Programs: Delta PM, Hilton Gold, SPG Gold, Avis First
Posts: 161
Decision Time
So I have been flying Delta out of FLL for a few years now, platinum this year, probably gold next year. The main issue with Delta is no direct flights so I am almost always through ATL and it adds 2-3 hours to my trips. Good news is there is a ton of flights between ATL & FLL.
So next year I am thinking about moving to American as I can fly direct out of MIA to most places I travel. MIA is about 10mi farther in distance but with traffic can easily be 30min longer commute i.e. 30m vs 1hr
So my question is would you put up with the layovers to stay with Delta or prefer the worse commute to fly direct?
Personally, layover in ATL where I can work >> 60 extra min in a car where I can't work. Plus I like flying, and longer trips => higher status. If you're happy with DL, stay. If not, move now to status-match (can you do that with AA?) before your status decreases.
So I have been flying Delta out of FLL for a few years now, platinum this year, probably gold next year. The main issue with Delta is no direct flights so I am almost always through ATL and it adds 2-3 hours to my trips. Good news is there is a ton of flights between ATL & FLL.
So next year I am thinking about moving to American as I can fly direct out of MIA to most places I travel. MIA is about 10mi farther in distance but with traffic can easily be 30min longer commute i.e. 30m vs 1hr
So my question is would you put up with the layovers to stay with Delta or prefer the worse commute to fly direct?
if its a decision between AA and DL, I would personally take DL even if I had to connect 4 x as opposed to NS with AA. AA is a horrible airline throughout; from management, to the pilots, to the FA's and gate agents.... I would even say they are worse then Air France.
Programs: DL PM (as of 12/19/2012-all BIS miles), SC Member: 2012 upgrades 43 of 59
Posts: 774
Are you concerned at all about UG's? If so, what's your UG % in/out of ATL? I imagine on peak travel days it's pretty tough for the comp UG so if that's a consideration direct AA flights out of MIA might improve your UG chance.
I have no medallion experience with AA so can't comment on what it's like there.
All things equal, I'd stick with DL.. Though if you drop to Gold next year, your UG % will certainly decrease and thru ATL I would expect the decrease to be quite significant. I'm Gold for 2012 and my UG's thru ATL I can count on 1 hand.. Worse for hub/hub flights.
I'd be very concerned about depending on AA, at least in the near future. How many American flights have been cancelled or delayed this year as a result of (alleged) job actions? Far too many for me.
Agree with everything said about AA. It is a mess right now over there. That being said, I live near SDF and often drive to LEX, CVG and IND to get direct flights. I HATE connecting, especially through ATL. YMMV........
Also, look at your anticipated travel (or use this year's travel as a baseline). If you start flying direct, it might cut down on your elite qualifying miles and you may get bumped down a tier.
I live 15 minutes from SJC, but choose to fly out of SFO which takes 45m-1h to get to. If I have to leave during commute hours in the morning, it's another 20 minutes. But there are more flight options for me and the times are much better, as I'm usually on the last flight home at night and SJC doesn't have those late flights. So I choose to commute longer for better routing options.
Another benefit of flying DL out of SFO is that my upgrades were great, even as a GM. It's a UA hub, so a lot of local flyers are fighting for upgrades on UA.
As an alternative to choosing AA out of MIA, look at the flight options on DL out of both MIA and FLL. You might be better off sticking with DL and then selectively choosing to fly out of FLL or MIA.
Programs: Delta DM (From Segments), United Other, Hilton Gold, Marriott Other
Posts: 648
Another thing to keep in mind is that DL employees at non-hub airports might actually learn your name if you fly often enough. The old saying about small town cafes vs big-city fast food applies equally to small airports vs big airports ..... "At the big places you never meet anyone you know, and never get to know anyone you meet".
I would have to agree with everyone else. Please give this some serious consideration before going over to AA. They are in a terrible position and don't look to be getting any better. AA's own employees don't want to be there. If on-time flights mean anything to you then stay far away from AA.
Programs: Delta PM, Hilton Gold, SPG Gold, Avis First
Posts: 161
Decision Time
Well tri-rail is out I live in Weston.
Really I don't have any gripes about Delta just assuming UGs are tough already and will get worse so just focusing on keeping the travel time shortest possible. Also last time I checked DL didn't have much direct out of MIA, last month I looked for the MIA to LAX and it wasn't there.
Seems everyone feels the AA problems outweigh the trip time reduction and I am not a big fan of MIA anyway so probably just hang in their with DL at FLL
Programs: Delta:PM, Amex:DL Reserve, National Emerald Executive, Everything for every hotel chain EVER.
Posts: 27
For me, I spend just as much time in the air as i do in layovers. I fly out of Spokane WA, and always connect either SLC or MSP. Like RoknRoll i fly into SFO and drive to SJC when i work on the project i'm assigned to. For me i'm a miles whore and would just assume have the extra miles and some alone time in the skyclub. But then again i'm used to my outbounds being 6:15am flights and my returns not landing until 11:42pm on a friday night
For sure stick with Delta if its not killing you, I crossed from one airline to another years ago and sitting in the back for a good 50k miles is a very painful thing to have to endure again if they wont status match to your current level.
