I flew Delta on the first day that seats were filled. Here's what it was like as an elite status holder. Flying home from Phoenix to New York, I picked my flights very carefully to have the best chance of an upgrade while spending as little money as possible. Both had first class cabins that were pretty empty when I booked, so I was confident I'd get an upgrade on at least one flight.
Delta has been deploying more wide-body aircraft like the Boeing on domestic routes, and they offer the best chance of an upgrade. With the flights booked, all I could do was wait. Silver Medallions don't get upgraded until the flight is within 24 hours from departure. Fast forward to the departure day, I checked into the first flight and was number four of five on the upgrade list with five seats available. It was looking good that I'd get one of the coveted seats but Delta wasn't going to give it up that easily.
It's basically the equivalent of a first class seat on a smaller plane, and the cabin is arranged in a configuration. The flight from Minneapolis was also looking surprisingly good for an upgrade as the cabin hadn't filled up. Minneapolis-New York is a business traveler-heavy route and this was a Saturday night, so I had a better shot. I arrived at the airport the next morning with no confirmed upgrade for the first flight, even though I was still in good standing on the upgrade list. This didn't affect my airport experience much, though, as elite status holders still have access to many of the same airport perks as first class flyers.
Not even the gate agent could tell me if my upgrade had cleared when I inquired before boarding. It was clear that it was going to come down to the famous boarding-time upgrade for which Delta is known. Lo-and-behold, I scanned my boarding pass and out came a little slip of paper with my new seat number, 9D. Just like that, I turned left into the aircraft and the entire flight changed for me.
The value of my trip shot up to more than what I paid for my economy ticket. And in terms of upgrades, this was like hitting the jackpot. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer. More About Gary ». More articles by Gary Leff ». I thought AA had treated Premium Economy as a separate class of service as most airlines have done for years.
At a minimum, similar tier frequent flyers in Premium Economy would get upgraded to Business before anyone in coach so while a double upgrade may have been possible on some US airlines from a practical standpoint I bet it was rarely done. Well why bother to remain DM? One of the last primary perks is now gone. Just purchase the lowest cost business fare to an international destination. That almost never is Delta. This is just outrageous.
Delta was never the best or more upscale airline but it had the best on-time rate, a reasonably good inflight experience, and excellent elite status benefits.
This allowed Delta to charge a premium for its seats over competitors. None of those things are true anymore. I would argue that United is the only airline major US flag carrier actively trying to get better.
Why would anyone waste their money paying a premium for Delta? I would not be surprised if this move is partly a result of too many diamonds and too many unused certificates thanks to two years of status and certificate extensions. Am I correct? How does this work for Delta One on domestic flights?
Confirmed at booking with no capacity control? As a former Northwest Airlines elite, DL showed me early on what they really thought of loyalty. AC — nope, who told you that? The person who told you that maybe confused about EXP do get upgraded into premium economy 24 hours to departure on long haul for free without any instruments, but with SWU you can always upgraded to J from Y but not PE, nothing had changed.
What is not clear is, can I know in advance if Delta One is immediately available at the time of booking using a GUC, if I decide to buy a Premium Select seat, or is it indeed buy the higher priced ticket and pray I win the lotto. Gary, do you know the answer to that? These were almost never confirmable anyway so mostly useless.
I also find my domestic upgrades since summer only clear at the gate if at all. All in all, time to reevaluate elite status with Delta. JFC, glad I busted my hump trying to make platinum this year. Now they are only valid for travel until the last day of your Medallion year, regardless of when you select them.
My feelings about changes the last few weeks can be neatly summed up as — Screw Delta. Screw AA. Screw Marriott. The Points Guy will not sell your email. Please enter a valid email address Please check mailing preferences. Sign-up Successful! Welcome to The Points Guy! Darren Murph holds a Guinness World Record as the planet's most prolific professional blogger. He's an explorer at heart, having traversed nearly 50 countries and all 50 US states. He's flown over one million miles on Delta alone, and serves as a senior writer at TPG.
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A dream trip to the Stanley Cup made possible using points and miles. Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels. Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery and at U. Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details. Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights.
On top of all the promotions to earn Delta status this year, in the past few years Delta began allowing seat upgrades using SkyMiles , leading to a rush of flyers using their SkyMiles to upgrade to first class or Comfort Plus. That means there is less chance for even status holders to score an upgrade. Delta would obviously rather sell these seats or collect additional SkyMiles for them as opposed to giving them out as upgrades. If you have ever wondered how Delta determines the upgrade order for the Medallion members, this post is a little peek behind the curtain.
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It depends on where you are going. Flights to Europe, Asia, etc. Find more information here:. How do they determine when an upgrade is available? There have been times where there were un-sold first class seats two days before departure. Their website said I should have cleared 5 days prior and did not end up clearing until at the gate. Do you get an email or just find an upgrade when you check your flight?
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