Originally Posted by
thepla
Just out of curiosity, and not trying be argumentative, if you are EXP why would you pay for an "M" fare with DL? I think there is a chance, not as much so now, that you will not clear and from my research "M" on DL is WAY higher than upgradeable fare with EXP SWU.
Also, if you are willing to pay for "M" with DL why not buy discounted business class with AA, maybe the same price or a tad higher, and use SWU to bump yourself to FC?
Different programs have different assets. I just bought an M fare to BKK. AA does not fly to BKK, so I could not use one of their eVIPs to fly to BKK at any price. I could have used the eVIP to NRT, but I was not going to spend 6 hours in coach each way (equal to some TATL trips) NRT-BKK. Also, the price difference for using AA eVIPs verses DL's PMUs is not necessarily that different, depending on destination. The advantages of AA's SWUs has been overrated in many threads. Some here would have you believe that the AA eVIPs are the second comming of Christ.
I'm flying to GRU next week on AA in F using miles, as the lowest upgradable economy fare on AA was over $2K, and there were no discounted business class seats.
Each program has plusses and minuses. The grass is really not any greener on the other side of the fence (except over the septic tank).