Delta 717-200 first class is an experience that hits a little different compared to typical Delta domestic first class.
Yeah, I ate very well on my 2 1/2 hour flight from Charlotte to Minneapolis. Food and drinks were served with a smile. The seat was actually kind of comfortable as well.
However – in-flight entertainment is mysteriously absent (trying to figure out why your seatmate is the way he or she is doesn’t count). There are no video screens. Wi-Fi may or may not be working.
It’s basically the only mainline aircraft in Delta’s fleet that they deemed to be not worth the effort of spiffing up. How did that happen? And what else are they not telling us?
Delta 717-200 (N893AT) side view illustration by NorebboStock.comOur route from Charlotte to Minneapolis today as DL1517.
My full review of Delta 717-200 first class from Charlotte to Minneapolis
As an airline reviewer, I’m always looking for the most interesting way to get from point A to point B. I needed to get from Charlotte to San Diego on this particular day, and I was happy to see that Delta was running multiple 717s a day between CLT and MSP (where I could very easily connect to SAN).
After a fairly decent night at the Charlotte Airport Aloft Hotel, the courtesy van driver dropped me off in front of the main terminal approximately one and a half hours before my departure to Minneapolis. See? I don’t always arrive obscenely early.
Welcome to the main terminal at the Charlotte International Airport! Say what you will about the southland, but they build some pretty darn good lookin’ airports here.My only criticism of this place is that there are no signs for TSA Precheck. I looked everywhere!I did manage to find the Delta check-in area (and baggage drop) though. This ended up working out well considering that this *is* a Delta 717 first class review and all.What’s big, colorful, and smells like fried chicken? CLT, of course.
The boarding process for DL1517 to MSP
There’s a lot that I like about Delta Air Lines. What matters to me most is that they kinda (sorta) know what they’re doing. They promised boarding time of 12:14 PM, and dagnabbit, they delivered on it. No fuss. No muss.
Ain’t no time for fried chicken today, unfortunately. Big Daddy has a plane to catch.Big Daddy’s chariot (a Delta 717-200) awaits at gate A5.Looks like they spelled “Big Daddy” wrong on my boarding pass (again).“claus·tro·pho·bi·a (noun): extreme or irrational fear of confined places.”Irrational my a**. Either this jet bridge is a wee bit cozy, or I’m a total wuss. “Focus on the 717, focus on the 717…”< focusing > The 717 is about a small as it can get before calling it a regional jet. < /focusing > Maybe Big Daddy needs to rethink his air travel strategy?“One small step for man…”I totally forgot that you basically have to walk through a closet before getting to the seats on the Delta 717-200. It’s been a while since I’ve done this…Welcome to first class (said absolutely nobody in this pic).
The seats
I really wish that I could tell you that the first class seats on the 717 are exactly the same as what you saw in my Delta A321 first class review. I had a lot of good things to say about that experience, and I would’ve very much liked to use this opportunity to explain how Delta is so awesomely consistent from one aircraft the next. But nope. They had to make it difficult.
Seats 3C and 3D. Can you guess which one is mine?Like, duh. Window seat or bust baby!Leg room is as expected for Delta domestic first class. This is satisfactory AF.Plot twist! The 717 is the only mainline aircraft in the Delta fleet without video screens at every seat. If this is a dealbreaker for you, consider reading my Delta 737-800 first class review instead.The adjustable headrests are a little more pointy as well. Be careful.The complementary bottled water is exactly the same though. Spoiler alert: it didn’t taste like life at all.Shoutout to my seatmate for demonstrating the usefulness of the seat back pockets. Somebody came prepared for today’s flight!Good news: I’m not being bombarded with credit card advertisements on a video screen in front of me. The peace and quiet is nice (at least until the lead flight attendant makes her announcement about a “special offer”).Window smudge check: 4/10. For those of you wondering what a 10/10 is like, be sure to read my Delta Connection CRJ-900 economy review (the one where I couldn’t see jack sh*t all the way to San Diego).
The departure
Even our gate departure was exactly on time. Normally that’s the sort of thing that amuses me, but it’s what I’ve come to expect when flying Delta. *yawn* Will somebody please wake me up when something exciting happens? Thank you.
‘Later y’all. That’s how they say it here in Charlotte, right?“I can’t believe he thinks that we all talk like that…”“I wonder if he drives NASCAR on the weekends too?”It took exactly 11 minutes from push back to arrival at the threshold of runway 27 (about the same amount of time it takes to stand in line for a hotdog and a beer at the Charlotte Motor Speedway I reckon).Screw the L-1011. The 717-200 is the true “whisperliner” (at least for those of us seated here near the front). You could almost hear the ignorant / culturally insensitive thoughts about this region swirling around in my head.All jokes aside, I have lots of love for this region of the country. It’s beautiful!
In-flight entertainment (and Wi-Fi)
Oh Delta. Your domestic first class product is arguably the best. But why did you have to skimp on the in-flight entertainment so hard on the 717? There are no video screens in these seats. As a matter fact, it’s the only aircraft in Delta’s mainline fleet without them.
There is Wi-Fi though! Sort of. It was partially operational on this particular flight, and I was never able to fully connect to the menu of streaming movies and TV shows. Honestly? Maybe streaming content isn’t available at all on the 717. That’s what this particular experience led me to believe.
What do you suppose is happening over on Verizon-MiFi8800L-A3E2? I’m kicking myself now for not trying it out.Should I be worried that they call it “Captive” Wi-Fi? I hate to break it to them, but I’m a fairly boring guy, and any data they harvest from me will likely bore them to tears.Data log 2246.27.1. Timestamp: 13:16: “He checked the weather in Minneapolis. Again. For the third time in like five minutes.”And that’s about the moment where they cut me off for good.At least now I know why my seatmate brought all those notebooks.
Food and drink
There were two notable things about the lunch service on this particular flight. First, it was the most substantial and filling meal that I’ve ever had in Delta domestic first class. Second, it was probably the most disgusting looking meal I’ve ever been served on this airline. It was tasty though, and I ate every last morsel of it.
Who needs streaming in-flight entertainment when there’s lasagna onboard?Actually, I think it was lasagna soup. Delta normally does better than this with the presentation of food in domestic first class, so I’m willing to give them a pass on this one. The fact that I’d do nearly anything for a slice of lasagna kinda helps too.Other than that US-sized chocolate chip cookie, this looks like a meal that would be right at home in ITA Airways A320neo business class, doesn’t it? Sembra delizioso!Just a hunch, but I have a feeling this would have tasted better on an Italian airline. Let’s just say that I’ve had better meals in Delta domestic US first class.
Seat comfort
Other than the lack of video screens, these first class seats aren’t any better or worse than what you’ve seen in any of my other Delta domestic first class reviews. They’re wide, semi soft, and the leg room is what I consider to be acceptable.
You’d be surprised how much less comfortable Delta’s domestic first class seat is when you don’t have The Office (or Family Guy) playing on a video screen 16 inches away from your face.The air vent action is pretty good though – and fairly easy to reach considering that the 717 is just a glorified regional jet.It’s more comfortable than a regional jet IMHO (because of the wider cabin), but that’s not important. I’m far more interested in knowing how those people got connected to the Wi-Fi. The hell?!
Really though, seat comfort isn’t the most important thing in a 717-200 first class review IMHO. These aircraft are typically used on shorter regional routes, so it’s not like you’ll have to worry about spending 5+ hours in one.
The decent and landing into MSP
I’ll admit it. I was secretly hoping for a snowy white winter wonderland arrival into Minneapolis. What kind of psychopath wishes for something like that in mid-March? The same kind of psychopath that ate that entire bowl of lasagna you saw earlier in this review, that’s who.
Shoutout to our pilots who got us into MSP 14 minutes early today.
Not only was the Wi-Fi inoperable on today’s flight, there’s no snow on the ground here in Minneapolis either. Strange times, man. Strange.It’s not like I flew all this way just to see snow or anything, but isn’t it a given considering that it’s mid-March?Welcome to Minneapolis!Snow or not, there’s one thing that MSP always has: widgets. Lots and lots of widgets.It’s sort of like SANspotter.com having a lot of unfortunate crotch shots.Release the hounds SANspotter!She was able to connect to the Wi-Fi too? Just rub it in my face why don’t ya.So long, you little rascal. May you spend your sunset years flying tropical interisland hops with Hawaiian Airlines (after getting your Wi-Fi fixed, of course).
Pros and cons of the Delta 717 first class experience
Perhaps the best piece of advice that I have to offer is to say that the 717 should be your last choice when flying Delta domestic first class. It was fine. But the lack of proper in-flight entertainment is kind of a dealbreaker for me.
Pros
It just may be the quietest first class seat on any Delta aircraft. You won’t hear hardly any engine noise since they’re all the way at the back.
With only three rows of first class seats, service is typically fast and (mostly) friendly.
The seats are just as wide (with the same amount of legroom) as other mainline domestic Delta aircraft.
I have to say that I was surprised when I saw on the flight log that this flight was operated by a 717. I didn’t know they did 2.5 hour flights! Still, nothing wrong with getting a ride on a 717. T-tails FTW!
Also, I think the reason DL hasn’t installed screens on this plane is to spice things up and not have the exact same product on every single plane. Consistency may be good, but it gets monotonous after a while. Haha! Seriously though, Delta would take it to the next level of they installed IFE screens on this quasi-regional, quasi-mainline jet. Instead, it’s just the asterisk at the end of every “Delta has video screens across their entire fleet!” sentence.
Oh, and congrats on not flying AA into or out of CLT on this trip! Not an easy feat lol.
Yeah, I’m quite proud of the itinerary that I managed to together for this trip haha. The only reason I decided to go in the first place was to try the Spirit A321neo out of LAX. Discovering (by total accident) that it was an airport featuring one of the longest Delta 717 flights on the schedule made me feel like a total genius. At least for a moment.
I’m very happy to have been able to scratch that one off my list!
JNSD
Can’t believe Delta is still flying these!
Scott (SANspotter)
Wouldn’t be surprised if they go another 50 years lol
Jason B
Those have to be the sharpest edges I’ve ever seen on a lasagna. The entire meal doesn’t look great, but at least it beats chicken balls.
Scott (SANspotter)
The chicken balls will always be the safest option. But I’m willing to risk anything for lasagna though (no matter what it looks like).
Peter
I have to say that I was surprised when I saw on the flight log that this flight was operated by a 717. I didn’t know they did 2.5 hour flights! Still, nothing wrong with getting a ride on a 717. T-tails FTW!
Also, I think the reason DL hasn’t installed screens on this plane is to spice things up and not have the exact same product on every single plane. Consistency may be good, but it gets monotonous after a while. Haha! Seriously though, Delta would take it to the next level of they installed IFE screens on this quasi-regional, quasi-mainline jet. Instead, it’s just the asterisk at the end of every “Delta has video screens across their entire fleet!” sentence.
Oh, and congrats on not flying AA into or out of CLT on this trip! Not an easy feat lol.
Scott (SANspotter)
Yeah, I’m quite proud of the itinerary that I managed to together for this trip haha. The only reason I decided to go in the first place was to try the Spirit A321neo out of LAX. Discovering (by total accident) that it was an airport featuring one of the longest Delta 717 flights on the schedule made me feel like a total genius. At least for a moment.
I’m very happy to have been able to scratch that one off my list!