Recently I had the opportunity to fly on what I like to refer to (affectionately, of course) as a narrow wide-body. Delta has a handful of Boeing 767-300 (not ER or LR, mind you) that have their first class in a 2x2x2 configuration. These seats are standard recline only, not angled or lie-flat as other 767s you might encounter, so don’t get too excited when you see what you’ll be flying!
As it is a 767, it is configured with two aisles going down the length of the plane, so it is by definition a wide-body. The “narrow” part comes down to the seats in first class. Let’s look at a few different planes, shall we? Pay attention to the seat width and pitch between first class in all of them.
We’ll start with a few smaller planes… the CRJ-900, ERJ-175, and MD-88.
As you can see, all three feature a 37 inch pitch (how far you can recline), with nearly 20 inch wide seats in first class.
Next, we’ll look at a couple of larger planes: B737-900ER and the B757-300. Both of these can be used for transcontinental routes, so it isn’t any surprise that they have wider seats.
Finally, we come to the 767-300 that Delta uses for domestic non-DeltaOne routes.
That’s right – it has narrower seats than the CRJ-900. The pitch is certainly appreciated, but don’t expect as roomy of a seat as any of the planes mentioned above.
The Cabin
When you step onto the plane, your first thought might be “is this from the 80s?” And personally, I don’t think you’d be far off. From the seats…
To the in-flight entertainment…
To the over-head controls…
To the storage bins.
The storage bins on the outsides of the aisles could only fit a standard roll-aboard bag rotated length-wise. Travel light if you find yourself on one of these birds!
Now, I don’t want to make it sound like I didn’t enjoy myself on this flight, because in all honesty I did. That is a testament to the attitude and attentiveness of the Delta flight crew, no two ways about it. The crew is 80% of why I fly Delta, and this flight was no exception in that regard.
We were greeted with smiles and the crew made sure everyone was able to get settled in with minimal issues. Once in the air, the captain let us know that thanks to a nice tailwind, we would be arriving early (the other part of why I love flying Delta – I’m always at least on time, and often early) in Atlanta.
Lunch
We were given options between a salmon salad and mushroom lasagna for our lunches, and I opted for the salmon salad.
The salmon was served on a bed of baby spinach and accompanied by purple potatoes (which happen to be my favorite) and cabbage “pasta” with small peppers. The balance between acidity and spice was perfect for eating in a pressurized cabin in the sky, and it would have gone perfectly with a nice Chardonnay.
Dessert was a delicious fruit/cheese medley. I opted not for the sweeter dessert that was offered, though, so I can’t comment on that.
The remainder of the flight proved to be uneventful. There was a little turbulence through the northern part of Texas, but we landed early as promised by the pilot! Overall, it was quite an enjoyable trip.
Cheers!
