Delta’s Economy Upgrades Put Product Over Loyalty

Frequent flyers on Delta Air Lines have lost a lot of faith in the carrier over the last few years because of constant tightening around the SkyMiles program. Slowly, however, customer sentiment may be turning, thanks to major cabin experience upgrades and a few tweaks to the loyalty program.

Just this last week Delta announced that it plans to upgrade the economy experience on international long-haul flights. Coming soon in November passengers in that cabin will enjoy welcome cocktails, hot towel service, and an elevated dining experience — not just the same old chicken and fish options.

This is on top of what many call Delta’s already superior passenger experience over American and United in the United States.

Separately, Delta has been making small improvements to its loyalty program that help drive retention and overall experience — with no real impact to mileage earning or spending, sadly. In May the carrier started a program to allow passengers to take a break from elite status after a major life event, such as the birth of a child or a death in the family.

All told, Delta’s improvements are making it a very attractive proposition for frequent flyers to spend time on the carrier. Sure, passengers may not be able to earn very many miles or figure out how to spend them — but at least they’ll be happier about it.

— Grant Martin, Business of Loyalty Editor

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Grant Martin [[email protected]] curates the Skift Business of Loyalty newsletter. He is also a director of product marketing at TripActions. Skift emails the newsletter every Monday.