Hmm.....let's see.

Pros:

Delta personnel.....especially the CRC agents in SEA, LAX, BOS and ATL (Centerpoint) :)

Live TV, on demand movies and games (*is addicted to Bejeweled*) on many flights....especially out of NYC.

Nice variety of cocktails......especially during 'Happy Hour' at a CRC (mmm...spiced apple martini....mmm).

Mini muffins (an item that I had suggested to DL months ago ;) ) and other new snacks added to the CRCs..........the carrots/celery, hummus and olives are quite good as are pretzels dipped in Nutella.

Medallion check-in at JFK T2 for domestic flights.

Comp. domestic upgrades

PM waiver for practically all award ticket fees.

PM SDS/SDC benefit

Special Member Services........great at 'fixing' problems and/or making changes.


Cons:

VERY crowded aircraft on certain routes

Airfares to/from NYC seem to be on the rise.

Fees for Medallion Marketplace.........it's bad enough with an exchange rate of 10K miles for a $50 Gift Card........but 1000x worse due to them charging a $15 fee for any such 'conversions'.


Undecided:

Award seat availability......so far, not a major issue for me.....especially since I have 3 upcoming 'Saver' awards.


Hmm.....I guess I am satisfied......for now. :)

Don't get me wrong......this doesn't mean that Delta shouldn't continue to improve things a bit more......especially in certain areas. ;)

Now......if only DL would initiate an exchange program for turning Skymiles into Delta Dollars. :D

A.J.

I think the "New" Delta has the same problems as the "old" Delta. I am generally a Delta supporter...but let's be real...not too much has changed. A new logo and a new livery...and all these promos about "change".....but other than a few more snacks in the CRC what exactly has changed?? Their ground operations suck, and no matter how much theyre trying to improve their in flight product...if theyre not doing a good job on the ground people still won't want to fly them. Flame away...but the "new" Delta is more talk than anything else.

So far so good
 

As a new Delta flyer from UA, I like the fresh attitudes of the GA's and FA's I have dealt with. To me the;

Pros:
-Medallion upgrades 4 for 4 so far into Central America which is probably not a big DL stronghold.
-Great IFE (ex-song planes)
-Inexpensive "I" fares into Central America with real glasswear/silverware to boot
-Clean planes (UA's are flying cesspools)
-Friendly FA's (alot of ex EA, PA and WA which were my fav. airlines)
-A forward looking vision that seems hip and cool since Ch. 11(UA is floundering)
-CRC's (free booze)
Cons:
-Poor domestic soft "F" product (food, lack of glassware ect)
-ATL (need I say more)
-LAX (check-in only)
-Timeliness
-International/Hawaii upgrade policy (will keep UA for this)

Personal:
-Loss of NS LAX-MGA flight (but hey more miles thru ATL right?)

Half of my DL travel has been paid A/I fares. I am very happy so far with DL. I hope they keep moving forward.

As the one who initiated usage of "lipstick on pig" in this forum .....

I am please with the direction in which Delta generally seems to be headed. After our travel experiences 1.5 weeks ago (I think most of my mostly positive comments are buried in the Lounge (TM) thread) I even seriously considered retiring my signature but decided that should wait a while.

The Delta personnel that I observed at the gates and on the planes were up to the challenges that faces them -- large loads, delays due to ATL weather & FAA computers, lots of rebookings. When an oversold flight out of ORD was delayed, they doubled the # of reps at the gate and reworked things to both the pax' and Delta's advantage as best they could.

That's been a pattern I noticed starting in April. Are they getting better overall or is it my imagination? I'd like to think the improvement is ongoing.

The amalgamation of Delta Connection carriers will continue to be their Achilles' heel, but they have designated a VP to oversee those issues. The jury is still out on his efforts and probably will remain out for a while. I'm sure its a challenging assignment. :D

Regarding issues like free WiFi in the CRC's -- their decision appears wrong and boneheaded, but underlying it all I suspect they are locked into their existing agreements with T-Mobile for a while. On the surface it's dumb, but it's also superficial.

I can't speak to SkyMiles issues (esp. SkySaver availability) since I don't have a SkyMiles acct. and probably never will.

We are probably stuck with junk aircraft like ERJ's and smaller CRJ's for the indefinite future. Nobody else seems to be getting rid of theirs. On the plus side, Delta is one of only two North American carriers that is loading up on regional aircraft with first-class sections.

Keep in mind that "out of bankrupty" only means that their checkbooks are functional again, at least for the time being. Restoring a healthy airline remains an ongoing process.

seconded - my thoughts exactly

Yes...I'm satisfied with D E L T A. This is not the "New Delta" that Doug Parker had in mind, that much is certain.

I disagree. I think Delta's FAs have always been generally friendly.

What makes the baggage handling crew awful? Is there a particular location that you think the GA's are rude? Honestly, pretty much my experience with GAs are handing them my boarding pass and then handing it back to me but they are pleasant.

OK, some without status might have some points. But PMs have LOTS of extra availability. Just a few days ago, I checked a European destination and found 28 out of 30 days in the month available.

It does NOT lower your priority for an upgrade.

One thing you can bet a lot of money on is that they will never try and change this.
One more thing you can bet a lot of money on is that they will never try and change this.
Agreed.


Undecided:

Award seat availability......so far, not a major issue for me.....especially since I have 3 upcoming 'Saver' awards.


Hmm.....I guess I am satisfied......for now. :)

Don't get me wrong......this doesn't mean that Delta shouldn't continue to improve things a bit more......especially in certain areas. ;)

Now......if only DL would initiate an exchange program for turning Skymiles into Delta Dollars. :D

A.J.[/QUOTE]

That's funny. I fondly thought of you as soon as I read that.

---I'm happy--- sounds like a good place to establish a voting pole.

Actually, having a lower fare/booking class relative to other similar level Medallion members DOES lower your priority/ranking (especially for domestic upgrades)......both when upgrades start clearing at the Medallion windows as well as your ranking on the Stand-by Upgrade list at the gate.

The ranking is now:

Medallion status
Booking class
Time stamp

I have recently experienced how booking class now overrides time stamp as the primary ranking factor.

However.......if what I also heard is actually true, then this ranking method isn't solely being limited for use with domestic upgrades and/or standby......but now applies to ALL waitlists as well.

A.J.

I think there is still room to go, but overall the change has been a positive one in my view.

The attitudes in the air, while never bad and while always better than AA, have been really, really good of late. Two days ago, the flight attendants were working both aisles in F on a 767 domestic flight, laughing at each other as they compared their respective mojito shaking techniques. Spontaneous, natural, and pleasant . . . . nothing fake about it.

The website functions continue to improve (but still a long ways to go, seems to take forever to make even the simplest enhancement).

The planes are definitely cleaner.

I think on time performance seems to be better (no doubt helped by a fully function five runways at ATL now).

I even think that baggage delivery has improved in speed. Still not what it should be, and priority tags still mean nothing, but I haven't had one of the previously-typical 30 minute waits for the first bag in quite some time.

The route structure is getting stronger and stronger. Can't wait to see the plans for the Pacific and more of Africa.

I'm a bit frustrated by the slow rollout of the enhanced IFE. Seems like we've been stuck forever on the 48 old Song planes for the update.

And my goodness, can we please go back to glassware in domestic F??? It's a small thing, but so tacky to use plastic. And I would never object to even a minimal enhancement in domestic F wines.

On balance, I think things are better and the future looks to be one of further improvement. Just get the IFE conversion done, put in the lie-flat BE seats on all the 777s, and launch service to CPT and SYD, then I'll be satisfied.

Well what city? Every crew is different and each flight presents unique loading/unloading challenges.

I'm assuming you've never flown into Tampa. I'm biased since that's my home airport...but they have the best baggage handlers world-wide...and that's a strong statement that I stand behind.

Short of a lightning storm (when TPA ceases ramp operations) you will rarely have to wait more than a few minutes for your bag --- if it's not already waiting for you.

So, when did this change? Only Ys (or YBs) used to get any priority. So, are all PMs ahead of FOs and GMS with Ys now? That's a trade I think I am willing to make.

Amen brother. Heck even pull a Shannon/Dublin deal...just stop in Cape Town first.

Priority has always been status, then fare class, then timestamp. YBMs only come into play for the gate upgrade lottery where an FO on a YBM fare should trump a GM or PM on any other lower fare.

The rules changed earlier this year......with the new ranking info actually listed on Delta.com:

Unlimited Complimentary Medallion Upgrades

Look under 'How it works' for info on the clearing process.

Medallions booked in Y class apparently still have precidence over all other classes.

After 'Y Medallions', the rankings break down by Medallion status..... followed by fare class.....and finally time stamp.

Example of a hypothetical upgrade list for a DL flight on 6/10/07

(Medallion status - fare class - time/date stamp):

PM - B - 6/8/07
PM - M - 4/2/07
PM - H - 6/05/07
PM - H - 6/07/07
PM - Q - 6/01/07
PM - L - 5/15/07
PM - T - 3/03/07

GM - M - 5/07/07
GM - H - 6/09/07
GM - Q - 5/31/07
GM - Q - 6/02/07
GM - L - 5/17/07
GM - T - 3/01/07
GM - T - 3/10/07
GM - T - 3/11/07

FO - B - 6/09/07
FO - H - 6/06/07
FO - Q - 6/01/07
FO - Q - 6/02/07
FO - K - 5/25/07
FO - U - 4/20/07
FO - U - 4/22/07
FO - T - 2/25/07
FO - T - 2/27/07
FO - T - 3/05/07

A.J.