AusTXHiker

Just in case yall missed USA Today's Tuesday issue (01 JUN 1999), Randy was asked to rate the FF programs of 10 major airlines (AA, US, CO, NW, UA, HP, AS, TW, DL, and WN). The following are highlights of Randy's ratings:

Best FF program:
1. AA
2. US
3. CO

Worst FF programs:
10. WN
9. DL
8. TW

Ease of redeeming domestic awards:
WN- A+
HP- A-
AA, US, CO, NW, UA, AS, TW- B
DL- C+

Ease of redeeming international awards:
NW- B
US- B-
AA, CO, UA- C
HP, AS, DL- C-
TW- D

Do you all agree? Any opinions?

pgupta011

Based on the number of posts on Webflyer I would say that United is #1 (or else we fly it but hate it).

Rudi

I can't judge - as basically I feel only somehow competent to compare some StarAlliance-partner-programs and Qualiflyer - and look at/in them from the international "point de vue".

Beckles

Oh boy, something to scare more people away from DL ...

Randy Petersen

It's important to understand when reading the USA Today piece that we were asked to rate those programs based on criteria set by USA Today and as compared against each other. The other point to remember is that each category had the same weight, meaning that the importance of an elite-level program had the same weight as blackout dates for international travel. Just keep this in mind, since you might put different weights on things within these programs that mean more to you.

Efrem

You might also want to check out the current _Consumer Reports_. They rate airlines based on their own surveys, which have their biases as do any others. Some of the discussion had to do with FF programs. A number that sticks in my mind (I don't have the article here) is that American has the highest percentage of available award seats, 10.0. I think Delta was lowest of the majors at 6.3. (Please don't flame me if I recall the numbers wrong, but please do correct them.)

billm

The story is at http://www.usatoday.com/life/travel/...99/t0601ff.htm .

doc

Interesting post!

Another consideration when cashing in for international awards is whether your trying for economy class or the front cabin. NWA rated well but I've found it EXTREMELY difficult to get in first/business using mileage! Yet I agree with the higher NWA rating because getting 3 free seats has been quite easy, particularly compared to domestic routes.

The CR report last month was good, particularly in its attempt to be unbiased, but they pay far too little attention to elite level benefits.

steve100

It is noteworthy that in the USAToday article, Randy rated SouthWest as the Worst FF program, but the absolute best ease of redeeming awards.... Interesting juxtaposition.

On another note, the article states, "Today, only Continental's OnePass, Northwest's WorldPerks, Alaska's Mileage Plan and US Airways' Dividend Miles lack mileage expiration dates. " I don't believe that this is correct, there are many other airlines that don't have mileage expiration dates. (although, some require that you fly at least once in 3 years to maintain this 'no-expiration'.) Is there a listing somewhere (or could someone post one) that has the information in expiration/non-expiration detail for all the different airlines?

Randy Petersen

Actually to explain Southwest Rapid Rewards ranking. I happen to think they have a great program for the market they serve. What happens when a comparison like the USA Today article comes about is that there are certain standards within these programs that Southwest falls away from. For instance, every other major program (from Aloha to Midwest Express to Alaska, etc.) has an elite level program to essentially differentiate between the better customers and those that are just today's passengers. Southwest has chosen not to do that. Also, those same programs mentioned above don't fly international routes, but have established relationships with other carriers to allow some sense of awards beyond their route system. I rmember a number of years back when American West introduced service to Hawaii only because it was an award destination demand. Southwest has chosen not to align and offer international award partners. If you were to factor out those two standards, Southwest does as well as anyone, and they do a very good job with their program. However, the comparison of programs for USA today did not allow an exemption and thus they were dunned in these categories, bringing down their whole rating. Should Southwest have to offer these types of benefits to their members? Not really, if what they have works for them and I beleive it does. But these two items are really standards in the industry and in the case of USA Today, they decided to measure across the standard. I would say that the main reason that elite level programs is a valid standard is that there is a time when awards aren't always the measure of loyalty, it's the benefits that sometimes outweight a frebbie and without an elite level program, there's not much with Southwest to fall back on, other than the realization that you bought a ticket that promises to get you from Point A to Point B.

philforest

I don't think I was asked for my opinion in the USA Today survey. I've been a member of Delta's program, whatever they've called it, since inception. I've never had a a request for an award ticket or an upgrade turned down. I think that makes for a pretty good program.

philforest

Beckles: Scare more people away from the front cabin and make more room for me!

philforest

Randy: I think you're saying that you provided data to a requester that you thought the requester wanted to hear. If you had provided USA Today with real data, they wouldn't have published the data, and your name. When you say you responded to USA Today's request, you're saying you're responding to "When was the last time you beat your wife?"

I'm dissappointed.

hnechets

Philforest, I must respectfully disagree with that assessment. Randy was asked to rank the airlines and he did so according to certain criteria that are important to frequent fliers in general. If an airline does not have a presence in one of the categories, it must, and should, score zero there.

I mean, what else could Randy do? Put a score for the category anyway? THAT would be dishonest. He couldn't ignore it in compiling the rankings, either, because that would be unfair to the airlines that DID offer, say, an elite level, or free tickets to europe.

As has been mentioned before, though, I don't think any of us flies an airline because of some organization's rating of it. We go with what works for us, in our individual situations, and therefore pick the categories and options that are important to us. People who fly Southwest, for instance, are motivated by other factors that award tickets to the pacific rim, or free wine.

Thanks for listening.

[This message has been edited by hnechets (edited 06-03-99).]

Randy Petersen

Well, I'm dissapointed that you interpret that philforest. Somehow, you're missing something very important. First, if they (USA Today) knew anything about these programs, they wouldn't have asked us to do a rating. Second, by "request", I was simply saying that they asked us to do the work for them, they had no editorial direction on the ratings, but simply provided us with the categories which to compare programs against each other. These categories are actually nothing new, coming from a similar rating of programs for Conde Naste Traveler which we did several years back. Third, as for you being dissapointed, consider how brave we were to even accept the assignment, since you have to know that anyone rated below #1 becomes a mortal enemy. Do you think I'll get upgraded on the next Delta flight? Or will they know me the next time I check in at Marriott? I don't worry about those things, because if I did, we really never would have done the work for USA Today. As for your opinion in the USA Today survey, that was on purpose. The idea behind statistical research is to separate the research from emotional ties. We did not survey any particular person, but rather a combination of many factors, some being comparisons of standards, others being comparisons of numbers, like the number of blackout dates that Delta (you mention Delta, so we'll use that as a standard here) has vs. other programs. Like the reality that Delta is the only frequent flyer program in the U.S. without a Visa/MasterCard credit card partner (they are the top two card issuers in the world). Like the fact that Delta is the only major frequent flyer program that restricts their best customers (Medallion) from upgrading against "L" fares which is a very, very powerful lightning rod. Also, have you tired to upgrade your spouse with you when traveling on Delta, like you can with other major programs? Why is it that Delta is the only major carrier without a truly identifiable global alliance partnership that aggregates benefits and privileges? You know, like OneWorld, Star Alliance (I know about the Atlantic Excellance allaince). These ratings aren't just the flavor of the day, they are a composite of results over the last 3-12 months, because you must measure on past performance, not future promises. You mention Delta. I actually am a big fan of Delta, and in fact, count them among my top two favorite programs when choosing personal miles. How much do I like Delta? Well, I owned the trademark to SkyMiles at one time. When they approached me with the idea of acquiring it from me because they were thinking of renaming their 'Frequent Flyer' program, I gave it to them without a fee. Do you know how much money I could have got for that trademark? I like them, but I'm comfortable they were rated correctly in the USA Today survey as compared against other programs. I do know that I've continued to contribute my opinions on what would make them better and with some small adjustments, they are almost instantly among the leaders.

And just for the record, I'm not married, so I couldn't possible have beated my 'wife.'