Delta’s “preserve climbing” motto could now apply to the worth of some SkyMiles awards.
It seems that with out discover, Delta Air Lines elevated the worth of its SkyTeam companion awards to match its personal flights, as first reported by Thrifty Traveler. While this may very well be a technical or related short-lived error, this follows a 2021 enhance in companion award costs and the airline’s choice to axe companion candy spots earlier this yr. And and not using a revealed award chart, Delta has positioned itself to not be tethered to any set pricing mannequin.
That consists of flights on in style Delta companions like Air France/KLM, Korean Air and Virgin Atlantic.
This means companion awards that will have price 120,000 Delta SkyMiles to fly in enterprise class at the moment are going for as a lot as 330,000 miles a method. Coach fares on journeys to Europe that had been as little as 35,000 miles now price 65,000 one-way. That would imply a fairly substantial devaluation if this pricing sticks round. TPG reached out to Delta for remark, however hadn’t heard again by publication.
Here’s what you could find out about this potential Delta SkyMiles devaluation.
SkyTeam award costs match Delta’s personal flights
For a number of years, Delta has used a dynamic pricing mannequin on its flights, which implies that the award costs fluctuate, simply as money costs do. However, a vibrant spot was that SkyTeam award costs had been extra steady, resembling the airline’s since-retired award charts.
Right now, nevertheless, SkyTeam companions are pricing roughly in step with flights on Delta’s own-operated flights.
Let’s have a look at a KLM-operated flight from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD) to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS).
Before this seeming devaluation, this flight would have probably price 35,000 SkyMiles in economic system. Now, nevertheless, the flight is priced at 56,000 SkyMiles. Incidentally, that’s the identical worth because the least costly Delta flight connecting via Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP).
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The identical holds on soon-to-be SkyTeam member Virgin Atlantic flights.
The Virgin Atlantic flight from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) to London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR) costs on the identical charge as Delta’s personal flight.
Take a have a look at the favored New York to London route. The pricing is fairly surprising, each for Delta and for Virgin Atlantic-operated flights.
In all these circumstances, Delta flights at the moment are pricing the identical as partner-operated flights.
SkyTeam cities with out Delta service
Notably, the award charges we checked stay unchanged on flights that do not have Delta service and are solely operated by a companion airline.
For instance, Delta does not fly to Taipei’s Taoyuan International Airport (TPE), so the award costs on China Airlines flights from the United States stay the identical as they’ve been.
Bottom line
In our take a look at searches, Delta Air Lines is pricing SkyTeam partner-operated awards on the identical less-than-ideal award costs as by itself flights.
On the brilliant facet, assuming that is all intentional when Delta runs SkyMiles gross sales, there is a chance that companion award costs will drop, however that is mere hypothesis at this level.
TPG has reached out to Delta for remark. For now, it is wanting like SkyMiles are value lower than earlier than for many who appreciated to redeem them to fly companion airways.