I am grateful to be at the top tier. After all, Delta is mighty proud of its elite treats. What could be finer than unlimited upgrades? I wondered how it would work, and on a recent five-leg itinerary, I found out that having first-priority upgrades is no guarantee that a seat in sharp end will come through. The new schedule had me arriving in Billings at PM.
I decided I would pay to upgrade on each of the three segments if need be to mitigate the torture of the roundabout route. Delta upgraded me to Atlanta all right just a one-hour flight , but not on the four-hour slog to Salt Lake City. I kept checking the Salt Lake City flight and found that four seats in first class were available, which later went to three seats. After that experience, I opted not to gamble on Delta for upgrades on my return flights.
That worked out well, especially as Twin Cities weather going home was a mess, and the flight was late by an hour. Sitting up front made the delay a good deal more tolerable. The bottom line, then, is that I paid to upgrade on three of the five legs, and Delta upgraded me on one segment. Lesson learned. I now have a more realistic expectation regarding upgrades that may come from being a Delta elite.
My personal choice will be to pay for upgrades when I can afford them rather than hope for a Delta freebie. When startup carrier Breeze began service to Raleigh, I was initially disinterested until I noticed a nonstop only on Fridays and Mondays to New Orleans. It might not have worked out, however.
Breeze, like most airline start-ups, is untrustworthy by nature. Our experience going to New Orleans and coming home, though, was smooth and comfortable. Two gate agents were on duty, surprisingly, and I approached them with my request. I had our global entry cards with me. The entire process took minutes, and both agents had obviously been trained to do it. At the gate, the inbound flight was on time and appeared to be full. Deplaning, even of wheelchairs, was efficient. Cleaning and turning were prompt.
