Review: Delta One Suites From Detroit to Seoul

I can’t travel that much, for a variety of reasons. To have a successful commercial aviation blog, one of the keys (I believe) is to have reviews of flights so that readers can learn about specific and detailed experiences on a plane and travel class of one airline. I have now started outsourcing to guest reviewers. Over the next few weeks, I have multiple guest reviews coming and hope to continue them over time. I will do guest reviews in a unique way. With this review (and probably most guest reviews), I will write the review in the third person. How do I do that? The person who flies on the flight takes pictures of their experiences and then reports back to me on how the seat was, how the airport was, how the meals were, and more. I then put the grand experience into a final report on my website in review form. I do hope that these guest reviews do prove to be useful!

A person I know recently traveled to Hong Kong and back on Delta and Korean Air. In this mini-review series, the following flight reviews will be done:

• Delta One Suites (Business Class) – Airbus A350-900
• Korean Air Business Class – Boeing 787-9 (Review Coming Soon)
• Korean Air Business Class – Boeing 777-200 (Review Coming Soon)

Please Enjoy the review!

The Flight At A Glance:

Pre-Flight:

The reviewer originally flew from Washington to Detroit, a flight on a CRJ-700 which will not be reviewed, so in Detroit, he went straight to the Delta lounge. The flight is operated on an Airbus A350-900, which features Delta’s newest business class seat which features fully closed seats. Delta is the third airline to offer closed suites in business class, after JetBlue on their A321s and Qatar Airways’ QSuites. I would probably call the new Delta One Suite that is only available on the A350 and some 777s the second best business class seat, behind the Qatar Airways QSuite, due to the closing doors.

Detroit Airport’s McNamara Terminal Indoor Train

Delta does not have a specific lounge for their long-haul business class passengers, although they do have access to the Delta SkyClub, which is one level above the United Club or American Airlines’ Admirals’ Clubs due to better food options. The lounge featured some small seating areas and food stations. The lounge featured several warm options at the buffets along with a salad bar, bread, soup, and cookies. There were also many seating selections such as tables and lounge seats. Also, the SkyClub featured shower suites and restrooms.

Delta SkyClub Buffet

Delta SkyClub Seating

Delta SkyClub Buffet

Delta SkyClub Detroit

Delta SkyClub Seating

Delta SkyClub Dining Area

Delta SkyClub Buffet

Delta SkyClub Dining Area

After visiting the SkyClub, my guest reviewer went over to the gate area with the Airbus A350. Unfortunately, there are little black dots on the windows to prevent sunlight from coming in, so taking pictures of the airplanes there isn’t that easy. 

A Delta Boeing 737-800

The Flight:

At last, it was time to enter the aircraft. Business Class on Delta Airlines’ A350s features closed suites in a 1-2-1 configuration. There are 32 business class seats in the cabin. Since it is in a staggered configuration, some window seats are closer to the window, and some are closer to the aisle. If you are traveling on your own, you will want to choose seats closer to the window (see which ones are closer on the Delta website while booking). If you are traveling with someone else, you would want to choose seats in the center of the aisle, where you can lower a partition to be able to talk to each other.

The seat offers a tremendous amount of privacy due to the closing door. The seat comes with a power outlet and a USB port and has a compartment to store headphones and amenities in the side of the seat. The seat also has storage compartments in the armrest and beneath footrest. The seat lies completely flat, has a wide compartment for your foot in front of the seat, is around 23 inches wide, and is approximately 78 inches long. Each seat also has a wide in-flight entertainment screen. Please note that the door for the seat is locked before takeoff, so you can only close it after takeoff. Also, it does take quite a bit of effort to close and open the doors because they are manual. The tray table for meals folds out of the armrest, and there is also a little table on the side for drinks.

The Delta One Cabin

The IFE Screen

The Headphone Storage Compartment

The Suite’s Door Closed

The Seat In Flat-Bed Mode

IFE Remote

Side Table

The Suite From The Back

The Suite, Amenities, and Blankets

Delta One Airbus A350 Cabin

Delta One Suite 5A

Seat Controls

Seat Controls

During boarding, the Flight Attendants came around with pre-departure drinks. Amenity kits were on par with other airlines, with socks, eyeshades, toothbrushes, etc.. It was presented in a hardshell TUMI box. The headphones were manufactured by LSTN and were pretty good compared to United.

Headphones

Amenity Kit

Amenity Kit

Soon enough, the flight pushed back with an approximate flight time of 13.5 hours. The plane first taxied past the north terminal with many Spirit Airlines planes before takeoff. 

A Delta Boeing 767-300

Delta Air Lines Aircraft

Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines Aircraft

A Spirit Airlines Airbus A321

Runway 22L

Taking Off

Soon after takeoff, meal service started. It began with a warm nuts selection, which was pretty standard. The reviewer chose the Korean option, which was Korean beef ribs with vegetables, salad, and rice. the reviewer reported to me that the ribs were excellent and flavorful, especially if you like Korean food. For dessert, Delta presented a Vanilla Ice Cream Sundae, which was also excellent. For your reference, Delta also had an extensive western menu which had chicken, beef, pasta, and fish options.

Nut Selection

Korean Beef Ribs

Ice Cream Sundae

After that, the reviewer decided to watch a movie with the extensive entertainment selection, and then put the seat in the flatbed mode to sleep. Delta features Westin Heavenly beading in business class, which features a plush pillow and blanket, but no mattress pad. Especially with the bedding and privacy, the bed allowed for a really good night’s sleep for the reviewer. 

Flight Map

Seat in Flat Bed Mode

The Door Closed

Delta does offer a mid-flight snack (a panini or soup), although the reviewer opted not to take one, due to the fact that at that point, the reviewer wasn’t hungry. Shortly before landing, the flight attendants came around with a second full meal. The reviewer chose to have the Korean beef bulgogi which was served with vegetables, kimchi, bread, and steamed rice. the reviewer found it to be excellent – but only if you like kimchi. At this point, the flight flew over China (to explicitly avoid North Korea) and started its approach into Seoul.

Bulgogi Beef

A View of the Wing

Approach To Seoul

I haven’t talked much about the service on this flight yet. The flight attendant service was better than on United or American. The flight attendants addressed the reviewer by name, there was a handwritten note from the purser, and they were always available and attentive. Even before the flight, the co-pilot talked to the passengers seated in business class (about the new plane), which made the flight more personable than on United or American.

The plane landed on time in Seoul at around 4:30 PM Korean Standard Time. The plane then taxied to the new Terminal 2 of Seoul Incheon Airport, which serves Korean Air and other SkyTeam airlines. After around 5 minutes of taxiing, the plane was parked at the terminal.

First View Of The Terminal

A Korean Air Airbus A330-300

A KLM Asia Boeing 777-200

An Asiana Airlines Boeing 777-200

A Korean Air Boeing 777-300ER

One Last View Of The Seat

A Korean Air Boeing 747-8

A Korean Air Airbus A380

Heading To Immigration

Conclusion:

First of all, I hope that my first guest review and format wasn’t too confusing and that it provided a reliable account of an experience in Delta’s new Airbus A350 business class. Overall the reviewer was highly satisfied with the flight, primarily because of the excellent service, fantastic seat with a closing door, and the great food. From the account of the flight, I can almost for sure say that the Delta One Suite is among the best business class seats of any US airline. Since my guest reviewer has now flown now on Delta, American, and United business class long-haul, my guest reviewer can say that this was the best flight that he has ever taken on any US airline!

Have you ever flown on Delta One? Share how your experience compared with this flight in the comments section!