Flight Review: Delta Air Lines (Boeing 717) Comfort+ From Denver to Seattle

Delta has increasingly become by airline of choice when traveling domestically throughout the United States. Being located in the Seattle-area Delta has been in a ruthless competition with Alaska Airlines for routes out of this great Northwest city. For the consumer this means pricing competitions that push down the prices for many popular domestic locations.

On this flight I was returning back to Seattle from Denver after a family wedding. Booking my tickets was very easy and check-in was a snap. I like Delta’s mobile application as it keeps you updated with flight information and your bag status after check-in. Delta is one of the only airlines out there that tracks your bag in real-time and keeps you updated in the application.

As of recent I’ve been upgrading to Comfort+ seats, being a tall person I enjoy the extra leg room and priority boarding means I don’t have to struggle with space for my carry-on luggage. When picking my seat I usually go by the recommendation of SeatGuru to find seats that will have the most comfort and not have an obstructed window view or misaligned window. My seat this flight was 10E, which doesn’t sound as far back as it actually is. My seat was the first row right behind first class.

The seat is considered a bulk head seat but on this aircraft there is no physical separation between first class and Comfort+ giving you the great pleasure of really stretching your legs out under the first class seats. Due to this being a bulk head seat your tray table is in the armrest instead of in the back of the seat in front of you.

I’ve never been fond of bulk head seats for the fact that your tray table is usually in the armrest meaning you have slightly reduced seat width and from experience the table is a bit more flimsy. I don’t think many people consider this when going after a bulk head seat and for me the tray table was unusable with no good way to balance my laptop and drink simultaneously. Personally I just opted to hold my drink and work with one hand as I was really just catching up on some of my TV shows that I watch and wasn’t concerned with much work on this shirt three-hour flight.

Wifi service was about average with other air-to-ground systems and was only capable of loading web pages at a slower rate than normal cable connections. I was able to answer a couple emails and to chat with my workgroup app just fine.

Overall seat comfort was nice, it was generously padded as the Comfort+ seats offer. The seats offered 34 inches of pitch and 18.1 inches of width. There was no in-seat entertainment as it’s a short-haul aircraft but did have wifi. For a three-hour trip I was comfortable in the seat and didn’t have to give my butt a rest at all, something that usually happens with less padded seats that I’ve experienced.

In-flight service was great, this was a mainline Delta flight so it offered more food options including premium snacks for purchase. Due to its short duration we were offered one round of drinks, a chance to purchase snacks, and water towards the end of the flight.

Delta has been exceptional with bag delivery when I flew with checked bags. On this flight I had oversize luggage that made it to the carousal before I did which was surprising. I’ve never had any major luggage delays with Delta thus far, but I also usually only travel with a carry on if I can.

Final Thoughts

Comfort+ is a nice upgrade for those who want just a bit more out of their flight such as priority boarding and better leg room for those who are of the taller variety. I do prefer Delta mainline flights instead of those contracted out to other carriers, the snack selection was top-notch. Seat comforts were great except for the fact that my bulk head seat’s tray table was flimsy. Next time I will opt for the next row back instead of a bulk head seat.