Originally Posted by
C17PSGR
+1
It also depends on how much you fly and where,
I have 200K this year on AA, 25 on AS, 15 on DL and some on UA.
In F, AA and DL usually give me PDB and a selection of chips. AS doesn't give PDB but gives a cheese or hummus platter.
On AA, if I buy a $400 ticket, it gives my 4400 miles, on DL, if gives me 2000 miles. On AS, it is mileage based. On AA, I get upgraded for free 90 percent of the time. On DL and AS, I need to pay.
In general, Sky Pesos can be very expensive. For example, I looked at a last minute flight this weekend for a 600 mile flight on an empty plane. DL:wanted 50,000 skymiles! AA wanted 25,000. (And we complain about the lack of saavers ....)
Then there's the Admirals Club in MIA and Flagship Lounge when going international.
DL is not bad for domestic coach awards if you can plan ahead. Their lowest-level awards generally all have a 3-week advance purchase requirement. If you meet that, you can often find better deals than on AA/UA. For example, I can book DTW-FLL for 16K miles roundtrip on DL in December. A lot of the ability to maximize the benefits of the programs requires that you understand their differences and vagaries. Also, the reason for your lower earn level on DL is due to your lower status level, not some inherent difference in AA and DL earnings rates.