5khours

From a very frequent international traveler's perspective.

1. For long flights, seat comfort is more important than anything. No F on DL, and even though the DL J seats are more private, the UA seats/beds are larger and more comfortable especially since I'm tall. UA wins this hands down.

2. Second most important thing is price. Specifically what is the average price of flying in F and J. This is very closely tied to the FF program (award redemptions and international upgrades) since this brings down my overall cost of travel. UA was winning this by a long shot as well, but recent program devaluations by UA and improvements (int'l UGs) by DL has made this a little closer. Still UA wins by a lot.

3. Everything else. DL is better in most respects, but after flying EK, NH, LH, SQ, CX, TG etc., comparing DL and UA is like asking which is better ....the gray donkey or the brown donkey?

For me anyway, UA is still a much better choice for international travel.... but to be honest I've shifted a lot of my travel to non-US carriers.

LaserSailor

I fly both UA and DL - DL whenever they are direct from the summer house.

UA mainline = DL mainline > DL regional > UA regional in terms of both hard and soft product

Skyclub > United Club

UA mainline international > DL international

MP >> Skymiles

UA-NYC

So having wifi on far more DL flights, pillows and real blankets at every seat, better food (IMO) & booze on board, nicer clubs, better operations, etc. doesn't make DL any better than UA? Wow.

LaserSailor

Added Skyclub > United Club to my list

I work, not sleep on planes.
Wifi has no value to me
I fly on planes and eat good food at home/restaurant
I don't drink at work.

GeneralVeers

I fly both airlines every month and the positives of each airline can be summed up:

Delta
- Better customer service
- Better food/amenities on flights
- Better on-time reliability

United
- International First class
- Star Alliance >>>> Skyteam
- Ability to book partner awards in First
- Better route network (especially West Coast)
- Jeff Smisek (he's very sexy in those videos)

Before the United partner award devaluation, I would have said it's worth it to fly United just for the points. Now it's a wash. If I wasn't interested in international travel, then it would be Delta far and away.

channa

I would say DL Mainline > DL RJ > UA Mainline > UA RJ


I agree in general, but there are several bright spots in the SkyMiles program that are quite good depending on your redemption patterns (e.g., Europe availability from the East Coast; access to Tahiti, and Australia availability from LAX, etc.).

UA-NYC

YMMV then. I struggle to think of a single facet where UA is on par with DL, let alone superior, in terms of hard/soft product.

LarkSFO

I assume you mean that the E175's flown by Compass and others (for DL) are better than UA operated mainline?

I don't think too many people would agree with you on this one, but perhaps the 175's are 'big enough' to feel more like mainline than the RJ that they are.


A friend of mine was ecstatic to use DL skypesos to redeem on VS to Australia in C. That was an excellent redemption.

channa

I would say that overall, DL RJs with F in general are better than UA mainline.

The F experience on the DL RJ is better than UA mainline in some aspects.

In addition to typically having WiFi that works, the food and beverage seems to be of higher quality (e.g., Seattle's Best vs. Fresh Brew), and DL's RJs have more passenger amenities (e.g., water bottle, pillow, and blanket in seat on boarding, tray linen on tray at meal time, etc.).

While DL RJ's don't have ovens so there is no hot food, when that hot option on United is a Jeff McMuffin or a hot pocket, it's not an big loss, IMO.

The salads on DL RJ's in F are generally larger than United's and use higher quality ingredients (e.g., various greens on DL vs. romaine on UA).

golfingboy

Even with UA, many do find the E170s to be superior to mainline in Y. The seats are much better, they have proper headrests, 2-2 vs 3-3 and naturally with only 70 people on the plane it has a more relaxed atmosphere feel versus flying on a plane with 150-220 people. There are a few other small features that some might like such as more overhead space per passenger, larger windows, two lavs which translates to one lav per 35 passengers, etc.

The DL E-175s are better than UA's with wifi, brighter interiors, proper mainline like service in Y and F, etc.

The only bad thing with the E170/5 is they are more likely to get cancelled over mainline.

mlb1k

The wife and I work and travel together. Mostly UA for business because of status and client destinations. We have a second home in Florida where DL is one of two airlines that serve the closest airport.

Redeeming miles- UA hands down. More availability and fewer miles

On time performance- Toss up. The regional partners for both are unreliable. both for delays and MX issues. Can't remember the last mechanical issue that affected us on mainline DL. UA mainline has had more delay issues lately.

Lounges- Delta. United club still offers barebones amenities and are always packed to the brim. Probably because of their delay issues.

FC- Delta. Got so sick of UA cheeseburgers and those horrid breakfast sandwiches we now eat before we depart. Plus the 1St class seats on UA are smaller and the adjustable headrests are a pain in the neck when the Gestapo FA make you put them down for takeoff and landing.

Price-Delta. Have been purchasing Delta FC seats because they are often fairly reasonable on certain routes. UA is always 3-4 times the price of discounted coach. We use miles to upgrade on long hauls especially in and out of SFO where being 1K can often leave you on the second pg of the upgrade list.

bajrbajr

DL:
easier upgrades
fares are generally lower in the markets I travel
better lounges in my opinion
better customer service

UA:
award redemption much easier
better alliance network for international (award) travel
better same-day-change program

I recently had a trip which I had to cancel because of illness...

Outbound flight on DL... no problem, showed ticket counter agent at the airport my doctor note and ALL change fees waived.

Return flight on UA: PITA! I have to pay a $200 change fee, then file a request to have it refunded along with faxing in my doctor's note... and then UA keeps $50 for a service fee!

roadkit

Which is no excuse -- RJs have galleys and can serve drinks, pre-packaged foods. UA chooses not to.

UA-NYC

While very true in the past - won't be necessarily true going forward 2/1/14 onward

elynchking

UA is easier to redeem miles but DL lets us lesser elites rack them up faster (100% bonus for Gold). Plus they partner with Amex - losing that option was a big blow to flyers like me.