florin

Whoa... just found out today (the hard way!) that for partner flights, base miles no longer earn the 500 mile minimum.

I had a KL-ticketed, KL-operated intra-EU itinerary (V/G fares). The 2 legs between AMS and GVA earned 500 MQMs, and I expected to receive 25% base miles, therefore 125 miles. What actually posted was 106 miles, which is 25% of 424, the actual distance between AMS and GVA.

Not a big loss, but an unpleasant surprise nonetheless.

NYC1967

Hello all

I have been a Sky Priority member for years and Delta has crossed the line in the sand and has lost my loyalty. As of today March 1st, Gold Med. members NO longer get EC at booking you have to pay or wait till 72hrs prior to flight. Today I booked a flight (while flying from TPA to JFK) for my family, 5 tickets from LGA to PBI a frequent run of mine. I attempt to move myself and family into EC but it states $59.00 bucks! After landing while at baggage claim I inquire and speak to a supervisor and am given "Sorry sir the new policy started today" Heck I could have paid a cheaper airfare stayed in PBI longer but I chose Delta out of loyalty and perks. This is after, a dispute earlier this week regarding a companion ticket limitation.

Bottom Line Delta:
1. You took away the Amex Platinum Privileges for guests
2. I get the Delta Reserve as well and you don't issue at least 1 guest companion
3. Even as a Skypriority Member you restrict the companion ticket so much that it is I have now learned just not worth it. Especially since you upcharge the primary ticket when redemption is made
4. No more EC for not even the Gold Med. member at time of booking.

Great job squeezing out revenue Delta you have transformed a loyal Delta customer to look elsewhere. Loyalty is both ways not one way.

andideocampo

Can anyone clarify what this mean?

"For purposes of mileage credit, "distance flown" means the calculated distance between origin and destination, as determined by Delta in its sole discretion, regardless of the actual distance traveled on any individual flight."

Does this mean that it will not account the distance per segment if there are connecting flights in between and instead use the distance between the departure airport and final destination airport?

Thanks!

ellis01

... and this is partly why I put up with connections on alternative carriers out of Atlanta, in spite of being a MM with DL.

amanuensis

The answer likely depends on whether the flight number changes. If it does not change, then Delta considers flights to be "direct" -- even if a change of aircraft is involved. Thus "direct flight" often does not mean the same thing as "nonstop". This is a relic of when airlines would, for example, fly from SLC to LVG with stops at Cedar City, Utah and St. George, Utah along the way. On such a flight, a passenger would only get the miles from SLC to LVG as if it had been a nonstop.

The other part of your quote, about it not being actual miles flown, is pretty innocuous. It means that if the flight you are on has to fly miles out of the usual route to avoid storms, and then has to spend an hour circling the destination before it can land, you will not get any extra miles. On the other hand, you will not get any fewer miles if the pilot flies more directly between the city pairs than what typically is the case.

andideocampo

Thanks for the clarification. Sometimes, this statement can be subject to a lot of interpretations.

So this means that for partner marketed flights that are not from a DL ticket stock, miles earning will still be calculated based on the distance flown per segment.

mikeef

I'm sorry, this will be long.

I am currently banging my head against the wall so hard that I don't even know how to ask this question. Here goes, hope you can follow me.

Currently Diamond with Delta. Booked a flight JFK-LAS, returning a few days from now. Used the new upgrade with miles program, not the pay with miles option, to move my tush from Y to D (Yes, it's a poor use of miles but relates to my need for MQMs.). Let's say that the Y fare was $150 and the D fare was $490, so using upgd with miles, the difference is 34,000 miles.

A) After taxes, I earned 94 MQDs on the way out. I got 470 RDMs. I asked the agent how they calculated it and she gave me a long spiel about the change in ways you earn miles. Yes, I know, I want to know how you got to 470. She told me that since I get 11 miles per dollar, 11X94 comes out to 470. I tried to be nice about it. After I convinced her that 11X94 does not, in fact, equal 470, but that 5X94 does, she put me on hold and came back to tell me that the original fare was an H fare (upgraded to D), so that's why I only got 5X. Um, no. An H fare still qualifies for 11X, regardless of the upgrade situation. She put me on hold again. She came back and told me that the problem was that the bonus miles (the other 6X, that is) would not hit my account until after I had completed the trip. That explanation makes no sense to me, but hey, it's Delta. Is that actually the way it works? I did a search here and couldn't find anything to indicate as such.

B) The ticket was upgraded with Upgrade with Miles, as opposed to Pay with Miles. No one at Delta seems to understand the difference (The former is using miles valued at a penny each to pay the difference between Y and F fares; the miles are treated as cash. The latter is using miles just to buy the ticket, also valuing them at a penny each.). The question is, in the above trip, do I get 11X94 or 11X424 (the latter being the fare paid for UwM, assuming no taxes in the additional $340)? According to UwM, the difference is supposed to be treated as cash, thus I should get the higher amount, which is what a representative at the Diamond Desk told me. Should it not work out that way, I will be peeved.

Did anyone at Delta even think to look at the unintended consequences?

Thanks all,
Mike

TheMadBrewer

I haven't done that this year, but last year I used UwM a couple of times and my MQDs where always based on the cash part, not the "sticker" total. So I'd assume the 11x94 is correct.

What is interesting is SkyBonus gave me points based on the sticker price.

savekenny

Has anyone else noticed that in the partner miles earning charts, they now feature an additional column to note partner flights MQD by fare class as well?

flyguy

I have been flying Delta since 1983 and was at the top of the frequent flyer heap for many years with 21 to 25 business trips a year. Tracking the changes then was relatively simple and I took advantage of all aspects of the program to earn miles. Today, I fly much less and only last year paid for a ticket from my funds for the first time in 31 years (one leg upgraded).

Today I could never figure out the "system" as structured.

mikeef

Thanks TMB. That conflicts with what one Diamond Desk rep told me, but I've learned to trust FT in these situations.

Still no clue why only 5 miles per dollar credited. Interested to see how my account looks when I check tomorrow after the return has credited.

Mike

lunen

I am with you - I have been GM for years, just went to book an SFO-JFK flight and learned of this change (hadn't been paying attention to all the changes). There is just no point anymore in maintaining loyalty to Delta. Preferred seating was my main reason for maintaining loyalty. If I need to pay for a seat upgrade I can buy a seat upgrade at booking on any airline.

SMWinnie

I just returned from London and saw that my account had been credited with RDM based on miles flown rather than ticket price.

I'm a little confused. Delta flight number, Delta metal, 006 ticket. For a Delta flight, when does Delta calculate RDM on miles flown these days?

Interestingly, I went to find the fare in My Delta and found a code instead of an amount:
Base Fare: IT

I did send in a question on the "Have a question?" link.

rylan

did you purchase a package vacation/trip deal through Delta Vacations or another 3rd parts site/travel agent? That code comes up when the fare is part of a 'bundle' or possible consolidator ticket if you again purchased through a discounted 3rd party travel agent.

SMWinnie

Thanks, that makes sense. The ticket was purchased by a client; I have no idea what sort of bundling they might have taken advantage of.

...certainly wasn't a vacation, though.