Earning on DL for W Class (C+)..?
Jul 17, 2016, 12:38 am
#91
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I just received a message from a member of Alaska's social media team who clarified the issue we've been having with earning credit when flying in W class on Delta.
"When Delta created W class, they opted not to include it for Alaska mileage plan member accrual. If you book in W class, the miles will not be eligible."
So, it sounds like W class is and will not be eligible for AS mileage credit and the decision was made by DL, not AS so sending AS feedback about this issue is most likely pointless. Moral of the story: If you see that Comfort + is only a few dollars more than the economy ticket you're about to book, stick with economy if you want the AS miles.
"When Delta created W class, they opted not to include it for Alaska mileage plan member accrual. If you book in W class, the miles will not be eligible."
So, it sounds like W class is and will not be eligible for AS mileage credit and the decision was made by DL, not AS so sending AS feedback about this issue is most likely pointless. Moral of the story: If you see that Comfort + is only a few dollars more than the economy ticket you're about to book, stick with economy if you want the AS miles.
Jul 17, 2016, 2:52 pm
#93
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I agree, it seems we're getting contradictory messages from the same AS (social media) team. While the jury is still out on the W class issue, it's important to note that W class has NOT been added to the list of eligible fares for DL flights and nobody from AS has said that it will be added so as I said before, I would think twice before booking W class on the DL for the time being.
Jul 17, 2016, 4:18 pm
#94
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I think the whole issue is DL doesn't even know what W fares are so how can AS. There is technically no such thing as a W fare. Its just like being put into U when getting an upgrade to F on AS. You aren't on a U fare your retain the original booking class.
Jul 17, 2016, 4:40 pm
#95
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+1....well said. As I've said before, all this will be a moot point in a year or so when we will likely not be receiving miles for DL flights.
Jul 17, 2016, 5:00 pm
#96
Join Date: Mar 2015
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Why can't they just say that W fares earn 50% Miles, since that is the minimum it would earn? (An E fare, which earns 25% miles is not eligible for upgrade to C+). It might be minimal, but it's something.
The AS/DL relationship may be sour but they need to fix this for the mileage plan program to be competitive.
The AS/DL relationship may be sour but they need to fix this for the mileage plan program to be competitive.
Jul 17, 2016, 6:02 pm
#97
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Why can't they just say that W fares earn 50% Miles, since that is the minimum it would earn? (An E fare, which earns 25% miles is not eligible for upgrade to C+). It might be minimal, but it's something.
The AS/DL relationship may be sour but they need to fix this for the mileage plan program to be competitive.
The AS/DL relationship may be sour but they need to fix this for the mileage plan program to be competitive.
Jul 17, 2016, 7:29 pm
#98
Moderator, Delta Skymiles and Mileage Run
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They have told us that this is a complicated technical matter. The computer spits out W, but the real mileage earning depends on the underlying fare class. As LIH Prem has mentioned, both DL and AS agree that these fares should earn miles.
Jul 17, 2016, 8:42 pm
#99
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Why can't they just say that W fares earn 50% Miles, since that is the minimum it would earn? (An E fare, which earns 25% miles is not eligible for upgrade to C+). It might be minimal, but it's something.
The AS/DL relationship may be sour but they need to fix this for the mileage plan program to be competitive.
The AS/DL relationship may be sour but they need to fix this for the mileage plan program to be competitive.
Jul 17, 2016, 9:35 pm
#100
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The social media rep from AS made it clear (as shown in the direct quote I posted) that fares booked as W class on DL will NOT earn miles. If you originally booked V but got upgraded to W, they may be able to give you miles, but not if you originally booked it as W class which some folks might do if the fare isn't much higher.
Jul 17, 2016, 9:38 pm
#101
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So has anyone successfully earned mileage on a DL W fare? I know it's not happening automatically, but has anyone, after emailing boarding passes and e-receipts, successfully seen these miles show up in their account?
Jul 17, 2016, 10:36 pm
#102
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Jul 17, 2016, 10:43 pm
#104
Join Date: Mar 2015
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However, Alaska needs to offer customers the ability to accrue miles on partners in an easy, intuitive way for their mileage plan product to remain competitive. They just don't have the large footprint that many other domestic competitors have. Many Alaska customers need to fly another airline when Alaska service is unavailable, myself included.
They may lose customer loyalty if they don't make partner accrual consistent. They may not like having Delta as a partner, but since that partnership remains in place, it needs to be managed in a customer friendly manner.
Just my two cents
Jul 18, 2016, 12:22 am
#105
Join Date: Jul 2014
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I'm sure there will be plenty of incentive for AS members to fly C+ on Alaska when launched - especially since those fares will likely earn more miles and receive more benefits to mileage plan members than similar seats on Delta.
However, Alaska needs to offer customers the ability to accrue miles on partners in an easy, intuitive way for their mileage plan product to remain competitive. They just don't have the large footprint that many other domestic competitors have. Many Alaska customers need to fly another airline when Alaska service is unavailable, myself included.
They may lose customer loyalty if they don't make partner accrual consistent. They may not like having Delta as a partner, but since that partnership remains in place, it needs to be managed in a customer friendly manner.
Just my two cents
However, Alaska needs to offer customers the ability to accrue miles on partners in an easy, intuitive way for their mileage plan product to remain competitive. They just don't have the large footprint that many other domestic competitors have. Many Alaska customers need to fly another airline when Alaska service is unavailable, myself included.
They may lose customer loyalty if they don't make partner accrual consistent. They may not like having Delta as a partner, but since that partnership remains in place, it needs to be managed in a customer friendly manner.
Just my two cents
DL is currently a partner and it's logical that premium fares on DL earn mileage in AS if a Mileage Plan number is used for the DL booking. If that's not the case then customers (like me) are likely to loose faith in the entire system.