Forget first class: Delta is going to start upgrading select customers to private jets

Delta Air Lines announced plans to offer upgrades to select customers, enabling them to fly in one of the airline’s private jets.

Being moved to a first class seat on a flight is regarded as the ultimate upgrade – but Delta Air Lines have thrown the rule book away.

Depending on aircraft availability, under this program elite Delta SkyMiles members could be offered a flight on a chartered business jet operated by subsidiary Delta Private Jets.

During the roll-out phase, a very limited number of upgrades will be available on private jets based at the carrier’s east coast hubs. The upgrade “includes transportation to the airport’s private aviation area and complimentary on-board catering”, which presumably means something slightly better than a bag of peanuts.

Eligible passengers will be contacted by Delta Vacations via email up to 48 hours before their flight and offered the upgrade for a fee, Delta said.

(Newser) – For frequent flyers who’d like to feel wealthy for a day, Delta’s got a new upgrade that will cost the shirts off their backs yet still feel like a pretty big bang for the buck.

And the lucky few will be given the chance to board one of the company’s 66-plane Delta Private Jets fleet. These inefficient flights account for roughly a third of all private jet flights, despite industry efforts to minimize them. Instead, those who choose the upgrade will be offered the same mileage they would have gotten on the commercial flight they originally booked.

The new program also offers a potential “win” for another set of Delta’s passengers who won’t have the option of purchasing a private jet upgrade, said Scott Mackenzie of the Travel Codex website.