Kerrirdh

my flight attendant was very skilled to not disrupt the onboard flow of passengers

Zorak

From what I've seen, most FAs are pretty good about working themselves into the flow of boarding passengers, standing slightly into the row to let them pass while they take orders, etc.; also it's rare that people are able to walk on board, get to their row, stow their bags in the overhead, and move out of the aisle without breaking stride, so inevitably people would be stuck standing around waiting in the aisle during boarding even without PDB service (e.g. aisle boards first and then needs to stand up to let middle/window in), so the net effect of the FA serving PDBs is probably negligible.

Pianoman109876

FWIW - the cabins are plenty chaotic as it is... sometimes the Woodford PDB helps make it seem less so lol

Dawgfan6291

all of this.

The only thing I try to do is keep it fairly simple and quick. "what would you like?" "vodka sprite please" Nothing super complicated and please don't be the person that needs 15 minutes to order a PDB.....

metallo

Flew PWM-JFK in F recently on Republic/Delta…

The F FA began going around asking what everyone would like to drink. I ordered a G&T and was advised that only non-alcoholic beverages were being offered on the ground.

I was the first passenger asked in 1A on this E175, and I think probably everyone overheard her say no alcohol. Almost no one else ordered anything. A couple of pax requested water.

I did politely question the FA once boarding had concluded and the door was still open, and she said she had just recently completed her training and was advised that no alcohol is to be served on the ground. I gently told her I didn’t think that was correct, so she checked with the other FA who had just come to the front of the cabin, and the other FA said, “Oh, no, that was just during COVID that we didn’t do them.”

I then overheard the F FA tell the other FA that she had done her training “with United” and she must have been confused. To her credit, with just minutes before the door closed, she did bring me the drink I requested and apologized. Service on this short flight in the air was subsequently excellent.

I think there are just many new FAs who don’t really seem to be that skilled with the service routine yet, and a regional FA who works multiple airlines makes things even more complicated.

StayingHomeIsBetter

Agreed.

During boarding, the line of coach pax often slows to a stop as the pax ahead stow luggage, etc.

An experienced FA knows how to stop the boarding pax at the cabin door long enough to create a gap to allow darting into the FC cabin to take an order or deliver drinks. The FA then returns to the galley and lets another tranche of pax board. Repeat as necessary.

The results: 1) Some pax spend time waiting at the cabin door rather than waiting in the FC aisle, and their progress to their seat takes no longer than it would otherwise have; and, 2) PDBs get served.

I anticipate that there are other best practices that could be shared, providing solutions to what should not be, under normal circumstances, an intractable problem.

The key to success is Delta recognizing that there is a problem that needs to be solved and providing sufficient priority/impetus to ensure that it is solved.

atldiamond

Honestly, this is ridiculous.

1. Cabin chaos is not your problem
2. If it truly did create chaos, airlines wouldn't offer it

JTE458

They should always make non FC passengers wait at the door until the aisle is clear into main cabin, let them board 10 at a time at that point, I don't like them looking at me standing there.

NYC Flyer

I try to help minimize my chaos footprint by only having one (cases where pushback is delayed excepted).

Seriously, until COVID, the legacies have been doing this since at least the 80s. There was a time they had to follow local liquor laws but "interstate commerce" precedents cancelled that, eventually, IIRC.

Funny aside...my first flight on Reno Air/QQ in 1992/93 when they first launched SFO-RNO.

FA to me shortly after boarding: "Would you care for a drink"

Me: "Do you mean now or after take-off" (she meant after)

Snarky lady across the aisle: "What do think this is, AMERICAN AIRLINES!"

FA to snarky lady: "What would you like to drink?"

Snarky lady: Champagne!

FA to snarky lady: "What do you think this is, FRANCE?"

I think Snarky Lady did get some form of sparkling wine, and it was a great flight. Of course, the irony is that a few years later, it WAS American Airlines.

Twohitwonder

Trust me, you accepting the offer of a PDB doesn’t cause chaos in the cabin or add to it. It’s the people who have to stand up 6 more times to get “one more thing” out of their bag or the people who insist on changing seats or a million other things.

Most of us don’t mind PDBs at all and are happy to serve them. Please ask for one if you want one!

Points Scrounger

Talk about hitting the nail on the head! On my last flight, the guy behind me spent quite a while standing in the aisle deciding what he want to get out of his overhead bag before stowing it.

Closer to thread topic, that flight seem even more chaotic and slow than usual. We did not get PDB service where I felt that was okay as it would've been virtually impossible; drink orders taken before take-off instead.

Pianoman109876

DL371 JFK-SFO, 767-300.

No PDB. Flight attendant said they aren’t catered for them.

miles. Give me more miles, Delta.

GoBob

Giddyup.


Sweetwater H.A.Z.Y. IPA

Detroiter

My standard is "Woodford rocks please" There's nothing less complicated than that. Then of course there's the turnaround flight on which the Woodford was depleted on the outbound . My backup is always G&T.

StayingHomeIsBetter

That would be mine too... if DL served a decent gin.