Piotr Chiov

Hi, I am torn and could use some convincing either way. I fly a lot from Seattle to San Diego and am thinking about moving from Alaska to Delta because I have an international flight coming up wherein I can use the bennies.

Apart from the international benefits of Sky Gold, how would you counsel me to think about this? I've been a long-time Alaska loyalist but this is the first time I am thinking about changing.

Piotr Chiov

I recently received a mileage challenge from Delta and I will be flying international soon. I am considering moving my MVP Gold to SKY Miles. I've been a long-time Alaska member and am soooooo torn. I've been musing over this for weeks. Delta now flies just about everywhere I fly with Alaska directly, except DC. There doesn't seem to be any compelling reason to stay with Alaska.

Any words of counsel? Has anyone made the move similarly?

kop84

Depends on the routes you fly and what benefits you appreciate most.

The people who believe that AS is clearly superior or DL is clearly better or any airline for that matter is the clear 100% hands down winner for all people are narrowly applying their situation to everyone.

If you're going to be flying internationally,and prefer a US flag carrier or will need to fly further East than Denver frequently I'd go with DL. AS has a few flights, but nothing like what DL offers.

If you value being able to fly a bunch of different airlines internationally then AS is the way to go. Or if you need to fly to a lot of 2nd/3rd tier airports in the PNW also AS is best.

Upgrades are easier to get on AS, but I think most agree that DL has a better F product (on most planes)

If you tend to fly low dollar high distance tickets then AS is a clear winner. If you tend to fly high dollar tickets then DL is your winner.

AS/DL are both at the top for operational performance so it's pretty much a wash there.

DL's new SkyClub in SEA (I haven't been but from all accounts here) wins hands down from anything AS offers for BR's.

International Redemption in J aren't always great on DL, but they have seemed to greatly improved domestic Y redemption with some awards far below 25K

Others with more experience can weigh in too, but I think that's a pretty even handed approach.

missamo80

What do they offer you that Alaska doesn't, and at what cost?

Neil

rucksack

Which airline is going to hustle more for your business?
Delta has been very generous to Seattle-based customers over the last couple years in an effort to ramp up their presence at SEA and turn it into a hub. So, you might be the short-term beneficiary of this generosity (i.e. promotions that earn you bonus miles or qualifying miles, fast tracks to status, great promotional fares, etc.). All good things must come to an end, though, so I wouldn't make long-term frequent flier decisions based on this.
Winner: Delta (at least in the short term).
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Which airline is going to do better by you?
Almost certainly Alaska. Keep in mind that Delta's highest tier (Diamond) requires 125K miles AND a $15,000 spend requirement. In comparison, it would only take you 75K miles (or 90K including partner airlines) to get to Alaska's highest tier (MVP Gold 75K) without a spend requirement. Because Delta has two tiers higher than Gold, the Gold benefits are rather watered down. For example, you wouldn't be able to select Comfort+ seats until shortly before departure, and you would have to pay a $150 redeposit penalty to make changes to award tickets. If you could make it to Delta PM, I would say Delta might be better for you, but otherwise, Alaska is surely going to be better for you. Now, one thing to keep in mind is that if you have any significant volume in credit card spend, Delta's co-branded AmEx Platinum and Reserve cards can net you up to 30,000 qualifying miles annually, enough to bump up from Gold to Platinum.
Winner: Alaska (unless you could get PM on Delta).
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Which airline is going to better serve your flight needs?
As a SEA-based customer, I think this is probably a toss-up and largely depends on the specific routes you'll be taking (other than SEA-SAN), but as kop84 pointed out, as an Alaska frequent flier, you'll need to rely on partner airlines for long-haul international travel. In terms of in-flight quality, service quality, and operational reliability, Alaska and Delta are pretty even.
Winner: Tie (unless you prefer flying the metal of the carrier you have status with internationally rather than a partner's metal)


All in all, it sounds to me like sticking with Alaska will be better for you, unless you could earn PM on Delta.

eponymous_coward

I use SDC and fee waivers religiously. I also redeem for international F. I also get a mile for every mile I fly, as opposed to miles based on what I spend. All are compelling reasons for me to stay with Alaska, even though Delta is a viable option- most of those options would not be available to me on Delta. I suppose if I was buying domestic F and international J instead of cheap Y I might feel differently.

skchin

Let me just say, Delta is very crowded.

SJC ORD LDR

If you mainly fly routes that are duplicated by AS and DL, I would stick with AS. If you mainly fly routes to locations that are not served by AS, go with DL.

MSPeconomist

Will the international flight be coach or business class? What is the destination?

Should we infer that you've already decided to use DL for the international ticket or are required to do so?

BenA

Perhaps generally true, but not necessarily on the west coast flights. SEA-SFO/LAX are reliable diamond upgrades, but I almost never got upgraded on AS even when I was a 75K flying on a Wednesday afternoon. The situation is even worse now that AS is ripping out a row of F on most aircraft.

anon2k2

A second on this: I have never failed to get an upgrade SEA<>SFO or SEA<>LAX except on two occasions where I did a very last ditch SDC to a flight that was already full in F. Overall that's something like 22 segments upgraded out of 24.

rowsign

When is your international trip? Is it possible to sign up for the status match for the bennies on that trip and just keep flying Alaska, which seems to fit your profile better.

MSPeconomist

What are the status benefits that the OP wants? Lounge access as a GM+ flying international? That can be purchased? Free bags come with a DL AmEx card too.

If OP will be in business class, status probably won't matter.

dayone

Someone buying premium fares should focus on the airline providing the most service (to desired destinations) from his/her home airport.

DeltaFlyingProf

I moved years ago from Delta because they essentially lied to their most frequent fliers, breaking past promises while spinning the reasons.
I still cannot trust them. It's a business issue. I cannot do business with someone who has lied to me so many times.

On the other hand, on the front of gutting the program, all majors have followed Delta's lead and I find that AS is the only one left with a good FF program.

I would NEVER move back to DL.