Originally Posted by
Jumpfirst
Jaimito -
I'm in a similar boat. Do you find that being elite (gold/plat) on NW gets you upgrades on CO? I was plat on KLM and used to get upgrades frequently on NW, but never on CO. As a CO Plat I get them on NW, but don't find that CO seems to return the favor to other skyteams parters- hey it's rare enough that I get an upgrade on CO as a platinum. Would appreciate your advice - I too value battlefield upgrades - domestic and intl - on skyteam partners - the highest. Similarly, it's a royal pain to get only half Q miles on partner flights, so the ideal ff program would be a) one where upgrades are given on the airline and partner airlines and b) one where they actually allow you to fly and earn. Thanks!
Officially CO and NW have full reciprocity for elite upgrades, so you should get it going either way. As for the 50% EQM credit bit, that is mostly a CO thing.
To the OP, your best option for non-stops from NYC would be flying on CO, so you should consider CO/NW status. That being said, upgrades internationally are hard to come by and require either high fare class purchase (NW) or copay (CO) in addition to the miles. And if you're flying on low fare CO flights and crediting to NW you may end up only with 50% EQMs.
S.