James Paige beer -- This beer no longer exists, so it's not coming back, but it was fantastic. I miss it.

(3) The buttery twisted preztels -- Those were outstanding, and went very well with the Johnny Walker.

(4) The MEM hub -- This isn't coming back, but agree with the above that it was such an easy place to transfer through with some really distinctive food.

(5) The credit card annual mileage discount -- As I recall the old NW Visa card had a 4,000 mile discount certification every year. I'm surprised Amex and DL have not included something like this in their benefits. It's kind of brilliant because it's only valuable if you make a redemption, but it's valuable to the card holder because it was a flat 4,000 mile discount off an award booking. Obviously many, many more miles are necessary now than was the case back then (when 25,000 miles really did net you a free domestic RT), but something similar, such as an annual 10% discount off of one award redemption would be a great benefit. It would take a little bit of sting out of those 600,000 mile redemptions to fly Delta One to Europe.

jdrtravel

The credit card benefits are now arguably much better: Plat/reserve Companion certificates, discounted Sky Club access, mileage bonus at certain spend levels depending on the card, and free checked luggage.

worldwidedreamer

That was back when NW had a golden share of CO, and CO had a golden share of HP. Times change.

MarkP24

Yes they are quite good!

n7371f

You know what's interesting is talking to former NWA employees...and how many of them say they miss their airline. I always do a double take. When I flew Northwest I often felt like I loved the airline more than the people who were paid by it.

I had my challenges of disenfranchised flight attendants and even airport workers over the years. I recall that once I made Million it got better. And nothing will ever compare to the Chisholm "Platinum" line. Thank you Delta for keeping those fine folks.

Looking back I appreciate the reliability, swiftness and ease which NW made my travels. It wasn't always 5-star but it was reliable and I knew what to expect. And no one should forget the value of WorldPerks as a Platinum and MM. The folks that ran the FF understood their weaknesses and in most ways, the program compensated for it - maybe more than necessary. I felt spoiled when I had to live under SkyMiles.

And I think the former Northwest workers fondly recall the trailblazing ways of their airline. The history of the Red Tail in operations, technology and pushing the industry are what I believe they reminisce about. And that I agree with.

BenA

indufan

Don't mislead. It still does. Sometimes even cheaper.

BenA

flyerCO

I seem to remember the main MSP club not DLtifying till they moved the checkin desk. (It was on the side by the door and full service was just the part of current desk that was perpendicular to the door) Even then till the recent add of the food bar it really wasn't much different from NW days except the plastic blue background behind checkin.

HP was a CO partner. I don't remember them being a NW partner. If I remember I held off moving from CO Onepass/Presidents Club to NW WP/WC Since I used HP frequently. You got access to their lounge at LAS/PHX and got upgrades based on CO status/PC membership.

BearX220

What I remember about CO/HP was that CO wanted up to $2k for a last-minute SEA-IAH roundtrip, while HP charged about $350 via PHX and upgraded CO Plats. I wonder why CO let that go on for so long.