Originally Posted by ethernal

I think it's just learned helplessness. What are you going to do? SYD and JNB are both "in-name-only" premium SkyMiles destinations and have been for a long time. And, frankly, non-stops from a hub are becoming increasingly JNB-like for a lot of routes. Check out non-stops from ATL to.. anywhere in Europe. It's a sea of 400K+ redemptions - even with Saturday night stays with Tuesday departures. Maybe you can get a discount down to 350K if you're willing to fly on Thanksgiving day.

Given the smaller D1 cabins (from the already small ones), this is just going to get worse. I expect to see more routes get 1 CPM or less J equivalent going forward. Delta has made it clear they are going this route, so we probably shouldn't be surprised. The long term nail was in the coffin when the award charts were eliminated.

International travel is a huge downside to being a Delta elite relative to the other big three programs. They have the worst alliance, and the removal of C+ means few international elite benefits (it's a shame because 9 across Y is a big plus on the 777, but I can't do 31" seat pitch across the ocean). Delta doesn't seem to care that they are not competitive in this space.