Check In and Security
I arrived at DCA at 10:30, about an hour before my departure time of 11:35. DCA is an easy airport to get through and you don’t need a lot of time, particularly if you don’t have lounge access. But, I also have PreCheck and Clear, and wasn’t checking any bags.
I took the metro, which is an easy way to get to DCA from anywhere in Washington. Delta has a check in area on the metro level which is also right near security, so there’s no need to go to the upstairs departures level. I printed my boarding pass and was on my way quickly.
Security took no time at all. Though the CLEAR process was disorganized. They had multiple people doing different things and it was just confusing. Even when I scanned my eyes, the guy just said “Go that way and pointed to the left. With no further direction. When I got to the TSA officer, the officer was confused because nobody escorted me through, as is the process.
Anyways, it all got sorted but it just wasn’t the way to do it.
Security took no time at all with there being really no long lines.
Boarding, the Cabin, and Seat
Boarding today was out of gate B19. DCA is laid out in a pier format, and all Delta flights operate out of the B pier. It’s really a messy to find your gate. There’s a few restaurants and shopping options in the terminal, so if you do find yourself arriving early, you can definitely utilize those options.
I arrived at the gate about 30 minutes prior to boarding beginning, and got a picture of the aircraft.
I arrived at gate B17 about 30 minutes prior to boarding beginning. While I was waiting for my board time, I received a notification in the fly delta app that said that I had been upgraded to comfort plus, seat 5D! I have no idea how this upgrade happened, as I no longer have status with Delta. But, hey, I won’t deny a free upgrade that includes more legroom and an earlier boarding position!
Boarding began right on time at 11:10 am. It started with pre boarding of passengers with disabilities, active duty military, and then Delta 360 members. Then boarding proceeded with Group 1. For some reason, group 2 was skipped (probably because all of the diamond medallions were upgraded into First), and group 3 was called.
Group 3 is where comfort plus passengers board, so I boarded.
The Delta main cabin and comfort plus cabin on the ERJ-175 is arranged in a 2-2 configuration.
I quickly found my seat, 5D, a window seat in the first row of the cabin.
Delta has a soft bulkhead so you can utilize the underseat storage of the seats in front of you. The seats in front of this row are first class seats, so there’s plenty of room. There’s also plenty of legroom in general.
The seat has two windows. I like the E-175 windows because they are large. The seat also has individual air vents and reading lights.
When I sat down, I noticed that my seatmate in 5C, was a deadheading Delta Flight Attendant. Oh boy! If he noticed I was taking pictures and doing a report, they had better be on their best! 😉
At 11:25, the boarding door was closed.
At 11:26, the captain came on to welcome us aboard and announce our flight time of 40 minutes.
At 11:28, the safety demonstration began.
Departure and Climb Out
We started our pushback 3 minutes early at 11:32.
We had a quick taxi to the gate and began our takeoff roll down runway 1 at 11:41.
WiFi and Entertainment
Delta’s regional aircraft do not have seatback entertainment like their mainline aircraft do. They are equipped with WiFi and you can stream entertainment through the flydelta app. However, the WiFi was not working on this flight. They never turned it on.
Cruise
We leveled off and reached our cruising altitude at 11:52, at which point, I saw the flight attendant in First began her service of that cabin.
There was no service offered in comfort plus or economy.
Descent and Arrival
At 12:08, the captain came on to announce the beginning of our descent jnto JFK, and that we would be on the ground in about 20 minutes. He said that the gusts on the ground were up to about 40 MPH (not good- this actually had me very nervous and wondering whether the E-175 could accept those winds).
At 12:12, the flight attendants came through the cabin to start preparing the cabin for landing.
The final approach was rough. We were battling some pretty tough winds.
We touched down safely on runway 31R at 12:28 pm.
We had a relatively quick taxi to the gate and arrived at gate A16 at Terminal 4 at 12:34 pm, for about a 20 minute early arrival!
