Review of Delta Air Lines flight London New York in Business

Airline Delta Air Lines
Flight DL006
Class Business
Seat 7D
Aircraft Boeing 767-400ER
Flight time 07:40
Take-off 17 Dec 12, 12:50
Arrival at 17 Dec 12, 15:30
DL   #33 out of 94 Airlines A minimum of 10 flight-reports within the past two years is required to appear in the rankings. 825 reviews
KévinDC
By SILVER 6669
Published on 8th November 2013
Hi everyone,

Here is the last segment of my routing that took me from Washington, DC to Toulouse France, via London. As a reminder, I had routed myself through LHR to burn some avios on British Airways and had plans in London on the return leg.

Here is the routing:

These reports were originally published in French and you can find them here:

JFK-LHR DL J FRENCH version
LHR-TLS BA Y FRENCH version
TLS-LHR BA Y FRENCH version
LHR-JFK DL J FRENCH version

Routing in English:

JFK-LHR, Delta Air Lines, B767-300ER, BusinessElite
LHR-TLS, British Airways, A319-100, Economy
TLS-LHR, British Airways, A319-100, Economy
LHR-JFK, Delta Air Lines, B767-400ER, BusinessElite [HERE]

Before getting into the flight, allow me to share a few photos of my short stay in London. I had planned a one-day stopover in London to meet up with a good friend from DC who had already been in the UK for a few days and was due to fly back on the same flight as me. We had planned on going to see Rock of Ages in the West End. I highly recommend it for children of the 80s.

The theater was small but cozy.

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After the show we went on a walk around the area. I've been to London a dozen times but I realized that I didn't have any pictures of the city by night…so I made up for lost time since London is particularly beautiful at Christmastime

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Picadilly



The London Sofitel. Very pretty but outrageously expensive.

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Westminster Abbey

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Look kids, Big Ben, Parliament! (movie reference ^^)

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The London Eye

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Trafalgar Square

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In the morning we went across the street to the Savoy for an English Breakfast. It was rather expensive at £30 but it was worth it for the very British atmosphere.

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Beautiful dining room.

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Definitely not a light breakfast :-)

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After a great breakfast, we left the Strand Palace Hotel in a taxi to Paddington Station where we took the Heathrow Express.

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Once we got to the HEX LHR station between T1 and T2, we had about 15 minutes to wait for a train to T4. I have bad luck with this train every time–15 minutes is a long time to wait to change terminals. Once you get to T4, you have to walk past the regular SkyTeam check-in counter to get to a dedicated Sky Priority check-in area. I like this concept of a completely seperate check-in zone for Sky Priority which makes it feel less hectic.

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Despite the busy holiday season, there is no wait to drop off my bag.

I had picked a seat in an odd numbered row to be closer to the window.

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I really wanted to be able to spend as much time as possible in the awesome SkyTeam lounge, but we hadn't gotten to the airport as early as I would have liked considering we had to change terminals once we got to the HEX station. Going through security slowed me down even more and was a pretty annoying experience. There wasn't much of a line but once I got past the metal detector a bleached-blond gum-smacking BAA security agent stopped me and asked to look in my bag. I told her that's no problem and to please go ahead. She searched my bag THREE times; she literally could not have been any slower. She was taking her sweet time and chatting with other agents. After a good 15 minutes she discovered….a lighter…Gasp….oh the horror! She explained to me that I had two lighters and that I was only allowed one….wow seriously? The kicker is that I had stopped smoking a few months before, LOL.

With me being such a security threat and all, I only had 30 minutes left to go to the lounge. No time for a massage :-(
Oh well…at least I get a little time to enjoy the lounge and grab a few glasses of wine ^^

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UA 752 (ex-CO) seen from the lounge. I had thought that all *A airlines were at T1.

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The LHR SkyTeam lounge is really beautiful. Unfortunately the 2nd floor was closed.

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A whole wall wine and liquors….heaven :-)
Nice design. I like the decor in general.

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Not many aircraft movements to be seen from the lounge.

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I just grabbed a light snack. The lunch offering was being put in place, but boarding was about to begin.

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My 767-400. I find 764s to be very elegant.

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We board from door 2L. I turn left towards the J cabin and my friend, seated in Economy Comfort, turns right.

The cabin of my 764. The same type of cabin that I had on the 763ER on the way over.

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Comfortable 1-2-1 configuration.

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Another DL 764 is parked next to us.

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The menu is distributed during boarding. The kit was already in the seat with a large pillow and blanket. There was also a bottle of water and noise-cacelling headphones on the large armrest/table. It's a decent pair of headphones but I prefer using my own.

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Welcome drink Duval-Leroy Champagne

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The pitch

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Today's menu



We push back on time as the new (at the time) security video is played.

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Yet another DL 764.

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The taxi time is relatively short.

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Takeoff with a beautiful view of T5.

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The London suburbs

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The seat controls, slightly different than on the 763ER.

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Another glass of champagne as an apéritif served with warm nuts.

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Cheers!

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Lunch is served over Ireland. Upper Lough Erne pictured below.

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The First course and soup are good and I find the overall presentation to be nice. The FA in charge on my section is a young Japanese FA that I had seen the previous month on a JFK-NRT. She was incredibly sweet and attentive throughout theflight.

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Afterwards a large salad is served with I paired with a Torrontes, a decent South American white.

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The main dish was nothing fancy but tasty and well cooked. The sauce was very good.

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A cheese plate and chocolate tart to finish accompanied by a Sauternes desert wine. The meal was very filling so I didn't get the ice cream Sundae (plus I'm lactose intolerant so I have to be careful).

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After the meal I got up to stretch my legs and went to the front galley to ask if I could have 2 Cognacs. I asked if it would be ok to bring them back to Economy Comfort so that I could have an after dinner drink with my friend. One of the FA's says that's really sweet of you and starts warming up some glasses for me. Oh, thanks! Wow, you're even warming glasses! I replied to which she responded This ain't my first rodeo hon Hah, I love it!

After enjoying a nice digestif with my friend, who it turned out had a whole row of 3 to himself, I went back to my seat and watched The Bourne Legacy befire taking a little nap.

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I wake up over Canada just before the second meal service.

A salad with a warm chicken sandwich. I Drank a white bordeaux with it. Again…not fancy, but good and filling.
The FA asked me if I'd like to send back a drink to my friend. Passengers in Economy Comfort get free drinks but usually served in plastic cups so having a real glass and wine from BE would be nice. What attentive service!

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Having seen the show the night before, I decided to watch Rock of Ages the movie, which had recently come out, to see how it compared to the live show. It was decent, but I definitely enjoyed the show better.

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Final approach over the beaches of Long Island. Hmmm…surprising that the weather was nicer in London.



Two whalejets at T4

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Another DL 767

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LY 744

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DL 744, also headed to TLV

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A Smurf and a Leprechaun parked at T4.

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A 738 parked next to us at the old T3. This was my last time flying into T3–I hated T3, but I'll definitely miss that iconic saucer shape.

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With more than 4 hours to wait before my flight to DCA, I decided to head out to T4 to go back to the Oasis lounge (it's now under new ownership with a new name).

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A little night spotting from the lounge.

Virgin America A320 with an Egyptair 77W in the background.

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I got some Chicken Tikka Massala for dinner…yes, because I hadn't stuffed my face enough on the plane :-)

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TAM A332

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The corporate pic of Flight-Report.com …. oh look TLS, I was just there the day before.

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SQ A388 SG arriving.

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That's a big tail…

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Especially next to a little B6 A320

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After a few hours and a shower at the lounge, my friend and I head back to T3 for our flight home to DC.

DL 763ER with T3 behind.

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Thanks for reading! Leave a comment.
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Verdict

Delta Air Lines

8.8/10
Cabin9.0
Cabin crew10.0
Entertainment/wifi8.0
Meal/catering8.0

SkyTeam Lounge - 4

8.4/10
Comfort8.5
Meal/catering8.5
Entertainment/wifi8.0
Services8.5

London - LHR

7.4/10
Efficiency6.5
Access7.0
Services8.0
Cleanliness8.0

New York - JFK

6.4/10
Efficiency6.0
Access6.5
Services6.5
Cleanliness6.5

Conclusion

The flight was on time.
Comfort: A solid product. Very comfortable for side sleepers (like me) as the seats as a bit narrow in sleeping position.
Crew: Awesome crew! Very sweet and attentive with great personalities. Delta has some really great crews.
Catering: Nothing terribly fancy, but definitely good and generous portions (almost too generous, LOL)
IFE: Good selection of movies and music. Touchscreen, but a bit far. There's a remote inside the armrest.

The LHR SkyTeam lounge is one of the best ST lounges, if not the best.

Information on the route London (LHR) New York (JFK)

Les contributeurs de Flight-Report ont posté 51 avis concernant 4 compagnies sur la ligne London (LHR) → New York (JFK).


Useful

La compagnie qui obtient la meilleure moyenne est Virgin Atlantic avec 8.2/10.

La durée moyenne des vols est de 7 heures et 34 minutes.

  More information

8 Comments

If you liked this review or if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment below !
  • Comment 92233 by
    jetsetpanda 2283 Comments
    What a delightful report full of stunning pictures! You really captured the essence of nighttime London and the festive atmosphere there.

    I see that DL also has a 1-2-1 configuration like SQ in J. However, DL seats look a bit narrow to my taste.

    Meals are well presented (especially that beautiful fruit plate), but they seem a bit simple and lacking in sophistication. That is why for premium cabins I always choose European and Asian carriers over U.S. ones. A matter of personal taste I guess.

    I just bought a Sony RX-100 compact camera and I'm dying to try it on my OZ and SQ flights at the end of the month.
  • Comment 92238 by
    KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6658 Comments
    Thanks so much! London is one of my favorite places and it's got a special charm around the Holidays.
    Considering SQ has 1-2-1 config on 777/A340/A380 the DL 1-2-1 config on the 767 is definitely tighter. The seats are a bit narrow in the sleeping position, but I sleep on my side so I don't mind. I actually find it cozy and like the feeling of privacy being surrounded by the side walls.

    I completely agree, Delta's catering does indeed lack sophistication. Like I said a few times in the FR, the meals are nothing fancy, but they are good with generous portions. Having flown on Air France many times in J and BA a few times, I don't find their catering to be that much better. Yes, AF uses more upmarket products like foie gras, as they should, it's France after all--but in my experience, and as many reports show on this site, the plates are often badly presented (exploded sauce) and the portions are very small. DL plates each course in the galley whereas AF's plates are premade--they just heat them and serve them, hence the sauce explosions, LOL.
    Check out one of my FRs of AF in J (in French not yet translated) to see what I'm talking about: http://flight-report.com/fr/report-1516.html

    Oooh RX100...nice! That should make for some beautiful reports! And it's more convenient than lugging around an SLR like me.

    Thanks again for your comment!
  • Comment 92273 by
    Kottok 371 Comments
    Thank you for this very good flight report ! I didn't know that DL had such a good service for a TALT flight. At the end, do you think it's better to fly business on AF or on t DL ? For instance, the meals are well presented and they look tasty ( except the second meal that just looks fat - maybe the transition between Europe and US :-P ).
    I totally agree with you for the 764. I'm far from being a fan the -300 version but I find the -400 really elegant, the wingtip makes me think of the 787 !
    Thanks for the spotting at the end that is always cool in JFK !
    Looking forward in reading one of your next FR !
    • Comment 283866 by
      KévinDC TEAM SILVER AUTHOR 6658 Comments
      Thanks! I refer DL to AF in J, but prefer AF to DL in Y (except for 777s since there is 3-4-3 seating which I hate). I also prefer AF's true Premium Economy cabin over Delta Economy Comfort seating. I find 764s to be much more attractive than 763s though I do like 763s with winglets.
  • Comment 92336 by
    Flight94 1882 Comments
    What an incredible report ! Thanks for sharing.
  • Comment 92363 by
    SKYTEAMCHC GOLD 10028 Comments
    Thanks for this great report Kevin ! I love the skyteam lounge in LHR , it's probably my favorite bothe for the food offer and the design. DL is a very good option now that they have the new seats that give a fresh feeling in the cabin. The food is simple but tasty and served in large portions ! Shame of you for letting your friend in economy comfort ! ;-) ( just kidding) Th night pictures of London are awesome and i can't wait to be there very soon !

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