My band and I were headed to Utah/Idaho to lead worship for a student event out there this weekend. My drummer was not able to go so I had to find another drummer to take his place. Not a big deal, right? Wrong! According to Delta, even though I paid for the ticket, I am not allowed to decide who gets the ticket and who does not. They overbook their flights by about 7 seats and actually need people to not show up so they have enough room for all the extra seats they sold. Even though I bought a ticket and had someone to fill the seat, they claim I did not actually buy a seat but rather a contract with Delta that says I agree to fly delta and that contract is exclusive to the person whose name I originally told them would be flying.

Long story short, I had to make a decision at about 2:00 AM (about 6 hours before the flight) whether to not take a drummer or spend the $1800 for the only seat available on the flight – in first class. So, I chose to take the loss and take a drummer. But I’ll never fly Delta again.