Does being a "better" airline allow you to offer a less competitive frequent flyer program?
Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) thinks so. It insists that it is "better" than its competitors and has responded with a new series of devaluations to its SkyMiles plan.
The latest cuts to the program that many business travelers already derisively call SkyPesos? An increase to the minimum number of miles you need to claim prime international business class awards and a clear signal that Delta is phasing out complimentary first class upgrades for even its most frequent and elite customers.
Delta's radical calculation — we're better so you'll accept less — puts it at odds with two prevailing beliefs in the travel industry: That business travelers are more loyal to their loyalty plans than the airlines or hotel sponsoring them and that being "better" also means offering a "better" frequency plan.