Help! Delta/Cont/NWA FF Program?
 

I admit it. I need help.
I'm new to the FF thing and just realized I need to start paying attention and get to elite status with someone by Dec.31.
I live in San Diego, CA and am debating between Delta, Continental and NorthWest. I already have 13K on Delta without trying (would be there already if I had thought to book one airline this year) so I'm leaning that way, but I want to pick a good program to stick with for a while.
I've got 4 trips to FL between now and Dec 31 to take and at least one to Texas. I go to San Fran/Oak often as I have an office up there, but unfortunately only Southwest, United and US Air have direct flights.
My main concerns are upgrades of course (who's best at giving and what about reciprocal upgrades with other partner airlines) and best lounges as I do a lot of biz at the airports as well.
I have one FL tix booked on Delta right now, but could cancel tonight if one of the others ends up being a better long term choice
Can anyone offer any good advice? I would really appreciate it!

If you are looking at a FF program for the upgrades, it probably does not matter much, In my experience they are hard to come by to or from the west coast. On any one of these airlines you are probably going to fly from SAN to a hub in the east. CO has a great FC product but relatively small FC cabins. NW and DL have more FC seats per plane but the product is not quite as good as CO. Remember NW and CO will upgrade you on each others flights nd DL will only upgrade you on their own flights. NW or CO do not receive upgrades on DL nor do delta elites receive them on NW/CO.

Other than that probably it is a crap shoot as to which airline you choose. I believe that CO has some funny fare rules where you only 1/2 credit for miles flown, I am not sure about DL.

I'd probably go for DL if you already have 13K in miles this year. They are all about the same.

If I were making this decision, I'd start with my trip schedule -- where I want/ need to go, who has the most direct/ fastest/ cheapest/ routes--- after all your time is worth something. If you're going through IAD, or EWR go with CO, if you're going through DTW/MEM/MSP go with NW

Because you've got 13k miles with Delta, I say stay with them if their routes make sense.

Bob H

If you are going to FL a lot you should definately go with DL. It is a quick hop through ATL and they have more route options.

Interestingly, the only time one does not earn full credit towards Medallion SkyMiles Elite status on Delta Air Lines is if one flies on Continental Airlines flights on certain low fares. Otherwise, Delta Air Lines SkyMiles members earn 100% Medallion Qualification Miles towards Medallion SkyMiles Elite status for the following year on all Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines flights, as well as many Continental Airlines flights.

The official hub airports are as follows:

• Delta Air Lines
  • Atlanta (ATL)
  • Cincinnati (CVG)
  • Salt Lake City (SLC)
  • The following airports are not hub airports, but more than just another destination:
    • Boston (BOS)
    • New York (JFK) — primarily a “feeder” airport for international flights
    • New York (LGA) — primarily for Delta Shuttle flights to Boston (BOS) and Washington, D.C. (DCA) and for regional jet flights to destinations in the southern United States
• Continental Airlines
  • Houston (IAH)
  • Newark (EWR)
  • Cleveland (CLE)
  • Guam (GUM)
• Northwest Airlines
  • Detroit (DTW)
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP)
  • Memphis (MEM)
  • Tokyo (NRT)

In addition to the excellent suggestions pertaining to trip schedules, cost factors, convenience and the fact that perhaps you should consider staying with Delta Air Lines, as you already have approximately 13,000 SkyMiles, one has to also take into account partners of the individual airlines.

For example, I once used my Continental OnePass miles for a fantastic trip to Australia in business class on Qantas. This award option is not available to Delta Air Lines SkyMiles members. A Northwest Airlines WorldPerks member can request an award ticket on Kenya Airways, which is not available to Continental Airlines OnePass members. These are two of many examples of the ability to earn and redeem awards on specific airline partners if one is a member of one of the three frequent flier programs of which you are considering joining.

I hope this information is helpful to you in considering your decision, allicat — and welcome to FlyerTalk!

You forgot Continental's Gateway to the Pacific - GUM (you seem to forget how Continental has more International destination than any other US carrier, as well as how they serve more Japanese cities than any other US carrier)

You forgot Northwest's Gateway to Asia - NRT

-Vincent

Depending on what your goal is next year, once you make Elite. If you are going to travel international, then consider CO, or NW.

I like DL because I mostly fly domestics, and get auto upgrade almost 80%. I also like DL's award availability. Got HNL F 3 months aheads, and Int'l upgrade (using PMU) 2 months out. I can never use my CO miles to get award tix, but it could just be me.

You are absolutely correct, vincom. Thank you.

I have changed the information in my milepost to reflect the inclusion of this information.