Should I expect more from Delta? Yes … but we all should

In my return to The States earlier this week, I wondered where the Delta Sky Club was in the Copenhagen Airport. I read it was just after Passport Control at the top of Pier C, and it was where it was supposed to be, which I can never be certain with Delta Air Lines.

So I go up to the Sky Club and show my airline ticket. I’m a Delta Diamond, one of its highest class of travelers; plus, I have an American Express card that gives me access to the clubs

Access, however, comes at a steep price: $550 a year.

At the entrance to the Sky Club, I scanned my ticket, and the lounge attendant behind the counter told me I didn’t have access. She said the lounge was only open to Delta (or KLM) travelers with a First Class seat; I had a Premium Select seat, which was a tier below first class.

Now, the credit card is supposed to permit access to these lounges, regardless of what class of ticket I might buy. I travel a lot, so access to free food and drinks, and comfort are perks worth paying extra for.

But what good is the credit card if it doesn’t work?

Upon my return to The States, I called the Delta 800 number, and I was told I should have been allowed in.

What does should have mean? Yeah, I should have, but I didn’t.

This wasn’t the first time I hadn’t gotten into a lounge. It happened to me in Lima, Peru, a year ago. I also missed getting into a lounge in Rome because the Delta website had the wrong location.

I’m beyond frustrated with dealing with the Delta drama. I talked to a customer service rep, and I asked that he transfer me to a supervisor. The supervisor reiterated what the rep told me: I should have been admitted.

Somewhere in the Delta-sphere, such information is getting lost, and it should not get lost on Diamond Medallion traveler — or any traveler.

For my inconvenience, I was offered 20,000 miles, which carries a value of $250. 

Token for my inconvenience? Not much for inconvenience. It was really a “get lost, dude; we don’t have time to bother with you.”

From lost luggage on an international flight, to getting bumped from a First-Class seat, to having a flight attendant dismiss me to … I have three or four other issues that Delta tried its best not to address.  

I have written and tried to address this directly with Delta, although it seems not to care. I understand the legacy airline, post-pandemic, has been rebuilding its intra-structure, but that rebuilding ought not come at the expense of its frequent flyers.

In my case, the rebuilding looks as if it’s always coming at my expense.  

All of these misadventures have made me wonder: What good is the American Express card if it doesn’t work the way it’s supposed to?

Should I ask AmEx for my $550 back?