Originally Posted by azeckel

But they could - and it's not entirely about today, it's about the allure of achieving that status that keeps the peons out there flying delta. If, for example, DL did away with comp upgrades for medallions and instead auctioned FC seats at the gate, that would be all about today.

Thankfully that's not the case, and because we have status and clinking metal tags hanging from the overhead as the plebs board, they get to think "wow, one day I'll fly enough to sit up here." Silly, yes, but true. I remember how much I hated being FO watching the SP line with crazy envy.

Comped annual status and a token piece of luggage may not seem like much and granted it could be better. But it's more than nothing. I don't keep flying delta for MM status - I do it to keep up and take advantage of having DM status.

Someone asked about AA and UA - I looked up AA's program and it seems pretty similar to DL (except the status is "lifetime" and there are some upgrade chits involved). Granted AA allowed all RDM to count until 2011 and their citi card spend counted through 2012.