Oddly the status match page says unavailable but the link to accept requests is still up. Wonder if they'll just deny anything that comes in for the time being.

Honestly, I have been platinum for the past few years... and there's NO way I should be

So maybe things need to change to reward people who actually fly?

Taking the last two decades of the FF program in perspective, your "slippery" assertion would certainly seem valid.

Oh, you mean because it's a frequent flyer program? :D

I think everyone has now realized that, at least for the big US carries, the loyalty program business is far more lucrative than the actual flying business. People have been saying for a while that what we have here are banks/credit card companies that happen to fly airplanes. It seems like the most ideal customer for any airline is one who spends money with their high-profit loyalty program but never steps foot on the airplane.

I read a lot of this thread (not the whole thing).

Is there a decent chance MQMs will go away?

My work travel is predominantly short, non-stop flights that are relatively expensive (hub captive). I’ve almost hit Gold MQDs, but still short of Silver MQMs/Segments, which is frustrating. I would like to avoid an MQM run at the end of the year if possible, so Delta dropping the MQM requirement would help significantly.

The requirements for qualifying for this year (qualifying in 2023 for the 2024 calendar year) won't change so you'll still need an MQM run at the end of this year if you're short on MQMs and want to obtain status. You may be able to avoid such types of travel next year if the program has new qualifications for requirement beginning next year for status in the 2025 calendar year.

Oddly the Status Match page is back to normal and accepting submissions. (The Reclaim My Status page still has the unavailable message)

people will still need to do runs to get over the top of the spend threshholds, there's no difference between doing it to hit a spend threshold or a distance threshold.

Mileage running for redmeeable miles has been dead for a while now already.

So the fact that TPG site has been notably silent speaks volume, and not in a good way. And by silent, I mean essentially not reporting on this rumor, or even indicating it exists. Yes it’s just a rumor, but there is enough smoke to warrant something on their site at this point. And they are staying quiet.

My suspicion is that TPG already has (or soon will be getting) the inside scoop. Similar to when TPG was the big newsmaker on the details of the SPG/Marriott merge, I can see a similar situation here with a major SkyMiles overhaul. If the changes are significant, I can see Delta wanting someone like TPG to break everything down in detail for the masses, and write detailed articles of how the new program will operate. (And to minimize questions that Delta agents may otherwise get).

If so, I just hope the end result of these SkyMile changes is not as unfortunate as it was when SPG went away.

delta is the pioneer in devaluing FFPrograms. I expect the worst.

They still need MQMs for MM status.

If they go the AA LP route, there may still be mileage-based LP earnings (and hence true distance based runs) as that is what AA uses for most partners. Looking on AA website, I see that BA and Iberia (BA Group partners) are switching from mileage based earn to spend based earn starting on Oct 18th.

Enough economy flights to cross the MQM threshold aren't dirt cheap. I would be surprised international members would be able to achieve that without hitting the MQD mark.

I mean, how much worse can the program get? The mileage program is pretty worthless, and there are so many medallion members that upgrades are rare outside of 6AM on a Sunday morning. Even Diamond (which is theoretically harder to earn) isn't what it used to be when you consider that GUCs are borderline pointless.

I hope Delta dramatically thins the herd by getting rid of MQM rollover, and moving to a system that actually rewards the people who create profit for Delta (like AA has). At the point I might consider putting some effort into getting Delta status again.

Well it has been. Whether it will be going forward is TBD next week :)