I'm British, a KLM/Air France frequent flyer, and visit the US a lot (so I end up on a lot of Delta code-shares -- flights booked via KLM/AF but operated by Del

I'm British, a KLM/Air France frequent flyer, and visit the US a lot (so I end up on a lot of Delta code-shares -- flights booked via KLM/AF but operated by Delta). Delta are the best of the "big three" US carriers in terms of customer service, and considerably better than American or United. On their intercontinental services they <em>try</em> to measure up to their non-US carrier alliance partners. Nevertheless, they're in third place relative to KLM or Air France as far as the passenger experience goes. Relevant bit: I was on an AF trans-Atlantic flight a couple of years ago when a passenger a couple of rows behind me became unwell, and the passenger at the other side of my center aisle turned out to be a doctor on her way to a conference. Rubbernecking discreetly, I observed the cabin crew prioritizing the sick passenger's wellbeing and fetching the doctor the emergency kit and all the support she needed. Anecdata is not data and all that, but what I saw was what you'd hope to see in such a situation, not the fiasco described in the OP.