SkyTeam - Confused about Skyteam...

Hello,

I have some miles with Delta. I recently flew with Czech Airlines.

I saw both are members of SkyTeam but according to the SkyTeam FAQ as well as other airlines I sometimes fly with (Air France, AlItalia and so on).

Yet I don't really get how the miles from each airline mold together.

I can collect my miles on each of the airlines itself but how exactly do I combined the miles from all the members of the SkyTeam?

From what I understood with the FAQ it's not possible.

If I understood correct...then what the hell is the point in having such programs with these airlines?

If I didn't understand correctly..how do I group them together to have more miles?

Thanks in advance!

JW

Great question. The idea is to stick with one (or maybe 2 depending on your goals/travel patterns) frequent flyer programs. You then can earn miles on that one program when you fly other partners. Eg: if you're a Delta Skymiles member but fly Air France, the miles you earn can be credited to your delta account rather than your air France acct, including status miles. You then get to a status tier faster than if you split earning across carriers. When you reach status, the benefits carry over accross skyteam (eg lounge access, priority boarding, etc).

Hope this helps...best explanation I can come up with typing on my iPhone...

When you fly any of these airlines you have to use your Delta's Skymiles number, or whatever program you are planning on using as your main one. Don't sign up for the FF program that each airline has, or you will end up with lots of miles in different programs, with no way to combine them.

Also, remember that not all rates give you miles. I just flew Czech Airlines, and although my flights appear on my Skymiles account, I earned 0 miles because they were deeply discounted fares.

Well, sounds pretty clear now.

Thanks so much for taking your time to explain this to me.

Considering it's 2011, soon to be 2012, I have no real words to express how perfectly well this system fit the days of 1972.

I mean, unless your idea is to frustrate your costumers.

But let's be practical.

I was on the Delta Skymiles website but couldn't find there where to add the Czech airlines flight to my account...

Any idea on that?

Thanks again...

But let's be practical.

I was on the Delta Skymiles website but couldn't find there where to add the Czech airlines flight to my account...

Any idea on that?

Thanks again...

Simple: present your Skymiles card when you check in. Or if you're asking for retroactive credit for your OK flights, go to a Delta ticketing office. Or if you live in the U.S., fax the boarding passes to them.

Seriously...

If I don't live in the USA...I can't collect the miles retroactively on-line?

Seriously...

If I don't live in the USA...I can't collect the miles retroactively on-line?

I don't believe with Czech you can request credit online even if you are in the USA. My advice is to call skymiles and ask them to explain the program to you so you can have a dynamic conversation.

Also, if you don't live in the USA, skymiles may not be the best program for you...

Yeh, Thanks.

No problem.

I'll find who I need to call to collect these miles.

Am just shocked how nostalgic is the way that club is operated.

I'm using Delta so I'll have to use when I do travel to and around the USA. I got Miles and More for the European tours.

Thanks a bunch!

Yeh, Thanks.

No problem.

I'll find who I need to call to collect these miles.

Am just shocked how nostalgic is the way that club is operated.

I'm using Delta so I'll have to use when I do travel to and around the USA. I got Miles and More for the European tours.

Thanks a bunch!
I'm not sure what you're perceiving as nostalgic. If you give your SkyMiles number when you book the ticket or check in, crediting is almost always automatic. However, if you're doing it after the fact, the fastest way will be to send in boarding passes. If DL had to try to look things up in other carriers' systems, it would take forever.

It's sometimes possible to scan your boarding passes and email them in to claim credit for partner flights, however. Try customer-care@delta.com.

In the Miles and More program you have a webpage where you give them the e-ticket number, dates, destination and so on and they do the confirmation themselves.

In such a computerized world...with an efficient right system it really should be easy to run something like that.

It feels like SkyTeam is an agreement between some carriers to work together but there's not really someone running that program, and connecting the dots. At least from the customer point of view in the millage programs. Possible on other fields their relationships are more than perfect.

With Miles and More feels totally different.

In the Miles and More program you have a webpage where you give them the e-ticket number, dates, destination and so on and they do the confirmation themselves.

In such a computerized world...with an efficient right system it really should be easy to run something like that.

It feels like SkyTeam is an agreement between some carriers to work together but there's not really someone running that program, and connecting the dots. At least from the customer point of view in the millage programs. Possible on other fields their relationships are more than perfect.

With Miles and More feels totally different.

What would be most efficient would be for you to provide your mileage number at the time of ticketing or at check-in if you forget to do this. This applies to SkyMiles, Miles & More, or any frequent flyer program.

In the Miles and More program you have a webpage where you give them the e-ticket number, dates, destination and so on and they do the confirmation themselves.

In such a computerized world...with an efficient right system it really should be easy to run something like that.

I presume this is only for tickets booked with LH, right? If not, so you're telling me that if someone suddenly forgot to give his/her Miles and More number to the check-in agent when flying, let's say, CAI-KRT on MS or IST-AMM on TK, they can claim miles by submitting the information online if the tickets were booked on the websites of MS or TK? :confused:

I presume this is only for tickets booked with LH, right? If not, so you're telling me that if someone suddenly forgot to give his/her Miles and More number to the check-in agent when flying, let's say, CAI-KRT on MS or IST-AMM on TK, they can claim miles by submitting the information online if the tickets were booked on the websites of MS or TK? :confused:

Indeed. You can take any flight with any carrier to and from any destination that is a Miles and More member and then collect the miles online up to six months after the flight.

All you need is the class, e-ticket number, name, dates, destinations and airline company to fill up the form.

They actually allow you to "connect" flights as well on the same form.

I don't see that as a huge service. It's pretty natural considering the technology of 2011. Still a good one, but if it didn't exist I would be surprised.

That's why the earlier discussed alliance model seems kinda nostalgic to me.

Nice for LH customers, but IMHO you are jumping to conclusions when you assume that this web-based service would say something about the "alliance model".

Nice for LH customers, but IMHO you are jumping to conclusions when you assume that this web-based service would say something about the "alliance model".

I was talking about the "other alliance model" being nostalgic only in that specific sense.

Not trying to say one service is better than the other in general and where you get better benefits and/or service.

I have no clear idea on the whole picture of that, so it makes no sense to me to comment on that.

Yet on this specific issue...Miles and More is 2011 and SkyTeam is way beyond. I don't understand why... but that's still reality.

I was told that I need to call Delta directly, to USA, to collect these Czech Airlines miles.

So actually now I need to spend money to collect these miles. All because I wasn't aware at 6 in the morning that Czech Airlines are part of the Alliance.

Does it make sense?

And even if it wasn't 6 in the morning and it was Air France... don't see why I need to spend money to collect these miles just because I forgot to mention at check-in my membership or whatever.

Really makes no sense to me.

Not a big deal at all. I will survive.

But would I be OK if I was Skyteam and my costumers had to go through that to collect their miles? No way.

I presume this is only for tickets booked with LH, right? If not, so you're telling me that if someone suddenly forgot to give his/her Miles and More number to the check-in agent when flying, let's say, CAI-KRT on MS or IST-AMM on TK, they can claim miles by submitting the information online if the tickets were booked on the websites of MS or TK? :confused:

Air Canada's Aeroplan also has the same feature, allowing you to submit your credit request for flights operated by most *A partners. Much more convenient than mailing in the BP.

I was talking about the "other alliance model" being nostalgic only in that specific sense.

Not trying to say one service is better than the other in general and where you get better benefits and/or service.

I have no clear idea on the whole picture of that, so it makes no sense to me to comment on that.

Yet on this specific issue...Miles and More is 2011 and SkyTeam is way beyond. I don't understand why... but that's still reality.

I was told that I need to call Delta directly, to USA, to collect these Czech Airlines miles.

So actually now I need to spend money to collect these miles. All because I wasn't aware at 6 in the morning that Czech Airlines are part of the Alliance.

Does it make sense?

And even if it wasn't 6 in the morning and it was Air France... don't see why I need to spend money to collect these miles just because I forgot to mention at check-in my membership or whatever.

Really makes no sense to me.

Not a big deal at all. I will survive.

But would I be OK if I was Skyteam and my costumers had to go through that to collect their miles? No way.
First of all, you're mixing SkyTeam (an alliance) and Miles & More (a frequent flyer program shared by several European Star Alliance members). If one wanted to bank to UA's, the service provided by M&M would be worthless, since it doesn't apply to an entire alliance (and their service still doesn't include two *A members). SkyTeam doesn't get involved in how miles credit to a program from flights on another member carrier. In fact, a given fare class might earn at different rates on different alliance partners, since they have their own individual frequent flyer programs. Would it be great if every SkyTeam carrier provided a way to retroactively claim miles from partner flights online? Sure. However, I think those of us who fly SkyTeam with any regularity would prefer that they start with sorting out seat selection so that you can trust a seat selected on delta.com for a flight operated by AF is actually reflected in the AF systems. Right now, it's virtually a lock that it won't be.

It's been pointed out that you should be able to scan or photograph and email your boarding passes to DL, which you can do for free. In fact, calling them will accomplish nothing, so it's not worth doing. They need the boarding passes, either physically or via fax or email.

First of all, you're mixing SkyTeam (an alliance) and Miles & More (a frequent flyer program shared by several European Star Alliance members). If one wanted to bank to UA's, the service provided by M&M would be worthless, since it doesn't apply to an entire alliance (and their service still doesn't include two *A members). SkyTeam doesn't get involved in how miles credit to a program from flights on another member carrier. In fact, a given fare class might earn at different rates on different alliance partners, since they have their own individual frequent flyer programs. Would it be great if every SkyTeam carrier provided a way to retroactively claim miles from partner flights online? Sure. However, I think those of us who fly SkyTeam with any regularity would prefer that they start with sorting out seat selection so that you can trust a seat selected on delta.com for a flight operated by AF is actually reflected in the AF systems. Right now, it's virtually a lock that it won't be.

Sorry, I might have been confused. I thought Skyteam is also the name of the Skyteam alliance. I guess there is no one FF program for Skyteam? The wording, I think, matters less. There are two alliances. Each has a different approach to miles collecting. Still, even if a 1000 miles flight with Delta and AF on the same class is calculated in a different way it's still something a system, not very sophisticated, can handle...

As for the seating... well, there you go. You give another example, even more annoying, how this alliance is... more like a group of companies having mutual interest yet each still work for its best interest and nobody is sitting on top of the alliance to make sure it works smoothly for the best and comfort of the SkyTeam customer. Delta care for their customers. AF for theirs. So on. At least that's how it sounds by the mileage and the seating.

I mean...the concept of an alliance of that kind, at least some part of it, is to attract more costumers to use your carriers than others. So you need to make sure your customers are well served. Doesn't feel like there's a SkyTeam boss that is working on that and that the members are eager to work it out. Too bad.



It's been pointed out that you should be able to scan or photograph and email your boarding passes to DL, which you can do for free. In fact, calling them will accomplish nothing, so it's not worth doing. They need the boarding passes, either physically or via fax or email.

Right. Forgot that. I just spoke with the local Delta office, where actually a good friend of mine is working, and he told me I need to call them. This confusion is another outcome of the not-so-smooth system.

But yeh, I'll go look for the email with which I can contact Delta. Thanks for the reminder.

And...from what I see now...on the Delta website...

"For our airline partners, send a copy of your airline ticket/ticket receipt and boarding pass(es) to:
Delta Air Lines, Inc.
SkyMiles Account Support
Dept. 654
P.O. Box 20532
Atlanta, GA 30320-2532
or fax: 404-773-1945"

No email. Only fax.

If that's not nostalgic...:)

To clear up a few misunderstandings and to emphasize a few things mentioned by others here:

First, remember to not mix up your terms:

You are a member of a frequent flyer program. This might be Delta's SkyMiles or Czech Airline's OK Plus or Lufthansa's Miles&More program.
Your Frequent Flyer Program might be used by only a single airline or it might be shared. Both KLM and AirFrance formed Flying Blue and nowadays Air Kenia and Air Europa use it as well.
Lufthansa created Miles&More but when they bought Austrian and Swiss they started using M&M as well.

Your airline is usually a member of an Airline Alliance. Delta, Czech, AirFrance and KLM are part of SkyTeam. Lufthansa, United, EgyptAir are part of StarAlliance. British Airways and American Airlines are with OneWorld.

The Alliances do not have a frequent flyer program. The airlines do. You are with your preferred airlines program but when you fly with another airline from the same alliance, you can get miles for your own program.

If you did not get them because you did mention your frequent flyer number when booking the ticket or when checking in, you have to claim them. This is done through your own frequent flyer program, not through the alliance.

How your program handles that is depending on your program.


I have some miles with Delta. I recently flew with Czech Airlines.

I saw both are members of SkyTeam but according to the SkyTeam FAQ as well as other airlines I sometimes fly with (Air France, AlItalia and so on).

Great. So give your Delta SkyMiles account number when buying tickets or when checking in and you'll see the miles on your Delta Account.


Yet I don't really get how the miles from each airline mold together.

I can collect my miles on each of the airlines itself but how exactly do I combined the miles from all the members of the SkyTeam?

You don't. You collect SkyMiles from Delta.


From what I understood with the FAQ it's not possible.

Right. SkyTeam is an alliance, not a frequent flyer program.


If I understood correct...then what the hell is the point in having such programs with these airlines?

If I didn't understand correctly..how do I group them together to have more miles?

You have one program per alliance, with one specific carrier.

On another note:
I have no experience with Delta, I actually avoid them like the plague which is not a problem as I avoid flying to the US as well. I doubt however that they are not offering an online form to claim missing miles. Look for that, fill it in and that's it.

If this is not possible, you might want to change your program and go with another Frequent Flyer Program.
But the other airlines are similar.
And even Miles & More want a paper mail when dealing with missing flights on e.g. Egypt Air...

Keep that in mind.

And...from what I see now...on the Delta website...

"For our airline partners, send a copy of your airline ticket/ticket receipt and boarding pass(es) to:
Delta Air Lines, Inc.
SkyMiles Account Support
Dept. 654
P.O. Box 20532
Atlanta, GA 30320-2532
or fax: 404-773-1945"

No email. Only fax.

If that's not nostalgic...:)
That's the official stance, but many, many, many FTers have reported success emailing in PDFs of their boarding passes to get mileage credit. customer-care@delta.com is the one to try.

Sorry, I might have been confused. I thought Skyteam is also the name of the Skyteam alliance. I guess there is no one FF program for Skyteam? The wording, I think, matters less. There are two alliances. Each has a different approach to miles collecting. Still, even if a 1000 miles flight with Delta and AF on the same class is calculated in a different way it's still something a system, not very sophisticated, can handle...


The alliances are basically just loose affiliations of carriers to facilitate codesharing (buying a ticket from Air France that actually involves flying on a Delta airplane), mileage earning, mileage redemption, and lounges. Unless there is a joint venture immunized against anti-trust/collusion lawsuits (from SkyTeam, DL/AF/KL/AZ have such a joint venture for trans-Atlantic traffic, as do BA/AA/IB from OneWorld...I think there's something in Star Alliance as well, but I'm not certain), the carriers must all still compete with each other. These are massive companies with their own IT infrastructure, and integrating it is highly nontrivial. NW and KL had something great going on, but the AF/KL combination and then the NW/DL merger did a lot of damage to that (largely because of DL's choices of IT systems to preserve). Within any of the alliances, you'll find varying degrees of IT integration between their systems.

As has been pointed out, SkyTeam has several frequent flyer programs (as do all the other alliances). DL has one. OK, VN, CZ, KE, MU, SU, CI, AM have their own. AF, KL, KQ, UX, and RO use Flying Blue. In Star Alliance, you'll find Miles&More used by LH, LX, and OS. BD has its own program. NH has another. AC has another. UA has one, and its merger buddy CO still has a separate program of its own. To credit miles to a specific program, you need to give your number before flying or else provide documentation. Apparently M&M is willing to hunt things down based on electronic information submissions. Most programs aren't, and the IT systems are not integrated enough in any alliance for this to all be done automatically.

Thanks for the quick lesson guys.

All the best.

I presume this is only for tickets booked with LH, right? If not, so you're telling me that if someone suddenly forgot to give his/her Miles and More number to the check-in agent when flying, let's say, CAI-KRT on MS or IST-AMM on TK, they can claim miles by submitting the information online if the tickets were booked on the websites of MS or TK? :confused:

Why not? You can do that with MilleMiglia as well, on AZ website (which is notoriously rotten otherwise).

You just type in the ticket number, and it just works.

Just to be sure I'm understanding this...my Korean Air points cannot be transferred to my Delta account because I didn't give my Delta ff# to Korean Air???

If this is the case, I'm done with Delta. I have a trip booked with mostly middle seats and just found out they are now selling some of the window and aisle seats.

Just to be sure I'm understanding this...my Korean Air points cannot be transferred to my Delta account because I didn't give my Delta ff# to Korean Air???

If this is the case, I'm done with Delta. I have a trip booked with mostly middle seats and just found out they are now selling some of the window and aisle seats.

Welcome to Flyertalk :)
You cannot transfer points from one FFP to another FFP. This mean that if you are a member of both Korean airline program and Delta Skymiles program and have points (miles) on both of them, you cannot consolidate the 2 programs by transferring all the miles on one of these 2 programs. But you can earn DL points flying Korean (and reverse) and redeem miles with all Skyteam airlines and partners. When you book a ticket, you need to give the FFP on which you want the miles credited.

When you book a ticket, you need to give the FFP on which you want the miles credited.

And if you gave the wrong number or didn't give any number at all during booking: You can always change the number during check-in. Either online or at the counter. Hand them your card and ask them to make sure that this number is marked on the ticket.