Just got home from 3 weeks in France.  Return trip was a grueling 22 hour ordeal with Delta Airlines.  I booked with Air France, but Delta is the partner and handles the USA bound flights.  Flight delay leaving Nice, France = 2.5 hours.  Landed at JFK too late to make my connection, because the checked  baggage took 2 hours to reach the carousels.  Next scheduled jet from NY JFK to SFO was 4 hours later - HA!  We got on the jet 5 hours later, then sat on the runway for 3.5 hours before lift-off!   This level of bad service is simply NOT acceptable.  But here's the real horror, you may have no alternative.  The outgoing departure schedule board showed that the Delta flight was partnered with over 6 other companies.  So it hardly matters if you think that you're going to be flying Korean Air, Air France, AlItalia, etc...  You're probably going to get put on a Delta Flight comong back to the USA.   How did Delta which was in Chapter 11 bankruptcy less than 2 years ago snatch up all these routes?  It's a crime against decent humanity.  

I love to visit distant places, been doing it for more than 35 years,  but I'm at the point that I hate to travel on airplanes anymore.

Tom I feel your pain. I don't enjoy flying for work, I carry too many equipment bags, atleast 12. But, when I'm alone and flying for pleasure I try to get some good music on ipod and healthy snacks and water and caffeine and wait to wait. Do you think the recent terrorist threat had to do with any delays? Just asking cause I may have two international flights in the future.

thanks for the heads up, Tom.  i'll be headin to barcelona in couple weeks.  was just thinking whether i should do delta or air france....

I've said it before, I'll say it again:

yelp.com/biz/gkkoILi36lA…

Collin, I've flown both Delta and Air France many times and I ALWAYS have a problem with Air France.  There is always a delay and they are not even nice or accommodating  .  Delta has pretty much been your standard airline.  I would recommend flying Delta over Air France any day.

Delta or AF? I would pick AF any day of the week. Yeah, the staff won't be as smiley (ok, some might even be rude by US standards), but the food and drinks more than make up for it...

When I originally Yelped DELTA airlines Airlines this previous thread

posted mhttp://www.yelp.com/biz/qmx5­CVxgPn1MaOwWnMSkTg?hrid=84-vAoPlD3R85mMHIrakWA

Did not come up...   These Yelpers experience parallel and sometimes surpass my experience for awfulness.

My wonderment is still how this piss poor service and total disregard for customer satisfaction allows Delta to not only stay in business, but actually grow to acquire many new routes and partnerships.

i'd also pick AF over Delta.   the wine and saumons is a nice touch.  hanging out in the self serve galley is always fun.  besides, it's a good way to brush up on french before landing.

So in an attempt to burn off some frequent flyer miles, I called Delta this spring requesting a ticket - any class - from any major U.S. airport to anywhere in Western Europe or East Asia, any time in September. No dice. How friggin flexible do you have to be to get a FF ticket?

I should take a photo of me burning my SkyMiles amex.

dude, i am anti-delta now too. even though i convinced them to let me fly from sfo, to maine, out of nyc to montana and back to sfo for 50,000ff miles-- and that took 2 days of calling until i spoke with somone actually based in the us who i could have a coherent conversation with.

but this was the end-- check this for a sad delta story:
imagine sitting poolside in 85 degree weather with a bunch of childhood friends and others frollicking people in the middle of the rockie mountains, the day after one of them just got married. ibut you've only been in town for 24hrs and have to leave mid afternoon because you HAVE to be at work on-time, Monday. So you leave, with everyone telling me I should say fuck it and stay.

It staaaaanks, but all is going swimmingly until sitting on the tarmac going out of Denver to Salt Lake- inexplicable delay. Finally fly and land, with the flight attendants assuring all of us we'll make our connections until the very last moment, as we're deplaning- "if you don't make the connection, talk to the gate agent inside"-- there are no more flights west that night besides the ones we're all booked on.

needless to say, they could have held the flight to oakland 5 minutes and had 15 people get on it instead of paying for food vouchers for all of them and $160 hotel rooms. i was standing at the desk with a surgeon who was saying, "i have people to OPERATE ON TOMORROW, and if i'm not there, some surgeon who's exhausted from working a 12 hour shift will be doing it." anyway, he tried to finagle his way into something for the both of us, which led to him stalking me in the hotel, but i just curled up with my 3.2% beer to console myself and called my friends to see how the party was. walked into work, straight off BART at noon the next day.

By the by, anyone else absolutely HATE SLC airport?

I actually prefer Delta over United for international flights.  

But I agree, flying has become such a chore.  Honestly, all airlines suck.  Too bad we can't stopping patronizing like we would a bad restaurant.

don't get me started!!
Delta airlines refused to help 10 of us get on our flight in Mexico despite arriving at the airport on time and being stuck in a mass of people calling out, "we're gonna miss the plane, our plane is boarding!" and asking mulitple employees for help. We missed our flight and they made us pay $100 each to get to the spot where our layover was and put us on standby. Half of us got out, half stayed overnight, and one had his passport stolen (we later got it back) by a delta employee. Never again. Plus i think they have less room between the seats than any other airline.

This is kinda off topic and not about Delta but....I've sometimes cried tears of joy when flying Lufthansa. They were awesome on the 4 flights I've had with them. The Germans rule.

anyone had a bad experience with alitalia? they are connected to the air france - delta alliance... alitalia lost our bags for over 48 hours back in april. we were flying from catania (sicily) -- milan -- vienna. they had no idea WHERE the bags were for that entire period of time. i was ready to kiss all those precious items goodbye. they supposedly give you some kind of $50 credit to buy the items you really need in the interim, but i saw none of it. finally got the bags two days later. stay away from alitalia -- FAR AWAY!

Jill, Northwest lost my bags for 3 WEEKS and I kept asking them to look for them in MN becase I just knew they would be there but they kept arguing with me. After 3 weeks, they found them in MN. Fuckers....

When I rode Alitalia they had nice uniforms, a little foo-foo militaristic looking but that's the style.  Agree about the plane being dirty.

Business on luthansa is pretty good.  I especially like how the PA system in frankfurt  announces the luthansa messages.

I still prefer the french attendants tho.

You can eat off the floors in the Munich airport and I had a fantastic meal of veal cutlet and baby potatoes there. I spent 9 fucking hours in Frankfurt but I checked myself into one of those lounges, I think it was $30, with big chairs, snacks, booze, coffee, etc included in the price. The pastries were actually very good. Pretty quiet in there so you can sleep. The crowd got a little jumpy when a bunch of Saudis checked in and got down to do their prayers cause it was that time of day. It was funny watching the people get uncomfortable.

A couple of the male Lufthansa attendants were very cute and flirty. They served Baileys after dinner and then the self serve galley was loaded w/ drinks and chocolates. I ate like 10 chocolates.

But for my money...British Airways rules.

Monty, I think a couple of them were staright. My gaydar is pretty good.