Delta Airline passenger gets frustrated after his first-class seat was given to service dog

On December 23, 2024By Littum

A Redditor shares a disappointing flight experience with Delta Airlines. (Photo: Reddit/r/delta)

A Reddit post has gone viral after a plane passenger was downgraded from his first-class seat, which was repositioned to accommodate a service dog. In the experience shared on the @r/delta Reddit page by user @ben_bob, the user reveals that he was upgraded to a first-class seat, only to be downgraded 15 minutes later to a “worse seat” than he previously had. While the change disappointed the passenger, he was “furious” after seeing his seat given to a service dog.

The Redditor wrote: “I was upgraded to first this morning, only 15 minutes later I was downgraded (to a worse seat than I previously had). I asked the desk agent what was going on and she said “Something changed”. Okay, fine , I’m unhappy, but whatever, I only got on board to see this dog in my first class seat… And now I’m mad.”

When chatting with Delta support, the user shared, “I chat with the same Delta support and they say ‘you may be moved to service animal’ and there is nothing they can do.”

Read also:Passenger’s Great Dane as “Support” dog on flight spark debate

Calling it an “absolute joke”, the user wrote: “There is no way that dog has spent as much with this airline as I have… What an absolute joke,” adding: “What’s the point of being loyal with this airline anymore, I’ve really sat back when others have complained that this airline has been mistreating customers lately and has dropped in service levels, but I’m also starting to question my loyalty.”

Delta responded to the flyer’s experience in a statement People Magazine. A spokesperson for the company said: “Delta teams are aware of the customer complaint and are investigating the details of what may have happened,” adding that they “invite the customer to contact us directly.”

“Service animals are routinely accommodated on Delta without affecting customers’ seat assignments,” the statement concluded.

Just downgraded to a dog
byu/ben_bob inparticipate

Reddit users had mixed responses to the passenger’s views and experience. Take a look:

“Notice how nowhere else in life do you see this amount of service animals? Go to the airport and suddenly they appear? The Weimaraner “service dog” on my 6 hour flight must have been lovely to sit next to.” commented one Redditor.

Another said: “US exclusive. It doesn’t happen anywhere else. It’s American main character syndrome.”

One user opined: “If you had paid for your seat then I think it’s a legitimate complaint. However, free upgrades can be taken away for various reasons, not just service dogs, without compensation. It doesn’t hurt to try with a complaint email -email or a call to your locket line, but be prepared for another rejection just in case.”

However, some commented in disagreement with the passenger’s views:

One wrote: “So people with legitimate ADA disabilities and service dogs should just drive or stay home? Why should they be penalized for other people’s behavior? And no offense OP, you expect Delta to risk violating the ADA and being sued because… checks bills… because you’ve spent more money than the dog?”

Another shared: “I have a friend who is epileptic and uses a service dog. You wouldn’t recognize her disability if you met her.”