In fact, I was Emerald for 2016 and the first half of 2017, GO in 2H 2017 and DM starting this year. And I've done the bulk of my flights with CX, mixture of longhaul, shorthaul and KA, so maybe I have a universal and comprehensive sample size LOL
If we are strictly talking about
onboard treatment, then I would rank DM >>>>>>>>>> tie-ish between EM and GO or maybe EM marginally over GO.
Here are some things that I got as a DM (I didn't do any Y after DM, sorry) that I never got as EM/GO
- meal order and display of meal for both me and +1 (by hand, not trolley)
- the meal card
- u can tell they try to go above-beyond. For example, on a supper flight I was proactively offered items on request, such as cheese and ice cream.
- 100% consistent greeting from both ISM and SP, before menu distribution, a bit more personal chitchat.
- (one portion of all) snacks proactively held up on long haul flights
- I've been constantly checked on in a very non-CX fashion on longer flights. More than once, once I woke up they came to me holding the whole snack box or offering drinks.
- whenever a lav was occupied, the cabin crew would proactively call the other galleys to check if there are any empty lavs/block and allow me to cut the line if shorter at those lavs.
EM and GO
- quite consistent ISM greeting, but not for SP, and occasionally ignored on regional.
- water - only for EM, never as a GO.
- (completely) ignored on KA (J)
- never did I get any meal order taken, but I've been told sometimes it's because I'm always in row 11.
- as a DM and GO, the ISM is able to say "Goodbye Mr. G-CIVC" upon disembarkation. Not so much as an EM, but this is really too trivial.
- screwups - for EM, they do not care at all, since they do not have your complaint record on file. EM complaints are dismissed with little compensation/acknowledgement compared to DM/GO.
Originally Posted by
DMPHL
Well, on my last JFK-HKG and HKG-AKL round-trips last November, as an AA OWE in PE, I was greeted personally by the ISM, who said I should let her know if I needed anything. And then they gave me bottles of water, made sure that I got to pre-order my meal, etc. All this to say, it doesn't seem like it's just that junior FAs carrying it out because they are scared to challenge authority. Seems like the authority themselves never got the memo.
And sure, if what you say is true, it may be not according to the rules. But someone has to be pretty damn entitled and personally insecure to lodge a complaint against a FA when they get the benefits they've earned, ONLY because someone else got treated just as well as they did. They've got massively bigger problems than ensuring a DM greeting and a bottle of water.
What I mean is the authority is too stuck in the past and hence ignore the latest instructions given out by CX management, since promotion within CX crew is as slow as it can get. So yeah, essentially what you said.
Personally, if I see that happening I would not go as far as lodging a complaint, but I would love to see better differentiation between DM and Emerald whenever it's possible.
A mini-aside on CX DM vs AA EXP
There are other benefits such as 3888 that make me side to DM without regret having been an Emerald before. And Asia miles is not that sh***y as the US bloggers put it if one looks into the charts more carefully.
The biggest benefit of EXP is the fee-free-for-everything award ticketing. And the EP desk is normally fantastic (I've noticed a decline, tho). That's about it. Yes, I will miss both when I lose that in 2019. But anecdotes point out that if your AA ressie has an EMER # (ie a CX DM for example), your call still gets routed to the EP desk.
For UDU, I don't care. Dom F food is horrible. So are the new seats like those on the 32B (let alone the 737-8Max). In fact I'm pretty happy now in row 15 as I get to eat (much better food) at the FL, but still get a free food item/drink onboard in AA Y.
Flagship check in is great, even more for those with PRE. I get to use it without any restriction as a CX DM.
For SWUs, the biggest scam ever. And it will be PE-J soon. Still, compared to the CX equivalent of SWU, the AA ones are worthless since CX's is virtually auto-confirmable, good luck w that on AA...