jjglaze77

There were no actual lounge invitations (perhaps in the future), just had to show BP. I'd guess that E+ will be allowed because they said that DL would be providing them a list of eligible passengers prior to each flight. If it were limited to J pax, they could simply look at the BP for "business."

mot29

Interesting comment on business model differences between DL and NW. When NW implemented the phantom upgrades they let their employees know that the program would mean a reduction in WBC seats available to employees because some of them would now be going to elite passengers. I actually talked with an FA who was working PDX-NRT on the flight on which I got my first phantom and she indicated that they had received a message in the fall telling them about the phantom program. She indicated that she was sorry that the opportunities for employee upgrades were getting tighter but that she understood that recognizing and rewarding good customers was good for business.

At the ATL DO, we were told that the phantoms were going away for a while because of PARS/Deltamatic problems but that there was a chance they would be back in a year or two when the computer systems were meshed.

ClipperDelta

Op-ups will occur when the back is overbooked and more Y pax show up/check-in than there are Y seats. Revenue pax will be bumped up to BE first before accomodating any non-revs....

SYD is a new destination so there are probably more FAs that want to stay longer than 24 hours than those looking for a purely productive trip. Once they are used to it, many will end up choosing/preferring a productive trip (i.e., 24 hour stay). For many FAs (I dare say the majority), productive trips are the #1 priority.

On such long-hauls, I have also heard from both pilots and FAs that in some ways, 24 hour layovers are better than 48 in terms of not messing up one's body clock. Having 48 hours increases your chances of adapting to the local time and thus messing you up further on the return trip.

Cybershaz

For those that have recently done the trek in Y ... how tiring / painful was it? I am booked in Y (low fare) and am wrestling with whether to spend the cash to upgrade to M and then use the 1 mile promo to get into Biz.

Right now only my return has Z availability, but because I'm on an NWA itin. I would have to upgrade everything to M (costing ~$2000). If the outbound gets Z availability and the return still has it that may make more sense ... but is it really worth the $2000? I know some of it's personal, but that's a long flight...

kyushuman

For point #1, I can guarantee you there were no Op-Ups, and no revenue pax were upgraded before Non-Revs.
The screen showed 232/233 seats in Y filled, while Biz Elite was 29/43. That was after boarding began, but before standbys were processed. I was waiting to board near the GAs desk, and the only BPs they gave out before boarding were a few seat changes-nothing in J.
When the door closed, EVERY seat was full in J.
So, all 14 seats went to StandBys, and they weren't high-revenue paying Elites, I imagine.
Nobody from Y was reseated after boarding began (much less 14 of them), which means that all--or nearly all--of the standbys sat in J. I watched many of the standbys (mostly nonrevs) checking on their stanby status, so yes most (if not all) of the empty J seats went to NonRevs.
And from talking to the FAs, they all agreed one of the best perks of flying for DL was that they were often going to be able to fly in J.
It seemed pretty unanimous among DL employees that this was a really appreciated perk for them, to sit in J--and it's quite different from NW, which over the years seems to Op-Up Plats at least before Non-Revs. Maybe I'm way off--if so, please let me know--but also from replies from frequent DL flyers, this seems to be fairly accurate.

For Point #2, I will just repeat that it was 4-0 in the galley. I actually agree with you--it would be great to get 30 inflight hours under your belt in about 54 hours--that's at least 3-4 work days accomplished in just over 2. Then you get an extra few days at home! Maybe part of it is just that they want to spend a few days in SYD, and they pilots will be able to, so they are excited about the new destination.
But it is definitely a union issue, when part of the labor force (especially when it's the much-higher-paid pilots, with also better working conditions) are unionized, while their coworkers aren't. Union issues WILL come up later this year, based on what I heard from actual FAs on this flight.
Interesting!

jjglaze77

I was under the impression that this flight was being staffed by LAX based FAs. If that is indeed correct, this is certainly a different trip entirely than their norm. Aside from the Mexico flights and the short-lived GRU service, what other international routes would these FAs get? This is a completely new kind of trip for them, so I'd imagine that there are many different opinions about what kind of layovers they'd prefer. To some, I'd imagine that the 48-hour layover seems very productive compared to some of the normal domestic trips they are used to.

syrwhizzy

... what's the 1 mile promo to get into Biz?

ANstar

Or they could stop staff travelleing J getting into the lounge??

ContinentalFan

That's very little time for the FAs in Sydney.

How many FAs worked the flight? On DL243/244 there are eight FAs: four upfront and four in coach. I suspect on international flights there are more--maybe 12; since it's a 15 hour flight, that would mean that there'e be somewhere between 20 and 24 FAs altogether--half of them sleeping at any given time.

ContinentalFan

It is a personal choice, but for me it's worth it. I love those suites on the B772LRs; I've now taken them twice on LAX/ATL. I am flying to SYD in August and looking forward to a 15 hour flight up front.

DLATL777

Me as well; what are you travel dates?

Robert Leach

The question is: was coach overbooked??

If it was overbooked, meaning there were revenue passengers standing there with no seat assignments and no assignable coach seats available, then the usual and customary practice (if not the policy) is to op-up the elites seated in the back and move those at the gate with confirmed reservations but no seat assignments into the seats vacated by the op-upgraded elites.

If, on the other hand, coach was not overbooked, and there were empty seats in BE, and there were NRSAs standing by, then I think those would probably be put in BE.

Robert Leach

Those were LA-based FAs and California is very pro-union these days, so I don't doubt that this was the sentiment.

Not trying to stereotype, but I think a lot of them like to play and there's nothing like having 48 hours in Australia to play whilst getting paid for it.

I think a settled-in veteran based in Atlanta would prefer to get the trip over and get back home as efficiently as possible. (I'll never forget the Pediatric ICU nurse who was also a Delta FA. She was able to juggle both jobs due to her seniority with Delta, which allowed her to bid for the more efficient trips).

The unfortunate thing is that the LA-based FAs would think that their only hope is to have a union make this argument for them, at a cost of monthly dues but quite likely the same gross pay per month, resulting in less take-home pay. So, 48 hours in SYD with less money to spend whilst there. That, ladies and gentlemen, is progress!

I am one who works a variety of shifts, with rapid swings (night shift one day, day shift a couple of days later, for example). I agree with the argument that a quick 24 hour layover would be preferable to staying 48 hours from a circadian perspective.

SoCalLen

I just got home... Honestly it wasn't bad! The way these seats recline is that it pushes the seat bottom slightly forward, which keeps the passenger behind you from breaking their knees. It was definitely one of my better flights. The screens are huge, too. I liked the A330 a lot, but now that I see how huge these screens are compared to the A330 I can honestly say that I've found a new favorite plane... I put a trip report in the other thread in this forum if you're interested in seeing it.

Cybershaz

Here's a link...
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/delta...te-1-mile.html