From the Airplane

I’m writing this while flying just east of the North Carolina coast at 30,998 feet. I know that because I’m on Song, Delta’s airline within an airline.

Song is supposed to be an airline that can compete with the discount independents like Southwest and JetBlue. My round trip fare to Florida, $116.70&#185 is certainly a bargain.

The plane itself is a pretty pedestrian Boeing 757. It is configured as a one class with 3+3 seating. The color scheme is blue and a muted light green. The flight attendants wear designer outfits from Kate Spade (or possibly her husband, I can’t remember).

The pre-flight briefing was done by a recorded voice. She was over the top sultry with an over the top script to read. I presume it’s part of Song’s positioning.

On the back of each seat is an LCD touch screen. Once the plane is in the air, the screen controls individual channels of entertainment (movies, live satellite TV, music, a trivia game or flight tracking).

I like the idea of live TV while flying. It works pretty well, though not perfectly. As we were taking off and the plane made some turns, we lost the signal. Every time an announcement is made or someone hits a call button, the TV audio stops.

People hit the call button more often than you’d think!

I like the idea of a TV, but the flight’s half over and I’m not watching. I’m playing the music trivia game – fighting it out with whoever’s in 15F.

The monitor itself is wider than a normal TV. The broadcasts that are seen are stretched to fit, so everyone looks a little heavier… a little dumpier. As someone who is on TV, this bothers me. It probably won’t bother you as much.

If my two checked bags are out on time, I’ll consider Song a success.

&#185 – the $116.70 fare includes $25.54 in tax leaving $91.16 for the airline.