Renes Points

Agree we are already talking about this months ago

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/delta...ion-level.html

xliioper

Except the policy for Y fares has been in place since April 30th. If it was going to have an impact, it should have already been noticable.

Zeeb

As long as it is for a single companion I don't have any issue with this. If somebody is traveling often enough that they are taking advantage (and take up an upgrade) on a regular basis then they're going to earn status on their own anyway.


I am interested in the "fare grouping" language though. Is that a change so instead of going by each fare class you instead have something more like "Full fare", "discounted", "Deeply discounted", etc, with each grouping having any number of fare classes included?

indufan

And I have been holding at 90% or so. And the only two I have missed in the last few months I was squarely number 1 on the list.
You aren't going to notice these changes....certainly not with any certainty.

jimrpa

No. I buy my Y fare and just call the Diamond line and give them the record locator of my buddy on the T fare and have them add her to my reservation. The other poor schmuck diamond who doesn't have a reserve card will be enjoying that C- seat and pretzels while my buddy enjoys all the bananas, and pita chips & hummus she can get from the snack basket

pvn

no, your buddy will not be on the same PNR and thus won't clear with you.

jimrpa

I'd much rather see a Y FO or GM clear than some DM"s no-status "companion".

For people in relationships, I'm sure the relationship can survive a few hours of separation. If it can't and if the relationship is that important that you must be together for those few hours, either decline the upgrade or pay to upgrade the companion.

cestmoi123

Outside of gov't fares, are there really that many full Y fares sold? It's often (even just before the flight) cheaper to buy an UP fare to get First, and the premium for full Y is so large, that you'd have to have a LOT of cancellations to make it worthwhile.

Just took a quick look at a flight LGA-ORD that leaves in two hours. You can get non-refundable coach for $208, refundable coach for $338 (FLEX), refundable FIRST for $446, and a Y fare is $945.

Even if there weren't the $338 or $446 options, you'd have to think that the odds of cancellation were around 80% to make the Y fare a good bet.

gooselee

This. All jokes aside, this is the clearest outline of how upgrade priority is supposed to work that I've ever seen DL publish.

I'd venture that very few non-status pax would know to do that, even fewer would actually take the risk, and even fewer would be willing to pay the $50 required (each way).

Like it or not, DL's new FC pricing is resulting in more people just buying FC seats on ALL flights. As long as you're not bound by a corporate booking engine like Concur (and even sometimes when you are), you also have the opportunity to buy those same FCM fares if it's that important.

Mrs. Lee has no status anymore. Anytime I'm booked on an award ticket with her, neither of us is eligible for an upgrade. She decided not to go on one trip, and after cancelling her out of the PNR, I was able to request the upgrade and immediately moved into WU. I was on the UG list for FC but nowhere close to getting it.

ohmark

The answer to the question as to what prompted today's Delta email.

JKPFlyer

here is my question:
DM plus companion on a Y fare
DM on a Y fare (alone)

only one seat left is first:
who gets the upgrade the single PNR DM or give to the DM with companion but companion out of luck??

KDCAflyer

I'd image that it would be the same all or nothing approach as before.

The better comparison would be DM w/+1 on a Y fare, vs a solo DM on a B fare, for one seat left. The DM on the B fare would get the upgrade, AFAIK. DL's announcement didn't include a change to that section of the rules.

Xeno

Maybe this doesn't happen often but I just returned from a trip to CPH. I bought a $2K DL YWW ticket 9/15 with all but OKC-ATL-OKC on AF medal.

In January of this year, this was a huge AF time change so I moved the outbound to DL medal. That changed OKC-ATL from confirmed FC to C+. I did clear at the five-day mark but obviously would have preferred to keep the original (immediate) upgrade which stayed on place on the return since that stayed on AF medal.

I average about one such ticket a year and will be distracted by this change regard Y segments.

btonkid12345

"Tolerate?" I have brought many co-workers, friends, and family members into exclusively flying DL due to my recommendation, and them having positive experiences with DL when flying with me. Recently, a flight was delayed 45 minutes, many F passengers changed flights, and my companion who was on the F upgrade list (he was last, and everyone ahead of him cleared) resigned himself to sitting in his exit row seat.

Everyone else boarded, and the GA came on board with his new BP for 4D. I was very appreciative, and told her such, and said this is exactly why I continue to fly DL. Why should the most loyal people, who also likely bring in a lot of business from other travelers, not be awarded when traveling together and doubling the airline's revenue with one reservation?

And now, companions on award tickets are not eligible for C+ upgrades as it is a separate booking class. However, if you call in, some agents are nice enough to waive the exit row seats and place the companion on an award ticket there.

I have been immediately cleared into C+ in every award ticket I've booked since 5/16. Humorously enough, on the same LAX-BOS nonstop route (albeit different days of the week), I did not clear as a DM on a paid B fare even at the gate. I did clear as a DM on a lowest level N ticket 3 days in advance on the same route a few weeks later.

btonkid12345

No, the DM on the B fare wouldn't [and shouldn't] get the upgrade, as they wouldn't be #1 on the list. Many GAs may, out of courtesy, call up #1 and ask if they wish to be separated; but there is a reason the person with the higher fare class is #1 instead of #3.

To go back to the original comparison, of two DMs both on a Y fare...it would go down the priority list until one of the tiebreakers made a difference. The companion would have the same "status" as the DM, including tiebreakers, but would be exactly one position below the DM (come September).

This is my primary concern too. Where do "W" fares fall for domestic itineraries in purchased C+? DL should be transparent about this.

I don't think DL has used fare class "groupings" in recent memory - i.e., considering DMs in Y and B as part of the same "grouping" and going to tiebreakers after that. In the last three years for me, it's always been that the DM on the Y is higher than the DM on the B, and no additional tiebreakers are necessary. This is because I have asked GAs multiple times and they have blatantly told me that someone above me had a higher fare class (some even say the fare class letter).