“Safer” connection on Delta: Atlanta, JFK or Detroit?

Well, they’re all Delta hubs, although Atlanta is the biggest one and probably has the largest selection of flights going through there, so it would probably be a safe bet.

ETA: Are you originating from MSP?

One other thing to think about is ease of getting through the airport. Detroit is probably the easiest, I think, although that’s a matter of opinion I guess. I don’t particularly like going through JFK, but again that’s my opinion. And I haven’t been to Atlanta in decades, so have no opinion on that.

When we do Europe trips in the winter, I always opt for ATL as our layover becauseI don't want to get caught in snowstorm issues in the north. If it is a summer trip, I don't care about that, but I do avoid JFK as much as I can.

I would rank them probably Detroit, Atlanta, JFK. But it really depends where you are looking at going (and do not discount your own Minneapolis/St. Paul airport, we fly through there often).

I really have never worried which hub I fly through on Delta, except I suppose I do avoid JFK, for no particular reason. Delta pretty much owns MSP, DTW, and ATL, so immigration has always been fast, easy. All of the airports are easy to navigate, and cancellations or delays few (maybe one big issue in years of travel?).

I would always prefer non-stops on Delta from MSP over any of those, unless it was the dead of winter. DTW would be second option. Note the flight durations, because generally the further north you are the slightly shorter the distance to Europe. Atlanta next unless it's summer thunderstorm/tornado/hurricane weather. I've successfully avoided JFK for many years, so only know by reputation now.

But it's all about the flight schedules. Another factor to consider is whether your connecting flights (to DTW, ATL or JFK) would be on small regional jets.

Since July 2014, I have done 32 round-trip international itineraries on Delta, 31 of which have been to Europe. I usually fly through Atlanta due to its proximity to my home airport, but I have flown through JFK and DTW, too. I have had zero cancellations. I have had only one flight where I was late enough leaving Atlanta that I missed a connection at Amsterdam -- was just put on the next flight to my destination a few hours later.

My experience with Delta is that it is a very reliable airline. I book my Delta flights based on time and price. Connecting airport is not a significant consideration for me.

Or maybe it’s all a crap-shoot these days and I’m over-thinking it!

I don't think it's all a crap shoot*, but I do think you are overthinking it.

(*unless you are flying on a discount transatlantic carrier)

Delta in Atlanta & JFK have more flight options than Detroit but Atlanta's A350 probably will not have premium select which is available from Detroit. In general the airport experience at DTW's McNamara terminal is highly rated. I don't particularly like other airports in comparison. Detroit has it's share of weather incidents which are more likely later in the afternoon/evening. My last afternoon flight out to Amsterdam was delayed 2 hours with no explanation but luckily we weren't transferring to another flight. Detroit has some good Delta nonstop options for Asia.

Great replies, everyone! That’s exactly the points of view I was looking for!

I'm shopping now for end of August airfare for a Croatia trip. I will probably choose the non-stop MSP - AMS and figure it out from there.

I am not sure why an MSP flyer would ever go to Detroit first, are there any Europe nonstops from there that MSP does not have?

Most MSP people who use JFK or ATL and flying Delta are trying to get to Rome, Berlin, Madrid, Nice, places like that that are not SkyTeam hubs, or London, or Frankfurt.

JFK outbound is fine, inbound I have heard that immigration requires a lot of walking. Never used ATL.

Flying from south Florida, I’ve transited through all three airports. I’d avoid JFK at all costs. My favorite of the 3 is Detroit with its smaller terminal and ExpressTram. The only negative I have about Atlanta is the distance you have to cover between your flights.

Delta's summer schedule has reduced it's number of nonstops between Detroit and London to one daily.

There's also 2 Delta daily nonstops with Frankfurt, 3 with Amsterdam, 2 Paris daily, 1 daily nonstop between Rome (seasonal), 5 weekly Reykjavik (seasonal) and 4 weekly Munich nonstops (seasonal).

If you're originating in MSP, can you can find a nonstop from there to Europe on Delta without having to transit any of those airports?
FWIW, ATL is my home airport. I'd rank DTW first, ATL second JFK last. (And probably MSP between ATL and JFK.)

I have transited through other Delta hubs on very infrequent occasions when there wasn't a nonstop from Atlanta - Iceland was one of those times (pre-pandemic). We flew ATL-MSP-KEF. However, the routing brought us back through JFK, which was a nightmare, and only having Mobile Passport kept us from missing our connection.

For somebody trying to get to/from Minneapolis, it would be Detroit for me.

I fly through Atlanta on Delta at least four times a year, and I find it very easy and efficient
But my destination in the States / departure point in the States is in the middle - not in the north, like Minneapolis. It would drive me crazy to fly all the way down to Atlanta to get back up to Minneapolis. That is a non-negligable amount of unnecessary extra time in the air, given the northern flight paths to/from Europe.

So my second choice would be JFK, at least it doesn't take you out of the way. It's been years -- probably decades since I have connected through there though.

I don't have an info about originating in Minneapolis and I have never flown through Detroit. But the Atlanta airport is by far my favorite when I have a connection-the Plane Train is wonderful. I have nothing but bad things to say about JFK, which I have used often in recent years because Business Class fares on Delta are much cheaper from JFK than from ATL and my traveling companion insists on BC for overnight flights.

Thanks for the replies. Some have brought this up: from MSP you can fly direct to Amsterdam or Paris (and Heathrow but that seems more complicated), so why transfer in the U.S.? Then I guess my question is amended to include: better to change in AMS or CDG? I suspect the answer is AMS (no personal experience). The benefit of changing in the U.S. is I land early in Europe at my final destination, vs losing most of an in-Europe day connecting. Perhaps that shouldn’t be the decision driver. I lean to a U.S. connection because I’m short on the time I can be away from home, but maybe I should rethink that.

Thanks again for your replies.

Well, last year I flew MSP >> Berlin on Delta* changing at JFK, arrived BER at 6 am and hated it, both my wife and I fell walking around Berlin trying to stay awake: 1 badly sprained ankle, 1 torn jeans. The later MSP flights, esp AMS or Paris (or Reykjavik or Frankfurt) that leave after 7:30 pm, are perfect since one can work a full day then head to the airport, arriving at your destination mid-afternoon at lodging check in. So there’s really no additional lost day. You either lose the first day flying to JFK or ATL (or Newark or Philadelphia) and arrive in Europe at sunrise, or you lose the arrival day.

*This wasn’t the purchased itinerary, but changed from a CDG connection to a JFK connection due to Air France cancellation.

I fly out of Minneapolis and much prefer connecting in AMS or CDG over connecting in a U.S. city. I figure that, once the airplane takes off, I will make it over the pond, and I will then have more options for getting to my final European destination should there be a delay or cancellation in AMS or CDG. Every stop in the U.S. poses the risk of a delay or cancellation that would strand me far away from my final destination, maybe having to wait until the next day for a flight. (This recently happened to a friend of mine who got stuck in Detroit.)

You don’t necessarily lose a day of sightseeing by connecting in Europe. Next week I fly to AMS, arriving early in the morning and getting to my final destination (Florence) at 11:30 am.

You might be interested to know that MSP has one of the best “on time” records in the country, even in the winter.

Renee and Tom, you’ve convinced me to prioritize MSP-Europe, then connect. Now I’ve got my fingers crossed I can make a trip this year!

Pick a hub in which there are the most flights to your end destination. I also would base my selection on the type of aircraft flying to and from your European destination. I would rather fly an A330-300 over the Atlantic than any 767. Right now, I’m partial to Airbus than Boeing.

Actually Kirstin, now that you mention wanting to connect in the US to have more time at your destination, I have discovered that when I fly United (which I did more than delta in 2023, got tired of the "hub penalty") I liked connecting in Newark more than I liked connecting at CDG or AMS when I fly Delta, for that very reason - when I arrive after a flight during which I did not sleep, I can go right to my accomodation and crash instead of fighting sleep during a layover, and then another flight. (I've started booking my accomodation for the night I'm in transit so I can check in as soon as I arrive.)
Though what another poster said about preferring to get to Europe where you have more options to get to your destination is certainly valid too.
However, I have really enjoyed those arrivals from EWR where I land in Europe and I'm there, no connection required.

Kirrstin, the advantage to connecting in Europe vs in the US, is that once you've made the long flight over, wherever you are, you're in Europe, and can get anywhere with more options than waiting in a US airport this side of the pond.

5 US airports were in the 2023 Global Top 10 for "On Time" Performance. Detroit ranks at #6 (the 3rd highest US airport).

This article also states that Minneapolis "is also one of the most expensive airports to fly out of, according to SmartAsset." I'm sure Detroit is on that list as well.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/08/study-top-10-global-airports-for-on-time-performance.html

I certainly believe the part about MSP being expensive!

Yes, MSP is definitely an expensive airport. But you’re likely to pay that “premium” regardless of the connecting airport you choose - American or European.

It would drive me crazy to fly all the way down to Atlanta to get back up to Minneapolis. That is a non-negligable amount of unnecessary extra time in the air, given the northern flight paths to/from Europe.

This is why I have never used ATL, it’s only on the way to South America and South Africa.

my second choice would be JFK, at least it doesn't take you out of the way

Not really, from MSP to Europe the path is NE over Lake Superior and then over Canada. JFK is still rather out of the way.

Put another way: MSP to JFK is a 2 hour flight but JFK is only about 45 minutes closer to Europe. MSP to ATL is at least a 2 hour flight and ATL isn’t any closer to Europe.

You're right of course -- I should have said not as far out of the way as Atlanta.