Yeah, we used to be able to do that until we had a change in our FOM.
See, DAL finally realized that they were leaving millions in cargo on the ramp for non-revs. This gave birth to Payload Optimization.
When this stuff started we were bumping pilots and F/A's off the J/S's that they used to get to work. After a lot of fussing and hard work by the union we had a revision to the FOM policy. We as DAL pilots and FA's now get the jumpseat before revenue cargo. Doing this sort of thing actually makes a lot of sense from a business stand point.
All of this is in an effort to make our under wing cargo operation reliable and profitable.
Since the inception of this many international destinations have had issues with non-revs seeing 50+ open seats and not making it on the flight.
Of note a lot of our Africa flying is the same way. We carry a ton of game meat out of the continent.