r/delta • u/sd_diver59 • 5h ago
Image/Video Delta One going down hill
On DL126 JFK->MAD. Paid D1. We’re on a 767-300ER(K). I’ve never been in a D1 cabin this small. Normally this would be at least a 767-400. No Bluetooth to the tiny monitor. Lay flat is short, so there won’t be any sleep on this 8:35 pm- 9:55 am flight. What a waste of $$. I’ve had better premium economy experiences. 😔
269
u/LBBflyer 5h ago
It's the oldest D1 cabin and quite infamous. Recommend doing a little research before spending $$ on D1.
194
69
u/sd_diver59 5h ago
Last minute substitute yesterday. Actually got a phone call asking if I would be willing to give up PDX->JFK->MAD for PDX to Minneapolis to Amsterdam to Madrid due to an equipment change. The flight went from 34 to 26 D1 seats. PDX was delayed 2.5 hours. Would never have booked a 300ER.
26
u/i_wanted_to_say 5h ago
That’s a bummer. The 763 hasn’t really gone downhill though, as it’s never gone uphill to begin with. At least not in 15 years or so since BizElite went away.
6
u/________uwu_________ 4h ago
I would be pissed, too. My home airport is JFK and it seems like more than half of the Delta transatlantic flights from here are operated by the 763 or A333. Occasionally, we’d get the 764 or if we are really lucky, the A339.
It’s such a shame because NYC is a huge, important market with a lot of competitions and the D1 lounge at JFK is arguably the best lounge in the country, but Delta doesn’t seem to prioritize assigning aircrafts with competitive and retrofitted/new cabins here. Same thing with our transcontinental service to LAX and SFO — almost always a 763 with these “D1 Historic” cabins.
0
u/LBBflyer 5h ago
Fair enough. An equipment swap is always a risk, but nothing you can really do. I suppose at that point it becomes a question if you'd rather travel a day later, connect through CDG/AMS, or just be on the 763.
0
u/FunLife64 3h ago
Sure but this is out of JFK for crying out loud. They should cut routes if they can’t swap out to a plane that’s not this…
3
u/snozzberrypatch 2h ago
They only made $3.3 billion in profit in the last year, they can't afford new planes.
2
2
u/LBBflyer 3h ago
DL flies many international and premium domestic routes out of JFK on the 767-300. It's not something they have shyed away from. They have also said they will not upgrade them before they are retired.
2
14
u/drivefor6iny2k 3h ago
Why does Delta have 6 different configs and why the hell does it take them so long?
2
1
u/gyang333 1h ago
I think the 7th (LATAM A359) is gone, but soon the A350-1000 will be introduced and we are back to 7 different configurations again
4
6
u/New-Passenger-6101 1h ago
Shouldn’t have to do research when spending money on D1
That’s the whole point of spending that money I want to be to turn my brain off and trust that I’m going to be taken care of….
2
1
u/TheTurdFerguson6 41m ago
I’m sure they didn’t feed you, refill your drink 4+ times and come by with multiple snack options. Definitely didn’t take care of you up there.
2
1
u/sunflowerofmd 6m ago
What a nonsensical response.
What if one does their research, whatever the fuck that means, sees the plane is a 350 with a beautiful d1 cabin, and last minute Delta swaps the plane and uses this piece of shit?
What happens to your “research” then?
18
u/radar1989 Diamond 5h ago
The D1 Suites on A359s don’t have Bluetooth connectivity either. I think some aircraft has it but it’s very rare.
8
u/harkeyone Diamond 5h ago
I Tavel with a transmitter, $20 dollars or so.
-3
u/sd_diver59 4h ago
Or use their over the ear headphones. The PDX-JFK leg had a much larger screen that worked with my AP Pros. This is like my 10th D1 trans Atlantic trans Pacific flight. They’ve all been great till now. Gave up United Premier 1k and switched to Delta because of D1. Or should I say D1 Classic?
2
1
u/bdubwilliams22 2h ago
Because Delta has a garbage product on brand-new planes. It’s absurd that people still think Delta is a premium experience.
1
u/LeoKitCat 1h ago edited 55m ago
No it’s because Delta was the first airline in the world to unveil an all suite business class with doors in 2016-2017, and 10 years ago no business class entertainment systems had Bluetooth connectivity that’s a relatively new thing. Everyone copied the Delta D1 concept that’s how popular it is, but you shouldn’t expect that only 9 years after that they are going to totally replace those first a350 D1 suites.
-1
u/Fine-Nectarine7148 Diamond 1h ago
Best domestic airline and not even close. The Debbie Downers here need to hop in their cars and just drive everywhere.
-2
u/Inigomntoya 2h ago
Buy headphones with a cable or get a transmitter.
I wouldn't want to pair my headphones with a random bluetooth transmitter anyway.
41
u/sd_diver59 5h ago
This is my first Delta Reddit post. Thanks to all of the constructive replies - I appreciate it. Lesson learned - don’t post an issue on Reddit.
32
u/Tasty_Plate_5188 5h ago
Delta has an intense fan base, in which their loyalty is tied to how much money their company's spend on Delta, it's almost never their own money.
Anyone paying their own way will have a critique and the people with status, paid for by their jobs will rush to defend a corporation that does not even know they exist.
20
u/but-I-play-one-on-TV 4h ago
This sub started appearing randomly on my main page a while ago even though I almost never fly Delta, and the wildest thing I've noticed in the comments is much stock people put in their their SkyMile title or whatever it is. It's like a badge of honor that they have done nothing to obtain other than be employed by companies that makes them fly for work. It's bizarre.
6
u/drivefor6iny2k 3h ago
And the choose to be away from home 200+ days a year. Missing all kinds of family events so they can take 1 free vacation all year long with their miles and rental/hotel points.
4
u/wellimthegm 3h ago
That’s absolutely false. I spend my own personal money on Delta and every company I have worked for (small, medium and large) has always had Delta as their most preferred airline. Talk to their B2B sales department — they’re the ones out there doing the sales to companies. But, personally, I stopped flying the other carriers years ago because they absolutely suck. I flew United earlier this year, first class, to Chicago and service and food were awful. Their lounge was also equally bad.
Edit - in this instance - if I paid for D1 and got this shitty configuration, which I’ve flown before but only transcontinental US, I would be complaining to customer relations and expecting a partial refund. I make no excuses for Delta’s aging fleet. I don’t have any clue why they waited so long to start buying planes…
1
u/BreakfastOk2392 2h ago
Thankfully my company is airline agnostic and we can book whatever we want. Everyone hates delta where I work.
2
u/NecessaryArguments 2h ago
Don’t bitch and moan about your tier 1 experience turning out 1.5. You get a 2? Have at it.
2
u/Ibroketherandom 2h ago
I'd say moreso be better with the written language you use. The title "Delta One going down hill" is implying that the entire service across Delta is having problems, which is not the case and will get you flamed out.
If this post had been titled, "Why does Delta still allow these ancient suites to be considered Delta One?", you probably would have had more positive reception.
It's very pedantic, I know.
1
15
u/TotalRealistic7337 5h ago
Is this from 2026 or 2006? Seriously
2
20
11
u/WordWordNvmber 5h ago
OP, based on your comment, you should edit your post to note this was an equipment swap yesterday.
6
2
u/Affectionate-Ant8 2h ago
Need a leadership change
0
u/punkslaot 2h ago
Its the most profitable airline in the world. But it needs a leadership change🙄
2
u/Affectionate-Ant8 2h ago
Changing consumer sentiment precedes revenue changes. Do you know anything about the markets???
1
u/ComputerOverall7337 Platinum 1h ago
I'm not disagreeing with your premise, but how do you know that consumer sentiment is changing for Delta? If Reddit, or any social media site for that matter, is your barometer, then I would encourage you to go look up the other airlines and read about how the grass is pretty much the same over there.
0
1
u/TotalRealistic7337 26m ago
It’s the second most profitable airline in the world, Emirates is the most profitable
7
u/Excusemytootie Platinum 3h ago
Why didn’t you DO yOuRe rEsearCh? /s
5
5
u/MacaulayConnor 4h ago
On one particularly travel-heavy year I had occasion to fly business class on four different airlines, and D1 was the least impressive, I assume because it’s just older and hasn’t kept up. I’m not terribly surprised. But I’d think with some of the highest ticket prices, they’d be able to keep it updated.
2
u/TellLongjumping6309 4h ago
The 767s were crappy 10 years ago for business class. How is that product still in the air. The company is making billions. Just retire those crappy planes already b
3
4
u/nicemarmot47 5h ago
They always fly their worst planes on that route. I flew it in coach maybe a decade ago and the seat in front of me was broken. When the woman in it reclined her seat twenty minutes into the flight, it flew backwards and slammed into my knees, hurting my knees and the other passengers neck. We spent the whole flight with her bouncing painfully off my lap.
2
2
u/How_do_you_know1 5h ago
Op, I'm so sorry. That's terrible!!!!! Ug. Is there anything good or will you be uncomfortable the whole trip? Ug, sorry. I hope there's something that makes it 1% less worse than it already is.
9
u/sd_diver59 5h ago
It’s the start of a wonderful 1 month vacation. I’ll be in Spain tomorrow. Life is good. 😊
1
1
u/PositiveFunny5880 3h ago
It’s 100% unacceptable on a route like this, but this happens on all airlines unfortunately and is t unique to delta
1
u/acreekofsoap 3h ago
You should see steerage
1
u/LoveOfSpreadsheets 1h ago
Best steerage in the skies on a 767, ironically since it's It's 2-3-2 across.
1
u/bdubwilliams22 2h ago
Going down hill? I don’t understand how people continue to stick up for Delta. It hasn’t been a good airline for 20 years now.
1
1
1
u/LoveOfSpreadsheets 1h ago
I will never pay today's rates for a Delta 767 in business class. They had an opportunity when refreshing to do like United and go 3 across but they didn't. Might as well, like you said OP, stick to Premium Select.
1
u/BadGreekMofo25 1h ago
Stopped flying them and they’re way too expensive. All those tiers for a flight is a total joke
1
1
u/LeoKitCat 1h ago
I think the mistake Delta made is calling all their widebody business class hard products Delta One, whether they were the new nice suites or these old ones. For these old 763s and the old a332/a333 they should marketed it with another name and price point like Delta Business or something
1
u/waterytartwithasword 1h ago
You'd be more comfortable just buying 3 coach seats and using them as a bed at that rate.
1
u/DetectiveWinter4638 Platinum 46m ago
Delta has the most inconsistent business class seat of the big 3. And now they are introducing ANOTHER variant - the newly announced d1 seat only coming to the A350-1000, which will be amazing, but will add to the huge gap between best and worst business seat in their fleet.
However, one exciting thing, Delta just ordered over 100 new planes. Plans to retire 767 with 787 Dreamliners as an example. Fingers crossed they get their shit together.
1
u/Mean_Row_9533 43m ago
Try the cheap sits in the back. That is the definition of “going down hill”. I wish I had your problems.
1
u/smearhunter 34m ago
Is this the same as the standard 767-300 designation when looking at flight itinerary? I'm not familiar with the ER(K) part, but I have a D1 flight labeled as being on a 767-300 next year.
1
u/UnhingedPastor 26m ago
Part of the problem is that you're on an old ass 767. As a legacy hot rod, I love those planes, but for long haul comfort, they suck balls.
1
1
1
u/ActUpEighty 4h ago
I would have went with Iberia's Recaro CL6720 suite. This is probably the best nonstop lay flat product you'll find between JFK and MAD. Even Air Europa's Stelia Opal beats Delta's B76K product.
1
0
u/mae3mae10 2h ago
Research the plane model when booking. Not all business class seats are the same…
3
u/Outside-Ad7848 2h ago
Shouldn't have to do that, Delta needs to not run those, especially at that price
2
u/pnw-nemo 2h ago
I will avoid Delta 767s at all costs. Even if it means having a layover. Those planes suck!
1
1
u/Brambleshire 1h ago
It's not even common across plane models. There are at least 3 cabin setups even across 767-300s
1
u/bernaltraveler Platinum 30m ago
The UA Polaris seats are pretty darn consistent. There is certainly variability of the cabin quality overall across their fleet, and the Polaris FA crews are a crapshoot, so I’m not saying it’s a panacea, but the hard seat product is quite reliable . UA 767 and 757 Polaris seats are solid. It’s not rocket science and we should not excuse DL having some stinkers roaming the fleet posing as D1. Why customers like you reflexively jump to defend an inconsistent product is beyond me 🤷
0
-11
u/omdongi 5h ago
Lay flat is short, so there won’t be any sleep on this 8:35 pm- 9:55 am flight. What a waste of $$.
This is at least a skill issue on your behalf. You know how short this flight to Europe is. Make better financial decisions.
8
7
u/DarkLordofData 5h ago
Pretty sure the OP is saying the lay flat bed is short which is very true unless you are in the front row. This plane is a POS on any route.
-4
u/omdongi 5h ago
If they're not talking about the flight being short, why are they specifically mentioning the times?
3
u/randomname3415 5h ago
“Lay flat is short” is very clearly talking about the length of the lay flat seat
-3
u/omdongi 4h ago
It changes none of the circumstance. They know what this seat is, ahead of time, and chose to spend money on it.
And it's most definitely plausible to read this as "Lay flat [time] is short, so there won’t be any sleep on this 8:35 pm- 9:55 am flight". There's really no point in referencing the times, if the sentence is not about the time.
3
u/randomname3415 4h ago
The time is to highlight it’s overnight so you would be wanting to get sleep. They mentioned already that there was an equipment swap so no they didn’t purposefully pick a plane with a smaller lie flat. Is reading comprehension really that difficult?
-1
0
0
u/FinnishArmy Gold 1h ago edited 1h ago
It’s not going downhill, it’s actually going uphill. You just got unlucky with an old plane they don’t want to redo because of the age. And truthfully, it’s still Delta One, and many will never experience even what you experienced as “suboptimal”. And if you flew the same flight in economy, it would’ve been worse. Furthermore, if this was a new Delta One seat, the ticket price would’ve been hundreds more.
Also, just use Aerolopa and you’ll know EXACTLY what seat you’re selecting on any airline on any plane.
-5
u/ifitgoesitsgood 4h ago
Here we go again. A known product. A known complaint. And known retirement schedule. This complaint is as tired as the cabin.
-16
u/Fine-Nectarine7148 Diamond 5h ago
Didn’t pay attention to what you were booking? Shame, shame.
12
u/Tasty_Plate_5188 5h ago
It was an equipment swap.
Stop defending a profitable corporation that doesn't even know you exist.
6
-10
u/Fine-Nectarine7148 Diamond 5h ago
Stop defending the OP who has thousands to spend on D1 that doesn’t know you exist.
7
u/Tasty_Plate_5188 5h ago
Well that's a swing and a miss.
Sad. I bet you thought you really ate with that one.
2
u/BreakfastOk2392 2h ago
It was an equipment swap - not the OPs fault. Delta sucks and keep kicking those boots.
8
u/dasrightq 5h ago
You’re so focused on shaming the customer, when it’s the company that’s at fault for selling this as a premium experience.
And this was an equipment swap anyway, you doofus.
-2
5
u/bhalter80 Diamond 5h ago
Why is it on the customer to make sure that the D1 advertised is really D1? When's the last time you tested the 87 octane gas you put in your car to see if it was really 87? How about your Champagne to make sure the grapes were actually grown in the right part of France?
Op could have helped themselves out here, but shouldn't have had to
9
u/sd_diver59 5h ago
I did 300+ days ago. The seat websites show this flight as 100% 400. Picked 4B since it supposedly has more legroom (but less storage) than 4C. I did do my homework before spending thousands…
10
u/randomname3415 5h ago
It amazes me how many people in this sub will fault the customer and not the company selling this as international business class
-4
u/Fine-Nectarine7148 Diamond 5h ago
Amazes me how many people in this sub just bitch and moan about every little thing, yet continue to hand over their money to big, bad, Delta.
7
u/randomname3415 5h ago edited 5h ago
Do you think OP’s complaint falls under the “every little thing” category? They also mentioned it was an equipment swap so it’s not like they had a choice here. You come off like a pompous asshole.
-2
u/Fine-Nectarine7148 Diamond 1h ago
The pompous assholes are the one that call Ed by name like he’s an acquaintance.
5
u/NotMalaysiaRichard 4h ago
You must like to wear knee pads for big bad Delta.
4
u/Tasty_Plate_5188 4h ago
They have diamond status. But most likely paid for by their job. So they're Boot licking for Delta because of their job.
That's just so much worse.
-1
3
u/BreakfastOk2392 2h ago
Thankfully I don’t fly delta - I only fly Emirates First Class, Qatar Airways Business Class, Japan Airlines First Class, and Air France La Première.
-3
u/Large-Sorbet7550 5h ago
Not defending this, but you can look at what plane and the configuration you are flying. There are so many planes, Delta has direct routes to a lot of places in Europe and some of the “secondary destinations” have these older planes. You can fly a newer plane with a better configuration but it means connecting in AMS or CDG
10
u/sd_diver59 5h ago edited 5h ago
Typically do. I’ve really enjoyed the direct PDX to Amsterdam in the past. Selected this due to the safer layover in JFK and their D1 lounge. And it was supposed to be a 400.
-1
u/thecorvetteguy95 2h ago
If you can’t sleep there, that’s a you problem. I’m too tall and broad to fit in the peasant seats and make it work and fall asleep, I’d pass out with that much space.
-3
-11
u/DirkDiggler2424 4h ago
Entitled fuck
3
u/sd_diver59 4h ago
Seriously? This was basically a bait and switch. Is this comment based on my even having booked D1? If so you’ll hate to hear how I’m returning home…
-3
-3
u/tcspears 5h ago
This is an ancient product, that’s rarely seen anymore. You just got unlucky and got an older aircraft… it can happen with any carrier.
112
u/DCA_PSCI 5h ago
Yeah all the fan boys go silent when forced to defend this crap product on the 763s.