Originally Posted by
puntamita
I seem to see a lot of DM tags on my flights to Europe. I believe there are more than you think. I always think it is odd that I see people with Diamond tags on their briefcases. Especially now that they don't even have your FF# on them(different subject) Again, I think everyone is discounting these Middle Eastern airlines. I believe they will be the major competition for AA, Delta, and UA in the future. Will keep them in line for international and also soon trans cont.
More than 2-6 currents DMs on flights to Europe? Probably not.
A lot of the DM tags on cabin bags are tags from a prior DM year and sometimes even from relatives.
The US airlines don't consider the MEA airlines to be as major a competitor in the way the European and some (i.e., the more eastern) Asia/Pacific airlines do. The TATL and TPAC JVs allowances which the government has granted them do make the MEAs somewhat more of an issue, but the US airlines worry more about the other US airlines and their ATIed JV partners than they do about foreign carriers in general or MEA in specific when it comes to FFP changes.