Originally Posted by SteveinA2

The good

1. The new BE is great. Best part is the upgraded seats and food, especially the soup and pre-order of Japanese meal.
2. Love the fact employees verbally recognize Platinum and Diamond folks
3. Love some agents that help customers

I agree with your points here

The bad

1. Hate fact Delta don't value HVC. Have spent $32,000 on flown Delta flights in the last 6 weeks yet my Customer value score is unchanged at 32. Why an earth they don't have a diamond level based on spend is beyond my comprehension.

I have a feeling starting 2014, there will be a change to this. While it may never be published, I'm willing to bet that there will be a uber-high threshold on spend that will allow for a "secret" level or maybe a tiered level, much like GS or ConciergeKey.

2. Hate fact BE cabin service does not go to HVC first. Why don't I get my meal choice when I paid $12,000 but a NRSA gets his.

I would be naive to suggest that that never happens, but if you truly spent $32k in the last six weeks alone, suggests to me that you are up there in medallion rankings. While, most of my flying tends to keep me on TPAC routes, not once have I seen a F/A just walking down the aisle taking orders for dinner. Usually they are just hopping around the J cabin, introducing themselves and taking orders like crazy before the door shuts hitting everyone from the top tier status on down.

3. Hate the fact they allow anyone in sky clubs...put up the price and maintain its exclusivity

I agree to a certain extent. But I would be willing to consider a Flagship style lounge inside the SkyClubs for those of us either in paid J or DM.

4. Hate fact that I spend >$50K a year on Delta, but when I want to redeem a simple award to fly on vacation it is impossible

Aaaaand end dramatization. I agree that sometimes it's tricky, but if you take sometime to look, you will find what you are looking for.

5. Hate fact SWU's don't apply to any fare like AA

I agree.

6. Hate Choice benefits are so much worse than AA

That's not saying much.


8. Hate fact that there is never one award to South Africa on Delta less than 380,000...Kinda wondering why someone does not sue Delta for fraud on this route.

I just chose dates at random in January, and while the non-stop on DL is 250,000 miles r/t, there were plenty of options on AF for 140,000 r/t in J.

My colleagues fly the ATL-JNB route once a month, paid J (or whatever variant of J) and they said the entire J cabin is filled with a lot of paid J. I find that this is a definite cause and effect based on how much J is revenue vs with Skymiles redemption. If you want to use a skymiles redemption on this (and I find SYD to be similar in this resepct) you will pay a premium, because if you don't use your miles, either someone else will or someone else will pay the premium fare.