Travelers are used to airline frequent flyer programs that change the rules of the game and move the ball like Charlie Brown and Lucy Van Pelt – and like Charlie Brown, the moves made are usually not to the benefit of most travelers.
But this time, instead of just adapting to their new life in the dust (where it’s harder to earn and maintain elite status in the program, Delta Air Lines’ frequent flyer program is coming to a head with major changes than before), travelers are upset in ways we don’t normally see. It is a reaction that can almost be described as deep-seated.
And even though it’s been less than a week since Delta’s lounge access and program changes were announced, in a world of 24/7 news cycles where one outrage is often replaced by another within 48 hours, this already feels different.
Related: Delta’s SkyMiles Changes Convinced Me to Stop Chasing Airline Status, and It’s Liberating
For much of the past decade, Delta Air Lines has had a distinct advantage over its competitors in on-time performance and customer service. The airline used that advantage to build strong relationships with its most loyal customers. But the changes announced to the SkyMiles loyalty program and Sky Club access that those same customers have come to love and count on could very well test the strength of those bonds.
Will travelers’ outrage lead to a change in their behavior and a shift to other airlines – or will the dust eventually settle and travelers will adapt to their new reality?
Here’s what we’re seeing and hearing from Delta travelers and industry experts.
Comments on changes to Delta SkyMiles
To better understand whether the reactions to the announced changes are really as strong as they appear on social media, we reached out to TPG readers and community members found in the TPG Lounge on Facebook and elsewhere. We also reached out to travel industry experts to get a better sense of consumer sentiment regarding Delta’s actions.
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Damon Jacobs, a TPG Lounge member living in New York City, works in healthcare education. In addition to a 21-year tenure as a Delta SkyMiles member, he has also achieved Platinum Medallion status for the past eight years. He has strong feelings about the changes.
“Delta may encourage us to ‘connect the world,’ but their recent decisions instruct us to disconnect from their airline,” he said. “They’ve chopped up their loyalty program in a way that makes membership essentially useless. Our flight miles no longer count toward rewards, and they only count 1 point for every $20 spent on other purchases. That makes their tier system, and my 21 years of membership, irrelevant. It is a slap in the face to those of us who have loyally and enthusiastically supported Delta over the years. That’s all.”
Jacobs went on to say that the severity of the new changes means that not only would he not be able to achieve Platinum Medallion status, but he would also struggle to achieve Silver or Gold status.
Experts who follow the travel industry closely are equally concerned about the severity of the announced Delta changes, but are far from surprised.
Brett Snyder, president of aviation site Cranky Flier and travel service Cranky Concierge, was unimpressed by the announcement, saying, “Anyone who valued SkyMiles and expected it to continue, what have you been watching over the years?”
He adds that the airline has had a number of instances in the past where it has promised one thing to SkyMiles elite members and delivered another.
“Delta believes it offers a premium product and a valuable set of elite benefits that they can only offer to a certain number of travelers,” says Snyder. “They have long subscribed to the belief that ‘if everyone is elite, no one is elite’. Upgrades, which are one of the holy grails of elite benefits, are scarcer these days and the airline will likely continue to sell more premium seats.”
TPG Lounge member Bob O’Connor feels the pain of chasing elite status without getting much in return.
“I’ve been pro-Delta since 1992. Million Miler and Diamond the last six years before that, Platinum for 8 years. I’ve had the Platinum Amex since ’97 and enjoyed lounge access. I had to earn my status by flying weekly not with international flights that cost a lot of money. So it is a job to maintain that,” says O’Connor. “They’ve increased the spend over the years and now they’re jumping from $20,000 for Diamond to $35,000. Overall, I already have Diamond for ’24, but it’s time to look at what else is out there. “It’s stupid that they think so little about the people who have kept them going all these years, and especially during COVID. I hope they wake up and remember who brought them here.”
Henry Harteveldt, travel industry analyst and president of Atmosphere Research, believes Delta may have gone too far with its broken promises this time. “Delta has gutted the SkyMiles program and shown blatant antipathy to its Medallion members by failing to deliver on the key benefits of free domestic upgrades when seats are available,” he said.
“In some ways, what’s happening at Delta now reminds me of Continental Airlines in the early 1990s,” he continues. “Delta’s performance in terms of time is no longer as good as it used to be. There are dozens of aging, worn-out 767s flying with no aircraft to replace that fleet, and their onboard service isn’t as good as it was before the pandemic started. In the 1990s, Continental had alienated many of its customers and I fear Delta is about to do the same.”
Harteveldt’s thoughts are supported by many of the comments from angry hang gliders. Christina Arendt, a lifelong Delta loyalist who lives in Richland, Washington, made no bones about it.
“Delta just gave a giant middle finger to the little guys like me who have earned low status by putting butts in the seats on mostly domestic flights,” she says. “When I was given the choice between a slightly cheaper other flight and Delta, I chose Delta. That will not happen again. I now always choose the cheapest flight.”
Sky Club changes are also causing anger
It wasn’t just the frequent flyer program that received a direct hit last week. Pushing the boundaries, Delta has also made substantial changes to the way the people who hold its most prestigious credit cards will access lounges starting in 2025. These changes are also passionately criticized by many customers.
Loyal Medallion members have invested in premium credit cards with high annual fees to access Sky Clubs.
TPG Lounge member Heather Lowe feels like the changes are really hurting loyal customers like her.
“I often talk to people who say they hate flying. When it comes down to it, most hate it because of the wait at the airport. I, on the other hand, have absolutely loved flying, but only when I fly with Delta because of the access to the Sky Club,” she says. “It’s a very different travel experience knowing that your holiday starts as soon as you pass through security. With these new changes making it unlikely that I will be able to enjoy that full experience very often again, I have no intention of keeping my AMEX Reserve a card or fly as often after the changes take effect. These changes are a slap in the face to Delta’s loyal mid-range flyers. These changes only reward the already elite group of customers who look down on the rest of the world. The rest of us works hard, but not in the top 3% of customers, now sees what we are worth to your company Delta. It’s a shame.”
Marisa Sutherland, another TPG Lounge member, also says the changes are difficult.
“I have been a Delta loyalist for years. I travel extensively for work (domestic) and personal (domestic and international),” she says in a post. “I was one of the few to fly Delta flights multiple times a week during the early COVID days. I have already re-earned Platinum for 2024. I have the Delta Reserve card to make traveling bearable and to gain access offer up to the SkyClub. pass is a plus…if I can actually book it. I’ll keep the card until fees are due in 2024 and then downgrade my AMEX. Ten visits is a joke for the amount I travel. Too early to say where my loyalties lie will be in 2025… but it is unlikely to be with Delta.”
In short
If you travel long enough, you’re bound to see changes in frequent flyer loyalty programs.
These things often go in cycles where you see multiple programs making quite large-scale shifts to match the climate of the time, and then you often get a few years of relative stability before the cycle starts again. While there are usually some winners with every change (besides the airline itself) and at least some positives to the changes that hurt the most, this time the changes are so substantial and widespread that it’s hard to find any silver linings.
That raises the question of whether the normal pattern of travelers complaining a bit and eventually adapting will play out here as usual.
Elite status with an airline is different from elite status with a hotel. While you can find a Marriott or Hilton in every city you travel to, no airline flies every route. And in fact, many travelers are “hub captives,” meaning they’re essentially forced to entrust the majority of their business to one airline because it’s the only real game in town. However, the outrage over the recent Delta changes may ultimately tell a different story.
Travelers in key Delta markets, especially in hubs like New York, Atlanta and Minneapolis-St. Paul – seem to have a heightened sense of outrage. And at least in the case of hubs like New York, they have other viable alternatives. Only time will tell if these customers truly become ‘free agents’, booking that next plane ticket solely because of the price or flight schedule, as opposed to the airline where they have elite status.
Only then will we know for sure whether it is the passenger or the airline itself who ultimately becomes Charlie Brown after this ball-moving process.