Bailey Richards is a writer-reporter at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2023 and interned with the brand in 2022. Her work has previously appeared in digital publications like Paper Magazine and TV Insider.
A Delta Air Lines passenger is furious after the airline allegedly forced them to give their seat to a dog on a recent flight.
The traveler aired their grievances on the Delta subreddit on Saturday, Dec. 21, calling the company's decision to downgrade them an "absolute joke" -- which sparked a myriad of both criticism and support.
"I got upgraded to first this morning, only to 15 mins later get downgraded (to a [worse] seat than I previously had)," the passenger began the post, titled, "Just Got Downgraded for a Dog."
"I asked the desk agent what was going on and she said 'Something changed,'" they continued.
The passenger recalled that their initial reaction was, "Okay, fine, I am disgruntled but whatever" -- that is until they saw who took their previous spot on the aircraft.
"I then board only to see this dog in my first class seat ... And now I'm livid," the traveler wrote.
They also shared a photo of the pup that was placed in their previous seat, revealing that it was a large dog that appeared to be a service animal for the passenger next to them.
The disgruntled traveler said they "immediately" tried to speak with Delta support, but did not receive their desired reaction. Support staff told them, "You may be relocated for service animals," or, in other words, "there is nothing they can do."
"There is no way that dog has spent as much with this airline as I have ... What an absolute joke. 😅," the passenger wrote before going on to question why they support the company.
"What's the point of being loyal to this airline anymore, truly," they said. "I've sat back when others complained about this airline mistreating customers lately and slipping in service levels, but I'm starting to question my allegiance as well. 😡."
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Other Reddit users had a mixed response to the passenger's story, some empathizing and relating to the treatment they experienced, while others told them to, put simply, suck it up.
"This stupid bring your dog where ever you go is getting out of hand," one top comment read. "And don't even go there with 'it's a service animal'. Stay home or drive if you need your pet that bad."
"Not sure if you know this, but you can't drive everywhere," one user pushed back in response to the comment, while another asked why "people with legit ADA disabilities" and their service "should they be punished for the behavior of others."
And, turning their attention to the original poster (OP), the responder added, "And no offense OP, you expect Delta to risk violating ADA and being sued because ... checks notes ... because you've spent more money than the dog?"
Others responded by questioning the legitimacy of the dog's service animal status based on the attached photo, while others simply said the pup's "been a good boy."
"I'd give him your seat too," one comment simply read, while another person offered a facetious explanation: "Dog gets 7 miles for every human mile."
Delta Air Lines didn't immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
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