MSPeconomist

There's a big cost for transferring redeemable miles between accounts, which has a fixed cost service fee component and a cost per mile. Usually it's more than the miles are worth and close to what it would cost to purchase miles from DL outright. It can be useful if there's an *available* award ticket that you want.

You can sometimes avoid the transfer/purchase fees by putting different passengers on separate PNRs (even for children) or purchasing two one way award tickers (using different accounts for the two directions) rather than a RT award ticket, although this can lead to higher fees (due to the foreign origination for one of the OW award tickets).

beachmouse

The charges to transfer miles are indeed crazy high. It’s better to just use your miles to buy a ticket for her in her name than to mess around with mile transfers 99.9% of the time.

ramcm7

Just started a Platinum status challenge with Delta. In addition to US Delta flights, I have an Air France flight NCE-CDG coming up in economy with one checked bag included. My wife has no Sky Team status. Will we both get an extra bag allowance from my status, just me, or nether of us? AF's website is not very clear.

EasternTraveler

Originally Posted by MSPeconomist View Post
1. Is this going to be an award ticket (paid with DL redeemable miles ("SkyMiles") or KLM/AF points/miles) or a ticket paid with money? Your post is confusing to me when you talk about booking with miles, which I wouldn't expect for business travel that will be paid or reimbursed. Award tickets earn nothing unless they are DL flights paid with DL miles.
*** PAID WITH MONEY ***

2. Will your business travel permit genuine Premium Economy (separate cabin, better seats than coach, etc.), called Premium Select or PS on DL, or just Comfort Plus (called C+ here on FT) which are regular coach seats in the front of the coach cabin with a few more inches of pitch (legroom) between rows?
*** PS ***

3. Do you have a MQD waiver from DL, usually based on either an official foreign address on your FF account or sufficient spend ($25,000 for FO/GM/DM but $250,000 for DM) on DL AmEx cards? If not, you probably need to worry more about MQDs than MQMs, and you should compare carefully whether booking as DL or KLM will earn more MQDs for your particular fare class.
*** NO MQD WAIVER ***

4. Are you trying to upgrade?
*** I WOULD LOVE TO - If they offer for some dollars or miles, I will ***

Any thoughts with this additional information?

MSPeconomist

Look carefully at MQD earnings for AF vs DL. IIRC earnings depend on whether you have a DL or AF flight number ("marketed by") and also IIRC DL marketed PS flights earn 150% MQMs while AF PE earns 140% MQMs on DL. Check the numbers carefully.

AF sometimes sells upgrades through their app or at the airport for money; my impression is that DL tends to do this less often but if there's an offer, it's likely to give you the choice of either money or DL miles (at roughly one cent per mile).

EasternTraveler

Which would you make your booking on KL or DL with the hopes of buying an upgrade?

MSPeconomist

I'm not at all an expert on the odds or cost of buying an upgrade. In fact, it might not matter in that for TATL flights departing *from* AMS, KLM would handle this starting at about T - 2 days, when they assume airport control of the flight. For departures from the USA to Europe, whether DL or KLM would handle the flight depends on the airport, for example DL at MSP but KLM at JFK.

However, I expect to see a big bump up in TATL travel starting ASAP since the requirement of a negative COVID-19 test to fly to the USA is ending. I wouldn't bet on any cheap upgrades being offered for the rest of the summer.

EasternTraveler

Probably my best option is to book on DL paying for Economy Plus and hope for an upgrade option.

I can only buy economy or economy plus. I am not reimbursed for first. KL doesn't have a economy plus yet. I guess it would depend on who has the best coach experience as that is probably where I will be.

MSPeconomist

My impression is that KLM is starting to offer Premium Economy on its aircraft, but if work will pay, definitely book PS and *hope* that you might be offered an upgrade (note that it's nonrefundable if you make a voluntary change) into D1, which is DL's business class. (AF offers IFC = international first class, called La Premiere, on a few routes but DL and KLM do not.)

The remaining question, which might make a big difference in the MQDs you earn, is whether to try to book the DL operated flight with a KLM flight number. You need to look at the numbers, assuming that you can do this on your itinerary and under your employer's (does Fly America Act apply?) rules.

EasternTraveler

Fortunately, I can book on anything I like as long as I only book economy or economy plus, no first class.

xliioper

KL currently has Economy Comfort seating on aircraft which is equivalent to DL Comfort+ and United Economy Plus. You get access to KL Economy Comfort seating if you purchase a KL "Standard Plus" fare. It can also be purchased after ticketing as an add-on option. They are adding Premium Economy cabins (equivalent to DL Premium Select and AF Premium Economy) to 787s and 777-300ER fleets starting this year.

hhdl

I would be very careful around the distinction between Economy Plus and Premium Economy, lest you have a nasty surprise when expensing the ticket.

TravelExperience

Hi All,

I am contemplating matching from OZ to DL and taking advantage of the JFK-ICN-DPS F Class promo to hit the required flights during the challenge. While there is a "Which ST program should I sign up for?" thread I am looking at DL SkyMiles for a few reasons and am hoping to tap the forum's wisdom to see if I overlooked anything. I do think DL makes sense for me, but I could be wrong and hoping to figure it out now rather than later thanks in advance

Questionnaire: Copy and paste into your post
Provide the requested information.

1. What is most important to you in a frequent flyer program (FFP)?
upgrades, priority services, baggage allowance, good award redemption rates, better award access, lounge access, etc.
>>> Reply: Priority Check in and Boarding, baggage allowance, lounge access and ability to earn lifetime status without too much requirement to fly the said carrier's metal nor time requirements (10 years consecutive maintaining x status etc)

2. How many miles do you usually fly each year? How many flights/sectors?
less than 25000 miles, 50000+ miles and 20-25 flights, etc.
>>> Reply: 80,000+ miles in the average year, with say 15 flights but for this year alone I am already on 120,000+ due to mileage runs

3. What fare class do you usually buy?
first, business, premium economy, economy
>>> Reply: of say 15 flights, 2 in business, 6 in premium economy and the last 7 in economy. If I take the KE promo flights, it would be my first ever trips in F

4. Are you able to choose your airlines and/or class of service? Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
>>> Reply: yes I am able to choose. 2/3 work and 1/3 leisure

5. Which routes do you fly most often?
transatlantic, domestic USA, intra-Asia, etc.
>>> Reply: Intra Asia and Asia Europe. Asia North America only for runs

6. What is your home airport?
>>> Reply: BKK, KUL or SIN are fine

7. Do you have status in any FFP? What is it? How miles do you have banked in each FFP, if any?
>>> Reply: OZ *G and AY OWE

8. What are your preferred airlines, if any?
>>> Reply: Not really.

I was hoping to get lifetime *G on OZ but since that is not something I could do for a few more years, and then I too would not know OZ's eventual fate. I am looking for a place to start working on ST E+ . I plan to split travel between OW and ST carriers which I think I can do.

Again thank you

hhdl

Flying Blue might be worth considering as well, though I don't think they status match. While their lifetime status is 10 consecutive years of Platinum, they rollover elite credit so you can heavily front load. You of course run the risk that they decide to eliminate rollover, but the more likely way they'd make Platinum for Life harder to get is by introducing a higher tier (and there's nothing stopping DL from rugpulling their MMers). AFKL's AsiaPac partners are better than DL's (AFKL partners with JL, QF, and with MH in Malaysia as well as the SkyTeam partners), and might be useful as an option for Asia-Europe.

bcpoinciana

Is the baggage estimator accurate? Delta diamond, economy award flight, auto upgrade to comfort+, FLL to JFK, 3 bags up to 70 lbs? I saw 2 bags up to 70 lbs. in a few places (thus the question).