We will be flying Delta Air Lines on a short hop to Portland (PDX) from Seattle, WA in the main cabin of a Delta Airbus A220-100 aircraft. This flight is part of a much larger trip to Europe for the Aircraft Interiors Expo! I look forward to sharing more content from that trip. In this flight review, we will be exploring the following:

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Background & Booking

As a passenger, you have multiple options to get from Seattle to Portland:

1. Take the car 
2. Amtrak 
3. Plane 
   • Alaska Airlines
   • Delta Air Lines

I chose to fly Delta since I had not flown them in a while. My other motive was to visit the Delta Sky Club before the access restrictions kick in next year. I booked the flight using Delta’s website. It was painless as is typical for a large airline. You can also book these flights using Expedia.com.

Day of Travel

I got to the airport with plenty of time before the flight. I noticed Delta had swapped our plane. Originally when I booked this flight it was an A220-300 however Delta swapped it to the smaller A220-100.

I had to check a bag in so I went to the kiosk to tag it (hoping the bag wouldn’t end up in Florida….). The kiosk screen offered me a $52 upgrade to First Class. That was nicer to see instead of ~1100 During the check-in process Delta offered me. My imaginary finance dept kindly reminded me that this was a short hop and likely would not be worth it.

I hold elite status with Delta, but I forgot to request an upgrade through the app. The app disables the ability to request an upgrade on the day of travel which I find annoying. I’m not quite sure why Delta does this there certainly isn’t a technical reason preventing requesting an upgrade.

Flight Plan / Routing

Seattle (SEA) – Portland (PDX)

Delta Seattle Sky Club

I was able to gain access with the Amex Platinum Card.  Delta currently has one lounge in Seattle airport which will soon change with the opening of another club in late 2024. Delta considers Seattle airport a hub so it will be nice to have two Sky Clubs as Seattle’s sole club can get busy.

The current lounge is in Concourse A it has two levels for this review we will focus briefly on the lower level.

Delta has an extensive food offering from small sandwiches to other snacks.

Delta also has lemonade on offer with cool straws. The lemonade tastes similar to Minute-Made’s lemonade.

The views in this lounge are great:

Pre Flight

I went to the gate from the Delta Sky Club to Concourse S via train. Normally the S concourse at Seattle is for international flights. However, Since Seattle airport is short on gate space multiple airlines utilize S as extra gate space. Delta Air Lines felt that Portland was an international destination. Boarding was briefly delayed since the crew had to walk from B to the S concourse.

Boarding

Delta has changed the boarding process to board based on zones. I feel mostly indifferent about the change.

I love how Delta’s app notifies you when your zone is boarding. I wish other airlines would provide detailed boarding notifications.

Upon being seated I noticed that the flight was fairly empty which explains the swap from the A220-300 to A220-100.

Flight Info

Flight No: DL 879

Route: Seattle (SEA) – Portland (PDX)

Plane: Airbus A220 – 100 (Did you know Bombardier designed the A220 originally called the C-Series? Bombardier later sold the plane type to Airbus)

Registration: N116DU

Flight Time: 29 mins

Scheduled Departure: 3:40 pm

DL/BTS Departure: 3:39 pm

All times in local time zone

BTS stands for Bureau of Transportation statistics; their definition is used in most airlines apps in the USA to measure applicable times for airline operations & tracking.

Takeoff

We soon took off as usual the surrounding area is stunning. I will let the pictures do the talking 🙂

Mt. Rainier

As we left Seattle we were treated to stunning views of Mt. Rainier. The crew pointed we were flying by Mt. Rainier which was a nice touch. Unfortunately, I was seated on the wrong side of the aircraft.

Seat, Service & Random Wi-Fi pricing 

Delta A220-100 Main Cabin Seat Details:

This particular A220 came with Delta PTV equipped. Due to the short flight, I did not get a chance to explore the PTV.

Main Cabin Seat Configuration: 2 – 3

Seat Manufacturer/Series: Collins Pinnacle

Seat Comments: The Collins Pinnacle seat is popular among the big three US airlines. The Collins Pinnacle seat is comfortable with good padding & an adjustable headrest. The seat width was also great. Please note I did not have a passenger seated next to me.

Amenities: Universal Power outlet, (Paid) Wi-Fi, & USB

For more information see Delta’s A220 page.

Service

Due to the short duration of the flight, there was no service in the main cabin.

Random Wi-Fi Pricing

Delta typically gives free Wi-Fi unfortunately not all of DL’s planes are equipped with free wifi. Delta was charging for Wi-Fi on this particular flight, Delta is working to update its fleet with free Wi-Fi.

Unfortunately, I was unable to capture the browse wi-fi pricing.

Arrival in Portland (PDX)

As we descended through the clouds the scenery approaching Portland Airport was jaw-dropping.

Scheduled Arrival: 4:26 pm

DL/BTS Arrival: 4:41 pm

All times in local time zone

We soon parked at the gate ahead of schedule.

Delta Portland (PDX) Sky Club

I decided to see if I could access the Delta PDX Lounge. Luckily because I was arriving on a same-day Delta ticket I had access (along with the Amex card).

I felt the Delta PDX lounge was much nicer it was smaller but this Sky Club had better food options. 

The view from this Sky Club was great as well. This lounge also happened to be less busy and crowded than Seattle. This Delta Sky Club may have limited hours as the last flight from Portland leaves relatively early.

There was plenty of seating in the lounge.

Overall I felt this Sky Club was better than Seattle since this Sky Club was not as busy & had a wider selection of food options.

Delta Air Lines

Review Conclusion

Delta was adequate on this short hop between Seattle & Portland. It is hard to evaluate an airline & aircraft on a short route like this one. Given that I would probably choose to fly Delta again on this route. I hope you enjoyed this short flight review. I have more coming including one on British Airways!

Please consider following Nerd Ka Travel on social media, so you don’t miss when the next flight review departs!

The bag made it safely to Portland and not Florida :). Check out the hotel review for the hotel I stayed at in Portland!

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Key Takeaways

• If you have Delta Medallion Status be sure to request an upgrade when booking your ticket 
• Wi-Fi onboard the A220 may not be free. Delta is working on updating the fleet to support free Wi-Fi
• You may be able to access the Delta Sky Club at both departure & arrival airports using your preferred method of entry 

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I hope you have a wonderful day!