Delta Flight DL4449 SBN to MSP Trip Report

As I tried to park at South Bend, the machine to the extended parking
did not spit out the ticket and the gate did not go up. I waited
about 60 seconds and hit the button again. This time the ticket spit
out of the machine. Although the entrance to the parking took some
time, I did find a prime parking spot closest to both the terminal and
the exit for when I would return.

I got through security pretty quickly. I had to wait for two couples
with one couple having a baby. They were a bit slow, but I still made
it to Gate A5 within 10 minutes if exiting my car.

On this trip I reserved seat 5C, an aisle seat. I have normally
reserved a spot in the exit row, but have found that it is usually
populated by someone even larger than I, which makes for an
uncomfortable trip. I thought I would try a different tact and get a
regular seat.

The only problem with Delta flights out of South Bend are that all of
the planes are CRJs. Not only is it a small plane with few seats, it
also requires one to check their bag. It is always disappointing,
since I have a carry on to facilitate a quicker, more efficient trip.

DL4449 SBN to MSP

The gate agent came around well before we boarded and attached a pink
baggage claim ticket to my carry on. This time I received claim
ticket 9006493238. I have never had to use a claim ticket for my
carry on, luckily enough.

Boarding started at 3:45pm for a scheduled 4:10pm departure. I always
wait until the end to board, since I have to check my carry on. This
strategy has sometimes ended with a small confrontation in the exit
row with someone who has tried to poach my seat.

I was nearly the last to board the CRJ200 and was greeted by our
flight attendant, Allie. I cozied into my seat in row 5, joining an
older lady, Diane, who was headed to Oceanside/San Diego, CA. She
manages self storage units in North County San Diego. She was
originally from Goshen, IN and is a practicing Jehovah's Witness.

The doors were shut at 4:05pm and we pushed back from the gate at
4:08pm and took off at 4:20pm. The pilot came on the overhead and
said that it would take an hour and five minutes to get to Minneapolis
and said that it should be a fairly smooth flight. We took off late,
because the pilots were waiting for a landing gate. That was curious
because the Delta app indicated that we would be landing at Gate A2.

When Allie came around, I asked for a can of Fresca with a cup of ice
and Biscoff cookies.

We started our initial descent at 4pm Central time and touched down at
4:25pm. Our flight and landing were both smooth. We taxied to Gate
A2, arriving at the gate finally at 4:34pm.

After deplaning at 4:39pm, I was able to get my bag at 4:52, though it
came through the side door behind me, instead of on the lift rack near
the exit into the terminal. There must have been too many bags to fit
on the lift rack.