AF No Longer Honoring DL SkyMiles?
Two weeks ago, Air France attempted to downgrade my wife on a flight, claiming that they no longer honored bookings obtained with SkyMiles from Delta.
My wife and I flew to Paris two weeks ago for a long-planned birthday celebration. I flew on an I fare (discounted first class), booked through Delta on its code share, and we cashed in Delta SkyMiles for my wife's business class ticket. Both legs were on Air France, and we had incredible difficulty at the airport on both ends of the trip. This post concerns our outbound flight (ATL-CDG).
On the evening of our departure, we checked in and went to DL's BE lounge on Concourse E. Approximately 1 hour before departure, we were paged in the BE lounge and told to report to the gate immediately. When we got there, the head gate agent for AF advised us that AF was no longer honoring DL SkyMiles bookings and that my wife could not fly in Business Class. A clearly embarrassed Delta employee at the gate then told me that we could either wait until the next day to depart (when DL would accommodate us on one of its own flights), or that -- as an accommodation -- AF would fly my wife that night on coach.
I protested vigorously, noting my PM status with DL (something I hate to do) and pointing out that we had booked the SkyMiles ticket more than 4 months earlier. Then, after making a number of self-contradictory statements, the AF gate agent claimed she had misunderstood our situation and that, because we had booked the flight before the mid-December date when the new rule allegedly went into effect, my wife could retain her original booking.
Neither I nor my travel agent can locate anything substantiating the claim that AF will not honor any SkyMiles bookings made after mid-December. Additionally, we have spoken with several DL representatives, who likewise know nothing about this sudden change.
Has anyone else heard about such a change? Regardless of the rules, has anyone else confronted such a claim from AF?