After a great flight in First Class on Delta’s Boeing 717, we arrived at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport with a quick, 44 minute layover before our onward flight to Austin. With no time to visit the lounge, or do anything other than make a quick stop at the restroom, we headed straight for the Plane Train and our departure gate.
Booking
We booked the flight directly with Delta after searching for options using Google Flights. We found a great cash deal with a schedule that worked well for us so we jumped on it. The tight connection time was a little concerning but it was worth it as it allowed us to sleep in a bit and still get to Austin in time for Mrs. ATX Jetsetter’s brother’s graduation.
Boarding
After trekking from Gate D6 to Gate A34, boarding was already underway by the time we arrived. As we approached the gate, Diamond Medallion boarding was ending which was followed by First Class, Comfort+, and then Sky Priority.
Delta Air Lines
DL 2370
ATL-AUS (Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International – Austin-Bergstrom International)
Seat: 26D (Economy)
A321-200 (N113DX)
Scheduled: 12:21p-1:45p
Actual: 12:20p-1:32p
We boarded with the Sky Priority group and headed down the jet bridge to our waiting A321.
Seat
While I typically try to book as close to the front as possible when flying Economy, the best seats on Delta’s A321’s are in the back. Delta has row 26, the rear exit row on the A321-200, marked as a regular Economy seat that SkyMiles Medallion members can assign for free at booking. Not only do these seats have a ton of extra legroom, they are in a 2-2 layout instead of the 3-3 layout found throughout the rest of the Economy cabin.
There are a few downsides and trade offs that come with selecting these seats. The first is the fact that the IFE screens are stored in the armrest, along with the tray table. This makes the seat feel on the narrow side. But as someone who is tall and skinny, I’d rather have the legroom anyway.
Also, there isn’t a real window available in this row. Instead there is just a small portal on the exit door.
Departure
We pushed back from the gate and taxied out to the runway. Unfortunately, that’s about all the information I was able to gather as I couldn’t see out of the almost non-existent window.
In Flight
Once we were airborne we had a few bumps on the climb out and the captain asked the crew to remain seated until things smoothed out. I pulled out my computer and did some work on this trip report.
The bumps dissipated about 30 minutes after departure and at that point the crew began their service. Since we were all the way back in Row 26, it took a while for them to get to us, even using 2 carts. I had a cup of coffee, a SweetWater Hazy IPA and a bag of SunChips. I somehow managed to fit all of this on my tray even with my computer.
It’s been a long time since I’ve ordered a beer on a plane and it was neat to see that SweetWater had brewed this beer specifically for Delta to be enjoyed in the air. I can’t say that I noticed a difference, but maybe that’s the point.
The one downside of these seats was the proximity to the lavatory. Quite a crowd gathered here during the flight which was mildly annoying. Thankfully, most passengers were courteous and aware of their surroundings.
As we were crossing into Louisiana the Captain informed us that they were getting reports of turbulence from flights up ahead and asked the crew to close up the cabin early. Unfortunately, that meant that some folks in the rear of the plane went unserved. About 10 minutes after the announcement we hit some really rough patches of air and got tossed around for a good 15-20 minutes.
Arrival
After clearing the turbulence, we were already on approach into Austin. We landed from the south and taxied over to Gate 10.
Once we deplaned I did something that I have never done before, visit the Delta Sky Club after arrival. Since we checked bags and didn’t have a chance to eat lunch during our layover, we headed up to the Sky Club to grab a bite to eat instead of waiting around at baggage claim.
We grabbed a table by the window and had a few bites of food while we waited for the push notification from the Fly Delta app that our bags had been offloaded.
Summary
Aside from the turbulence, which is out of the airline’s control, it was a very pleasant flight. Though there are some cons to sitting in the exit row on an A321, the pros far outweigh them and 26D/E are still my go to seats when traveling as a couple.
