I had something similar a while back... I wanted to get both my 2024 credit and 2025 credit to apply to an itinerary for 3 people. And I wanted all three on the same PNR (to all benefit from my status). In my case each ticket was ultimately in the $300 range so I had a bit of wiggle room. The approach I took was to start with a $25 gift card, then buy a ticket for one person in the $220-250 range (to make sure I got as much of the 2024 $200 as possible). This ticket can be from anywhere to anywhere, for good measure I bought a fully refundable "just in case". After January 1st, I did the same for second person, starting with a gift card. And the crowning achievement... for 3rd person I bought a ticket through Capital One Travel with Venture X card (for the annual $300 travel credit). Net result was a $700 saving spread over three tickets.

Then cancel all three tickets for Delta eCredit (even if a ticket is fully refundable, you can still request it as eCredit). eCredits are not transferrable... can only be used by the person on the original canceled ticket. But you can now create a fresh itinerary for all three people, the actual final desired flights, and when it comes time to pay you can select each of their eCredits... then pay whatever else is due with credit card.

Good luck.