Originally Posted by Goodoldflyer

Let's be honest. The OP failed to maintain control of his laptop. It's unlikely the FA went out of their way to hijack his laptop from around his leg. None of us were there, including (consciously) the OP, so we're all just guessing about the position of the laptop when it was removed. The likelihood, though, is that the laptop wasn't between the OP and the window, or clearly stashed beneath a seat when it was removed. It was more likely out of a reasonable position, to the degree that the FA thought it had been left by someone else.

If I were the OP, I'd be happy I got it back, and wouldn't be trying to wrangle the situation for a few more frequent flyer miles.

I left a laptop in security once, and got it back a week later on my return. Another time I left a kindle in a seatback, I figured it out on my next flight, but never saw it again. Sometimes you just get lucky. It's better to recognize that.

Originally Posted by gusgrissom1

If it was next to your feet and they removed it I don't see how they even did it without waking you up. But I think they should have asked someone if it was theirs. I'd want way more than $200 and 5000 miles.

Originally Posted by esc2476

I took about 60 flights last year and I have the same exact routine when I can’t fit my briefcase underneath the seat (which is about half the time). I knew where it was because it was within a few inches of my foot where it always is. And I am not trying to get more from Delta. In fact, if you looked at my posts in this thread, you would see I said (and my wife thinks) that no further compensation was warranted, but was curious if I was thinking about it the right way.