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I am going to start something new on the blog as of today and it will be a semi-regular feature much like the Rookie Wednesday feature (that is for more than just rookies btw). Fridays will be a weekly roundup for all the bits that I did not get to blog about or just touched on and want to expand on a bit. We will see what you, the reader, think about this idea. On to the topics this week.
click above for flickr.com slide show
This week, to much fanfare and PR blitzing, Delta announced it is going with new designer serviceware in 1st class and Delta One. I get the reason for the shouting. Delta does not have “real” 1st class. They never will. They will soon have doors on their Delta One full flat seats making them seem even more 1st class-ish. So, when you have a chance to tout what you have, serviceware can help you stand out.
To me the old items were fine. Not amazing and a bit on the flimsy side, but fine. My only two real gripes about the old stuff was A) the utterly horrid trailer park faux wood serving trays and B) the tall stem wine glasses that tended to knock over easily. The new plastic trays look much better and the rest of the new serviceware looks very nice. Nothing negative here and it will be a positive change. Well done Delta.
Back in November of last year I confirmed with Delta they were testing C+ seats on a CRJ200. I thought the idea was ridiculous then and I think it is just “lipstick on a pig” today. Notice what the normally reliable reported Delta employee who comments on FlyerTalk says:
“Comfort+ will be sold on CRJ-200s starting April 1. Comfort+ will be available on flights starting May 1. (Row 1) 2 seats will be for sale per aircraft, and 2 seats blocked for people with disabilities.” – user Widgets from FlyerTalk
I am thrilled (no not really). Let’s think about this for a bit. This means you can now get “fake” upgrade e-mails for CRJ200s (oh boy oh boy). We have overhead bins now on CRJ200s that often are blocked for oxygen etc. but now rows 2 & 3 says the bins are for C+ (good luck with that). There is NO, ZERO, NADA extra space in this faux C+ row (kinda the point of comfort). And lastly, if you have ever been on a CRJ200, you know many times the FA asks a number of folks in the first few rows to move to the back of the jet for “weight and balance issues”. How about paying for C+ and sitting by the toilet in the back. This is going to work out great (#SaidNoOneEVer). I think this coming out on April 1st will be viewed as a “fools joke” – don’t you? 😉
Next we have Delta this month announcing that some routes they want to show off will have food, not just in C+ like you see above, but in the rest of coach. Other airlines are jumping onboard to do the same since they have to do everything Delta does just normally not as good as Delta. But why food?
I think, in the past, Delta and the other airlines would have just had promotions for coach for bonus points for flying these routes. Since Delta SkyMiles has all but died in value, and AA points are worth slightly less than dog poo now, marketing folks realize that giving bonus points for routes will not drive customer behavior. No, time for something old something borrowed something FOOD! Do you think this is a good idea?
To end with (oh this is bad) there is a report from a comedian that some kind of poo was in her Delta Westin first class blanket. I have not posted it because the language is offensive to me and I don’t want it on the blog. You have been warned and may want to wait to see the PG version on the national news later as I am sure this one will go viral – yuck.
Have a great weekend everyone and what do you think of all of this weeks latest and greatest from Delta-land? – René
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Anything, and I do mean ANYTHING that includes more flights Delta operating with the CRJ200 is a total fail.
There is only one exception to this and it is increasing the number of flights to MYR. But, we know that won’t happen.
Rene, myself and around 12 co-workers are Diamond/Plat with Delta and we have hard fast two rules. No connections through Minneapolis due to the distance on connections (likely to miss connection) and no CRJ200 routes. We literally eliminate those options in selecting flight. Even to the point of going to Southwest first as our back up vs. facing those two options.
February 2012, Delta announced retirement of 2012 and phase out of the plane. Various folks and bloggers have given Delta every break about the slow “retirement” of this miserable little plane and how Delta was making progress on retiring plane. Yet, the schedule shows flights on CRJ200’s through 2017 and probably now, well beyond. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see CRJ200’s coming out the desert to rejoin the fleet, the Delta painted fleet. This announcement signals the retirement of the CRJ200 maybe years from now. Very, very disappointing.
Might be nice if they could figure out how to keep the silverware from being ice cold when handing it out.
I know, I know, #firstworldproblems…
I laugh (yes literally and physically out loud) now when I board Satan”s Charioth and see these ‘Comfort +’ seat covers on row 1. Because of the lack of leg room in row 1, I always pick row 2. My fear has been that someday they might consider these an ‘upgrade’ and I could get stuck there. I will happily sit in the back next to the lav instead of row 1. Can’t imagine charging extra for them. It would be different if they actually had more leg room. Sad.