Delta 767-300, business class?
 

I'd be most appreciative of getting as much feedback as possible about this carrier. We're looking to book a trip to Istanbul and the flight times on this airline are probably the best for us. (We'll have to fly Phila-JFK on regional air.) Since we're somewhat old, and travel comfort is becoming increasingly important, we've decided to book business class (not our usual). But I want to make sure that it's "worth it," i.e. that the seats and cabin are comfortable and pleasant. I know that such questions are relative and subjective, but it would help me to hear comments about this particular aircraft, the 767-300. I believe I've read some not-so-good things about it, and if that view is consistent, I'll probably go with somewhat less convenient flight times.
Thanks.

poss

this may help

http://www.flatseats.com/Reviews/delta.htm

have a nice trip !!

this as well

http://www.airlinequality.com/Forum/delta.htm

Well, there are complaints (often valid) about business class on virtually every carrier. Personally, I don't find the shortcomings on Delta to be that significant. Here are some quick thoughts on the pluses and minuses:

Plus:
- Good to excellent food (for an airline)
- Very good drink (hard alcohol) selection
- Excellent pillows and blankets
- Generally excellent on-board service

Minuses:
- Relatively narrow seat width. This is the biggest complaint. Some can't get past it. Myself, I don't think it a big deal, and I am 6' tall and 200 lbs.
- Seats are recliner style, not flat beds. They are comfortable enough for a recliner, but flat beds are, IMHO, better.

Average:
- Movies. You get AVOD (movies on demand), but it is strictly ordinary. Not the class-leading system that someone like Singapore offers.
- Lounges. They have some decent lounges at JFK, but nothing that will blow you away.
- Wine. I think that most of the wines served in business class are, at best, ho-hum and Delta is no exception. You might get something good, but I wouldn't count on it.
- Seat pitch (distance to the seat in front of you). Delta is pretty normal here - plenty of room. Better than someone like Continental, worse than some of the flat-bed seats.

All in all, I think the Delta product is very competitive. If you absolutely can't get past the seat width, then look elsewhere, but I honestly think it is not a big deal and I do not hesitate to book Delta.

For this route, in particular, I think Delta is one of only two good options. Some might suggest Lufthansa or BA, for example, but this is a lousy option, IMHO. The flight from Frankfurt to Istanbul is something like 3 hours. From London, it is close to 4. This flight will be in a seat barely better than a domestic coach seat. On Lufthansa, it will be a domestic coach seat, only with the middle seat blocked. BA might use their convertible seating, which is a bit more comfortable than Lufthansa, but you are still talking legroom roughly equal to domestic coach and a slightly wider seat.

Simply put, flying a European carrier means that you will spend much more time in a coach-type seat. As much as I like BA's business class, I would choose DL every time for this route, in order to minimize my time in a "domestic" plane.

There is one other option... Turkish Airlines appears to fly a 777-300ER out of JFK. This plane has a top-of-the-line business class cabin, with fully-flat beds. I have never flown them, so can't comment on service or anything like that, but I have read some decent things.

VERY helpful. Thank you so much.

Not all business class seats are same even in the same aircraft.

The place to look is www.seatguru.com.

Delta uses several 767-300 models. First thing is to match which of the seatguru described plane you will be on. The way I do is to go to a reservation site and look at the seating chart of the exact plane I will be flying. With the picture of the seating arrangement, you should be able to match with the seatguru ratings.

The usual bad business seats are the one next to the bathroom (seats 6FG for 767-300ER1, 5FG for 767-300ER2.) They don't recline as much and get bothered by the sound of the toilette flushing while sleeping.