Name that stain...
 

So pleased to have paid for seat 2D from DEN to LGA to be welcomed by the following at my seat.

I pointed it out to the FA who came back and handed my a pile of little wipe packs like the ones you get a BBQ restaurant to clean sticky fingers. It was definitely not my expectation that I would be the one to clean what was hopefully a coffee stain but certainly could've been something else far worse.

She said she would not touch it and that it was too late to get the cleaning crew back on a flight that was already quite delayed.

How does someone miss this? It's pretty disgusting. And disappointing.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...03147e88c1.jpg

Emotional support animal had a little accident?

Good one.

Were you expecting her to clean it up for you?

A toddler’s spilled apple juice???

First, I wasn't expecting a seat that looked like that.

Second, I was expecting a cleaning crew to clean it up.

Third, if I was expected to clean it up then I would expect at the very minimum, the same equipment that the FA's use when they collect garbage, etc. Like gloves, for instance, as no one knew what it actually was. I asked for gloves. I was told they had none that they would/could give me.

So this wasn't some prima donna moment. But 3 packages of bbq wipes wasn't going to work for me. Perhaps it would have been sufficient for you.

I'm a bit surprised they don't have Clorox or Lysol wipes or that another passenger didn't have them.

I would think it is appropriate for someone other than the paying passenger to clean it up.
Your thoughts?

I agree. Even if not in FAs Job description , if you pride yourself on service and as an ambassador for the airline you should at least offer and leave it to the pax to turn down. I mean they have gloves and clean the Lavs for Pete’s sake. If not the pax’s doing they should absolutely offer to clean it.

Better to not look for dirt and stains in Delta's FC seats.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6ac1034279.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...151c9353e5.jpg

Uff...

That's why I asked for gloves. I truly had no idea what it was. I was hoping it was coffee but I don't think it should be my responsibility to take that chance.

They wouldn't give me gloves.

It was just a really strange experience.

If it was United, you would probably have been blamed for it. :)

I don’t think that’s acceptable. I wouldn’t want to play the DYKWIA card but the fact this happened in first makes it that more appalling.

I commend you for not causing a stink, as that is pointless, but you have every right to be disappointed.

Is this a joke? One can probably make a rather weak argument that the FA shouldn't be the one to clean it, but certainly a paid F customer should not be expected to clean pre-existing stains on a plane? And the fact she just brought the customer a bunch of wipes and refused a request for gloves with an attitude of "have at it?" A paid F customer?

Really, you must be joking.

I wouldn't have asked the FA to clean it up, I usually wipe down things anyway with a wipe because I am weird like that. I would have actually got some sick satisfaction out of cleaning it up myself. But that's my particular wiring.

I just never would assume that it was a FA's job to clean the plane.

I wasn't judging, I was just asking the original poster what his/her expectations were.

Curious from the picture was this the seat in front of you?

As long as I didn't have to touch it when seated, and if it was too late for cleaning crew I would have just left it. And promptly submit a complaint to DL.

If they made you clean your seat before you could sit down, now that is something else.

Don't misunderstand I agree it is disgusting and disappointing, regardless of cabin class. The fact that you paid to upgrade to that mess just adds insult to injury. Just that as a paying customer I am not cleaning messes I didn't make.

I am sorry if my question made you think I was assuming you were being a prima donna, I was just trying to clarify your expectations.

No, it was a simple question for clarification. You sure read a lot into it.

Kinda looks like OJ.

I'd email DL and send them the picture. It's worth mentioning the cleanliness of the aircraft.
Sadly, I've seen similar on various DL flights.

Yes, it was the seat in front of me. Whatever it was, though, went much further down to the floor than the picture shows. I couldn't stow anything under the seat bc i seriously didn't know what it was.

And i didn't want to bang my leg into it even just sitting there, that kind of thing.

Trust me, I survived. And I know it's a high class problem. But it wasn't a little tiny stain that someone could have missed. It was HUGE and really pretty gross.

And I'm not a germ freak either. And I didn't ask the FA in such a way that I expected her to clean it for me. That's not my way. I just kind of pointed it out to say, hey, this is pretty foul, not so jazzed about sitting with this for the next 4 hours. Any suggestions? And then I politely asked for gloves expecting to clean it myself and was rebuffed. Not sure what else I could have done.

I sat there with the blanket over me and figured let the crappy Delta blanket touch it instead of me. I didn't complain any further. I just wanted to get home!

Not weird . People are nasty. I do this too, but luckily haven’t encountered anything remotely like what’s pictured.

Yes, this is the best advice. As long as you don't have to touch it, don't. And then promptly submit a complaint to DL.com and they should give you comp. I have noticed a significant decline in cabin cleanliness recently (coinciding with the decline in meal quality) and I have been hammering both of those issues in post flight surveys. Please do the same!

I hear you, a very unpleasant "first class experience" to be sure, I trust you are filling a complaint with Delta.

Honestly though I wouldn't call it a high class problem. A certain level of cleanliness should be expected. I was just trying to understand if they made you sit in it or touching it or something along those lines. To me that would change what I would expect the FA to do about it. Like you said rather sit near filth and get home on time than force the issue and risk a delay. Sit in filth would be another story.

Didn’t this happen recently on delta?

I was being figurative, however now that you mention it I think you are correct, so apparently it is quite literally another story.

Wow, I would submit this complaint to Delta as soon as possible.

I switched to Delta from United over the summer due to a move. I've had something similar about a month ago and filed a complaint via customer service. Haven't heard back. (Though I am only a Platinum Medallion member.)

With United, if something like this would happen, I would receive a voucher for several hundred dollars within 24 hours almost like clockwork. I am still Premier 1K for another couple of months there. Would never abuse the complaints, but it seems like United cares far more than Delta - just my two cents. I'd be interested to hear what comes of this.

its unfortunate that this is not something you will see on DL, but on all airlines.
It seems that with the schedule they put the planes thru, there is no time to clean the planes.
I have been on some of the first flights out of the day.... you would not be too surprised to find garbage still on the plane.

Delta winds up with a lot more time between flights than other airlines. The aircraft are filthy not due to a lack of time, but because the cleaning crews are lazy and DL does not hold them accountable. I had a flight delayed recently because in the two hours that the regional jet had been sitting on the ground, DL forgot to schedule the cleaning crew. And the plane was filthy. As you say, when you still have garbage on the aircraft for the first flight of the day, it has zero to do with flight scheduling and everything to do with laziness and a lack of accountability. Flights departing some airports are better than others, but SEA is routinely the worst for cleanliness.

Looking at the picture it appears that it could be some kind of lubricant/oil coming from the armrest. Whatever it is is up under the metal piece at the top appearing that it's leaking from inside. The area at the bottom seems to have some similar appearance from what might be an area that the seat might recline. I drove past a car on the highway recently that had a similar looking stain on the front passenger side wheel well. I thought it was an odd stain and sure enough the SUV started smoking significantly shortly later. Some fitting must have blown on the car. I really don't think this is something that someone spilled. Still pretty obnoxious to look at.

It's one or the other. It's not "laziness" to meet expectations. Giving a client more than they paid for is a great way to go broke.

Let's see...

Paying customer in first class....

Employee....

The FA should be expected to clean it up.

why not the pilot? They are employees too. Or is it a gender thing?

When airlines decide to cut costs and labor heads by cutting back on cleaning during turns, the customer service suffers. Instead of expecting the females employees to do it because I’m the customer, I clean it myself and express my dissatisfaction to the company in surveys and notes and ultimately where I decide to give my business.

I would never assume it’s the flight attendant’s job to clean where the cleaning crew missed. But that’s me. I’m gonna clean my area anyway.

Because pilots fly the plane. FA's work in the cabin.

Also, there are plenty of male FA's so don't pull the politically correct garbage -- nobody wants to read it.

well, you don’t want to read it but the attitude that you paid for first class so the help should clean up your space because you paid cash sounded pretty much like garbage as well.

it’s not their job simply because they are on this side of the door. Lol.

In keeping with the thread title "Name that Stain". It would help if the pic was wider showing other features. There is something odd about the flow. If the stain was created on a near vertical surface and of a thin liquid the path of the drops should be mostly vertical and not off to the side before turning. Is it possible that the seat feature was not vertical when the stain occured? If so the liquid could have originated from another surface not visible in the picture and/or the seat position was changed while the liquid was still flowing.

If the latter it could be a "coke" product from a plastic cup in a seat pocket and a simple taste would have confirmed.it

:o :confused: :rolleyes: I for one wouldn’t taste anything spilled on an airline seat, even if I had spilled it

Not taking sides. Looks like adhesive or glue of some kind to me though.

What did it taste like?


Frankly, not that uncommon. We've all heard the horror stories of urine soaked seat cushions. Last year I found a lightly used sick bag (that appeared unused) in my seat pocket, though I didn't realize it was used until I'd put my hand in it...

Here's what the space between the J seat and fuselage on an AA A330 looked like on a flight last year.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...17ab4bb5_h.jpg

But what does that have to do with gender. You just inferred that the assumption is that pilots are males and FAs are females. The irony is too strong here.