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China Eastern and Delta Air Lines: The Definitive Thread

China Eastern and Delta Air Lines: The Definitive Thread

Old Jan 17, 2020, 9:45 pm
  #286  
 
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Originally Posted by flyerCO
It's the way all airlines operate for awards. Your overall hate for DL never ceases to amaze.
Yes, but DL more so than others.

Other airlines (like UA) will at least bend the routing rules and will try to get other airlines to open up award inventory, have their IT actually work to find and fix the bug, etc. It's the amount of effort. From DL you get none (unless you're exceedingly lucky and get someone who cares and is empowered). From other airlines, it varies, but more often than not is more than DL.

But yes, of course, that is the way it typically is.

As I said in the part that you chose to exclude, however, DL will not only open up award inventory on its own flights, it also CAN do so with its JV partners (though I doubt KE, but AF/KL, AZ, and I believe also VS it can reach out to them and have the inventory opened up). So, if there is a way to get to where one is going with a JV partner, all may not be lost... if not, though, then it's highly unlikely, unless one gets one of the few people at DL who care (as there are ways to make it happen and make it right, just that DL staff who go out of their way to help customers will be reprimanded by management, that I know for a fact).

Practically here, the advice here should be (instead of snipe remarks, helping the OP):
1. If there is a way to get to destination on DL, then award availability doesn't matter. DL can get you there. Insist that they do.
2. If there is a way to get to destination on DL JV partner(s), DL won't want to, but they can get you there. Award availability doesn't matter. Firmly insist that DL get the X or O space opened up to get you there.
3. Otherwise (if no award availability, but there is a way to get there on SkyTeam), worth to ask for DL to reissue ticket in revenue fare class as an even exchange, though it's highly unlikely - practically guaranteed - to work (if it does work, rush out a buy a lottery ticket pronto! ).

In case of MU, it's worth a few HUACAs and escalations to insist that DL call MU and have them open up inventory and make it right, if the flight is still operating. As DL is tied up with MU, though not in a formal JV, DL should have some pull and should be able to do it -- if the right person at DL contacts the right person at MU on this.

Last edited by RealHJ; Jan 17, 2020 at 9:51 pm
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Old Jan 18, 2020, 5:22 am
  #287  
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Originally Posted by Casily
I traveled in a party of 5 in PE LAX-CAN return. Only one out of the 5 LAX-CAN (one way) posted automatically. All the other ones I had to submit a mileage credit claim with a picture of my BP. Luckily I took a picture before they took the part that showed I had an S class ticket. After a DL IT ticket has been generated, I get a notice that miles will be posted in 48 hours. But then the status changed from processing to Partners denied miles. Each time I then had to tweet DL to resolve. They then said Im not sure why it didnt go through but the miles will post within 24 hours. Ive now claimed back 3 out of the 5 SM / MQM. Still waiting for the other 2 cases to go through. A side note: you cant submit too many mileage credit cases at the same time... I suspect DL IT automatically thinks youre duplicating your requests. So for each person I had to wait for a day or two to submit these emails. Its a pain but given its 15k SM each, Im willing to do this while I work on other stuff.
This has started happening to me more frequently now. In the past 4 years flying MU all the time I never had problems with the miles crediting to DL. In the last 4 months Ive had the same problem as you 3-4 times including the initial denial which I need to rectify on Twitter. Something must have changed in how MU transmits the mileage info to Delta.
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Old Aug 4, 2021, 6:13 pm
  #288  
 
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I've tried but I can't find the info I want on the MU website. I have to use translate and I'm not getting anywhere.

I have a friend who spent a number of years living and working in China. She flew MU a lot and accumulated MU miles. She was mostly Gold but did hit Platinum once or twice. She's not a sophisticated FF and believed that she would take a beating by crediting her MU flights to DL. Now she's back in the US and I was wondering if she can use her MU miles for award tickets on DL. If she can, I'm assuming that she'd book through the MU web site.

Simple guidance would be appreciated. She's fluent in Chinese, both written and spoken so if I can point her in the right direction, she'll be fine.

I'm looking forward to having her as a companion on some MU MRs as she builds DL status.
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Old Aug 4, 2021, 8:25 pm
  #289  
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Originally Posted by SuperG1955
I've tried but I can't find the info I want on the MU website. I have to use translate and I'm not getting anywhere.

I have a friend who spent a number of years living and working in China. She flew MU a lot and accumulated MU miles. She was mostly Gold but did hit Platinum once or twice. She's not a sophisticated FF and believed that she would take a beating by crediting her MU flights to DL. Now she's back in the US and I was wondering if she can use her MU miles for award tickets on DL. If she can, I'm assuming that she'd book through the MU web site.

Simple guidance would be appreciated. She's fluent in Chinese, both written and spoken so if I can point her in the right direction, she'll be fine.

I'm looking forward to having her as a companion on some MU MRs as she builds DL status.
I live in China and can't figure out how to use my MU miles. If she has a PRC ID card then she should be able to set up her accounts for redemption. If not, it seems almost impossible to use the miles I get from MU. I still credit to them so I can use the lounges on my domestic flights but once international opens again, I'll start crediting DL.
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Old Aug 4, 2021, 11:45 pm
  #290  
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Originally Posted by travelinmanS
I live in China and can't figure out how to use my MU miles. If she has a PRC ID card then she should be able to set up her accounts for redemption. If not, it seems almost impossible to use the miles I get from MU. I still credit to them so I can use the lounges on my domestic flights but once international opens again, I'll start crediting DL.
MU points (hard to call them miles) are pretty valuable right now because you can redeem them on flights that never release inventory to DL (or DL chooses not to show). When I want to redeem, I search for availability using someone else's account or try my luck over the phone. The process is a bit tedious but works and award prices are often good. If I flew MU and partners more, I'd probably shoot for diamond because their upgrade policy is sweet.
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Old Aug 5, 2021, 3:28 am
  #291  
 
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Thanks much for the info. I'll discuss it with her.
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