Zone 9

Delta is pissed at me, and I guess it's my fault. You see during the last year I wasn't as faithful to Delta as I was in the past, I showed some love to AirTran and to SouthWest airlines, I drove to some places instead of flying and I used "GoToMeeting" a bunch instead of hopping on a plane. In return for all this I have lost all medallion status with Delta. And in return for this lack of loyalty Delta had placed me in Zone 9 on my last two trips. Here is how bad Zone 9 is: While waiting to board this is what I heard over the intercom system "If your boarding pass does not have a zone number on it please board with Zone 7", not Zone 9 but Zone 7.

In my last two trips I have figured out what Zone 9 means.
There will be no overhead space left for your luggage.
There is a pretty good chance that the already seated passengers are going to give you the "Stink Eye" when you say "Do you mind getting up so I can get to my seat?"
There is at least 20 minutes in the boarding process between Zone 1 and Zone 9, you still have time to go to the bathroom.

Here is what no Medallion status means.
No upgrades.
If you call into the 800 number you will speak to at least 3 different people before you talk to a person that can actually help you.
No more short lines when going into the TSA line.
No overhead space left for you.
When choosing your seat you get different choices than Medallion members, same goes for choosing an earlier flight.
And finally you understand what Zone 9 is all about.