MQD should amount to a whole lot of nothing for me. Being hub-captive, I'm generally paying more than .10 per MQM. I should make GM this year, evenly split between business and personal travel.

I do go out of my way to fly Delta, even adding an extra stop here or there to drop the price, when I can, paying extra for the direct when it makes sense. I do it because of the service and the reliability. In about two years since moving to Minneapolis, I've had I think three flights delayed, and on two of them Delta moved heaven and earth to give me better options than I'd even booked originally — including one time when they endorsed me over to American.

I'm hoping MQD ups my (not unsurprisingly) miserable upgrade percentage, but it won't be the end of the world if it doesn't. Exit rows and EC are generally good enough. A HOOU coupon for a drink and I'm a happy camper.