Delta Sky Miles Changes: How long will Ed Bastian last?

[Markola]

I fly Delta tonight and was looking around the upgraded app, which now keeps track of your progress to Million Miler status. Million Miler itself has status categories up to SIX MILLION MILES!

Can you imagine? That is a prize no one wants to win, lol.

I did. I'm lifetime Diamond. Best times of my life.

I guess I’m a home body and I stand corrected. I’m curious roughly how many years of frequent travel it takes to hit one million miles, then the next million and so on?

I had a couple of jobs with pretty air frequent travel, maybe twice a month, enough for Platinum level one year and to accumulate 446,000 lifetime miles. I’m a piker compared to you, I realize.

 

[DuluthGA]

I earned a little over 1.3 on Delta and around 120,000 on Continental in roughly 8 years 1988-96. Pre 9-11 air travel was easier. I usually flew 3 out of 4 weeks each month. About 1/.2 of the time with a connection. Back then on Delta you got 1,000 miles for every leg. Double for first class. They had a domestic medallion upgrade certificate you buy for 2,500 miles which got you double miles for a net cost of 500 miles. If you had a connection each way Delta would end up paying you and extra 1,500 miles to fly first class so I always flew first class.
In the late 80’s they did a deal with Amex that got you triple mileage if you paid with your Amex. I did ATL-ANChorage and netted somewhere around 30,000 miles for the trip (total 4x mileage with first class). Back then a domestic free ticket was 20k miles and domestic first class was 25k miles. A lot of friends and family took trips for free.

I stopped traveling in 96 and enjoyed the upgrades on the occasional leisure travel. When they started pushing card spend the upgrades dried up (although I did get one to comfort+ on DL for Munich-ATL in May). Hopefully this change will increase those opportunities.

I do like being able to select my seat and getting the main cabin exit or wing exit row at time of booking. At 6’1” leg room is appreciated.

 

[athena53]

I follow travel news avidly (one paid subscription to a blogger, posting on FlyerTalk, many of the "news" items that get selected for me) and I have to admit that the vehement reaction to these changes surprises me. Airlines have been "enhancing" their programs in ways that dilute their benefits for years. DuluthGA's post is a good example of how far (downward) they've come. I hit million-miler status on AA just before they slammed down the window on counting every mile you earned (thank you, FlyerTalk for the heads-up), whether spending or charitable donations on aa.com, bonus miles due to your status or fare class, etc. and started counting only "butt-in-seat" miles after that but still counting all the miles you earned to that date. It's still paying off in terms of seat selection and a free checked bag on my occasional domestic Coach trips.

This must be a real program downgrade to get this type of reaction. I'm glad I'm not a heavy Delta traveler and I hope the other airlines don't follow suit. I follow the FlyerTalk mantra about miles' Earn 'em and burn 'em. Unlike the S&P 500, they will NOT increase in value over time.

 

[Chuckanut]

They are all doing it.

I have decided that cash in my wallet is the best extra. With that I can buy a nicer airline seat or better yet - an upgraded room. I would rather upgrade a room I will spend 3 to 7 days/nights in than a seat I will spend 8-10 hours in. In either case, they can skip the easy to devalue points and miles, and instead show me the money.

I still like Delta because for the most part they get me and my luggage to the destination on time. The few delays I've run into were obvious weather problems. All the points or miles in the world are not worth a canceled or severally delayed flight. If that changes, I will look elsewhere for competitive flights at competitive prices.

 

[Markola]

^^^^^ That’s where we’ve landed too. Our system is:

- Delta Platinum Amex only used for Delta purchases only, which more than pays for itself with free bags and an annual domestic companion ticket.

- Chase Sapphire Reserve for all other travel, taking the rewards as cash back. No fees for international transactions and the best rental car insurance.

- Amazon Prime Visa for 5% cash back on all Amazon and Whole Foods purchases.

- Target Red Card for 5% off groceries and many other savings. Not cash back but significant savings.

- Wells Fargo 2% cash back Visa for everything else.

All those are payed off automatically and results in about $1,800/year, which would be about 180,000 airline points, right? Maybe that system isn’t perfectly optimized but it achieves well enough for me the 80/20 Rule of life.

 

[athena53]

All those are paid off automatically and results in about $1,800/year, which would be about 180,000 airline points, right? Maybe that system isn’t perfectly optimized but it achieves well enough for me the 80/20 Rule of life.

It depends on how you value miles! I typically use mine for Business Class transatlantics and those run around 180,000 miles RT (yeah, I remember when I could get them for 50,000 ). Assume about $6,000 ticket price and it's more like 3.3 cents per mile.

Having said that- I use tactics similar to yours, Once I ran up the minimum spend for the sign-on bonus, I restricted use of my AA and Hilton cards only to purchases on those brands. The rest get split between Fidelity 2% cash back and Costco, which gives a higher % back for travel, restaurants and gas.

If AA starts getting stingy about lounge access with my high-priced MasterCard that will be an incentive not to renew. As a Lifetime Gold member I already get many of the other perks such as earlier boarding and no charge for seat selection or a checked bag.

 

[athena53]

Too late to edit my last post but I just saw an article in my FB feed speculating that Delta has pared down their loyalty program because they're more focused on providing a better customer experience and that will drive traffic to Delta. The writer even speculates that these programs could go away as airlines compete on service. Not totally crazy; that's how I pick my long-haul Business Class flights and the airlines love passengers like us- but airlines have fattened their coffers with sales of points to retailers, credit card companies, etc. in addition to people purchasing or gifting miles. I don't think they'll walk away from that any time soon.

Here's the link.

https://www.godsavethepoints.com/the-multi-year-master-stroke-behind-deltas-skymiles-changes/

 

[Ger0n1mo]

Was a "road warrior" (2011 to 2019) during the last chapter of the w*&k time.

Perfect timing to amass the miles and we've been burning them up as fast as we can (Japan next month, free flight and hotel).....I've noticed the value of a mile (air or hotel) keeps dropping....And reaching the tiers of status was a distracting goal back then.....Our goal now is to enjoy spending the miles on fun travel now as fast as we can and we look forward to being a "free agent".

Chasing status on Delta was fun then....it seems like a "fools errand" to me now. And even more so after I tried to understand Delta's new scheme......

I abandoned chasing points a long time ago since the last two companies I worked at implemented travel policies that required selecting the cheapest fare and I could never amass enough points with any particular airline to be of any real value. And, my business travel the last 10 years diminished anyway.

The comments on this thread remind me of a flight years ago. I was boarding a plane and walking through business class when the guy in front of me made a smart aleck comment to a guy that was seated about getting free upgrades. I suspect they knew each other. The man already seated sarcastically replied that "yes, it only cost me my marriage, but upgrades are great". It stuck with me to never be jealous of the perks that road warriors receive.

 

[dixonge]

Never flew for business, began this year w/ below 5,000 award miles/points *in total* - most having long ago expired unused. We just didn't understand the game.
Earlier this year we began acquiring and using cards purely for the Sign-up Bonuses. Should have around 400k miles/points by end of year. After recent transatlantic flights in 'premium economy' I look forward to business class on points. And hotels. My new BTD is getting out of coach and AirBnB's...

 

[marko]

Never flew for business, began this year w/ below 5,000 award miles/points *in total* - most having long ago expired unused. We just didn't understand the game.
Earlier this year we began acquiring and using cards purely for the Sign-up Bonuses. Should have around 400k miles/points by end of year. After recent transatlantic flights in 'premium economy' I look forward to business class on points. And hotels. My new BTD is getting out of coach and AirBnB's...

If one is low on points, one strategy with Delta is to buy an economy ticket and upgrade on points. Delta offers a "cash+miles" option when you book.

 

[5Miler]

DGF is Delta Platinum Medallion with corresponding AMEX card while I lost my Silver Medallion this year and have an AMEX Gold card. I'll be dropping my Gold card as we pretty much just fly First Class/Delta One these days so there's really not much value add there. DGF is going to wait for a month or two until the fallout on the new Delta plan settles to decide whether or not to nix her AMEX card.

The only issue we have is our First Class tickets to Bonaire each year don't qualify us for Sky Club entry since it's Caribbean but our AMEX cards aren't any help there either. We coughed up Skymiles recently to book our tickets for next year which by the way were double what we paid last year plus took an additional $800 each. So, 200K miles each for next year vs 100K each for this year.

Can't take it with you.

 

[braumeister]

Bastian has now admitted that they went too far, and changes to the new Skymiles policies will be announced in coming weeks.

 

[audreyh1]

Interesting!

No other major airline announced changes?

 

[Markola]

Bastian has now admitted that they went too far, and changes to the new Skymiles policies will be announced in coming weeks.

Let the tap dancing begin! https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/travel/delta-ceo-hints-at-rolling-back-some-skymiles-changes

 

[Texas Proud]

It was a stupid idea... and they found out that it was stupid..


However, he did say that he was nickel and dime ind (sp?) the program and wanted to move in one step... so look at them taking a bit away year after year....

 

[Markola]

Breaking:
Delta Airlines Press Release, “What? Y’all can’t take a joke?”

 

[HawkOwl]

The new “gentler kinder” back peddling is so minor as to make absolutely no difference. With 850,000 lifetime miles and seven consecutive years of Platinum Medallion status, I still have zero chance of renewing Platinum or even Gold. It is time for me to move on.

 

[Markola]

Agree. The only thing one should ever count on a corporation for is to remain focused on their own best interest. Everything else is pablum.

 

[ivinsfan]

The new “gentler kinder” back peddling is so minor as to make absolutely no difference. With 850,000 lifetime miles and seven consecutive years of Platinum Medallion status, I still have zero chance of renewing Platinum or even Gold. It is time for me to move on.

To what airline, that's the question.

 

[tulak]

To what airline, that's the question.

It’s less about the airline and more about the value you get for the flight you book.

Everyone’s situation is unique, so you need to figure out what works best for you.

I like Delta and have managed to get silver status for the last few years. That’s saved me from having to pay for seat selection. I was lucky since Delta was in the same ballpark price wise as other airlines.

I’m not sure I’ll have a 5k spend to qualify in 2025. So going forward, I’ll look for flights that provide the best value. For me, that’s not only price, but ability to select seats, maybe pay for upgrades, and most importantly schedule.

I can give a recent example. I could have booked either Delta or Alaska for a flight to Mexico, same price. I chose Delta, even though that meant a 7am flight, which is way too early. Alaska offers a 9am or later flight. I booked Delta to get status. Without that incentive, I would have booked Alaska.

 

[HawkOwl]

To what airline, that's the question.

Everyone is different, but for me it is now less about “what airline” and more about “what strategy”. Instead of playing games with loyalty programs, I think that I will just fly in the cheapest seat on any airline (excluding the Spirit Airlines of the world).

Reading between the lines, I think that you are implying that airlines tend to do things in lock step, to which I agree. I don’t expect it is any better anywhere else.

Loyalty programs exist to make people ignore price, at least to a degree. But if the thresholds of even the most minimal perks are placed out of reach, there is no incentive to preferentially select any one airline.

 

[Dean56]

I have been Platinum Elite for the last six years, and this will be my last year. Requiring $18,000 spent on air tickets per year simply puts it out of my reach.

Same here, I was a Delta Medallion member for the better part of 22 years when working. I was Platinum when I retired. Doesn't look like I'll ever make it back to Medallion level with the new changes Delta has implemented. Oh well.