- low college GPA (was told Delta required a 3.5 GPA or higher)
- no check airman experience (check airman was the magic ticket, or so we were told)
- a lot of turboprop PIC time (doesn't count)
- had been terminated from a job (not a flying job, but a termination = kiss of death)
- no military (Delta only hires military)

The point is, I am the poster child of "not a Delta pilot" and yet here I am. I know a lot of people who are in the same boat. I applied, hustled at job fairs, got into the training department, worked really hard at making that application sharp, and got the email. Your friend can too. But it's more than just applying. Get the letters of recommendation, do the job fairs when they start up again, and honestly, cast a wide net. Delta may not be the landing spot, but United, American, FedEx, UPS, JetBlue, who knows who thinks he'd be a good fit at their airline?