Monday, June 20, 2016

Deltagate

Qatar Air came to town with an A380 which can only be handled at one gate at The World's Busiest Airport. No one ever said it was the most capable.

Problem is Delta pretty much owns that gate, hell, they pretty much own the airport and while Delta does not fly any A380s to ATL they denied Qatar Air access forcing the Qatar passengers to deplane on the tarmac and bus to the station. Like being in Frankfurt or Amsterdam except the weather is worse.

Delta has been pissy of late having thrown its weight around just a bit too much transforming itself from hometown favorite to biggest bully on the block. They lost their state tax exemption on fuel when they meddled just a bit too much with local ground transportation policy--not their forte. Accustomed to using their money to curry favour they pulled funding for the Fox when a welcome party for Qatar was held at that venue. Accustomed to slinging politicians around like Duncan with his yo-yos they are really pissed off that ATL is expanding any flights with any airline but Delta.

How can you be sure? Fly a little. Helps if it's Delta if only because it will impact you. You'll need to listen carefully to the announcements.Want to know why? Because Delta announces gate changes all the time. So when it suits their needs Delta has no problem re-assigning gates at the drop of a hat.