Delta is revealing quite a few updates today — the airline will stop blocking seats and will start restoring inflight service. On top of that, the airline has just announced how it will be easier to earn SkyMiles Medallion status in 2021, which is what I wanted to cover in this post.
Continue reading: Delta SkyMiles Medallion Status Easier To Earn In 2021
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
@Lucky — This post is confusing/wrong. Delta said award travel also counts for MQD at a rate of 1 MQD per 100 miles (which is then bonused by 50% for main cabin or 75% for comfort plus/first class, just like regular tickets). So the suggestion that award tickets don’t help with MQD doesn’t seem to be right for this promotion.
Yeah Lucky, as AG says, award tickets do earn MQD at a rate of 1 cent per mile, plus the multiplier - you spend 50,000 miles on a domestic round trip coach ticket, you earn $750 MQD. Also, if you spend 10,000 miles to upgrade a flight to first, you also earn MQD on that mileage spend.
I'd like to welcome the entire Medallion program to the Platinum level where upgrades will now be even more difficult to obtain. Upgrade inventory will drop dramatically because more will buy a FC ticket. Upgrades will be more difficult to score because so many will qualify for PM status in 2021. Regional upgrade certs are now diluted because they've increased supply with added number of Plat medallions and the lack of breakage due to the extended exp dates.
One correction: Award tickets (1 cpm) & Pay with Miles (full ticket value regardless of increment paid with miles) do earn MQD plus the bonus
@ AG @ Anthony @ Alex Diaz -- My mistake, thanks for the correction. Has been a wild news day, and I got that detail wrong. The post is fixed now.
Thanks Ben - Your correction needs a correction - If you redeem 20,000 SkyPesos for a flight, you get $300 in MQD because of the 50% bonus.
Truly a WOW from Delta. Here's hoping they keep with Virgin's lead on this and retain the benefit on award redemptions beyond 2021!!!
Personally I think this is great. Found a nice Delta One points airfare (41k r/t) which will net me 8500+ MQMs. Normally I’d only book a cash fare to earn those MQMs but now I can burn some skymiles and earn them. Great!
Lucky - one mod re your calculator on first class MQM bonus. I think it should be 262.5% - Delta's example says 75% bonus is on "base MQM's for flown cabin" i.e. the base MQMs for first are already 150%, so the bonus makes it 262.5%?
Minor additional correction - redeeming 20k miles could earn you between 300 and *350* MQDs 😛
It is 50%+25% bonus, or 75% bonus overall for flying in premium cabin, not a x75% on top of the 50% bonus.
Sounds like a whole lot of people about to put a lot of value in them “skypesos” also.
I've got this picture in my head of Oprah Winfrey going "You're a PM, and you're a PM and you get a PM" because the elite glut is going to be pretty huge for 2022- this, the big MQM rollover and generous credit card MQM bonuses last year and now and it's likely never going to be easier to get relatively high status with Delta.
@beachmouse but it IS easier to get top elite status. For all those whining about PM being "easy" to get, why don't you actually spend PM MQD equivalent ($8600-$10000) and get DM?
@ Ben -- For first class, MQMs are earned at 2,625x (1.75x x 1.50x). This is detailed in Delta's examples in its FAQs.
I really appreciate them doing this but wish they’d recognize the significant pricing and yield “delta” between C+ and F with a larger F multiplier.
Came to say what @Gene said.
It's pretty generous, although with Delta's generous MQM rollover policies (both regular rollover and special last year), limited international travel this year, and low fares in a lot of markets, a lot of people will be more constrained on MQDs this year than on MQMs already, and this will only make that worse. So it will be interesting to see if they do anything more to bolster the MQD side of the equation.
@Jan- definitely. I'm a leisure flyer looking at PM for 2022 because of Delta's retention offers when under normal circumstances I'd be lucky to hit GM. So yeah, I'm taking advantage of what's being offered right now in hope that 2022 will be largely reopened and I can make an epic travel summer more comfortable.
Delta is Setting the bar high for other airlines. They’ve been awesome through COVID in keeping air travel safe, trustworthy and disciplined.
Proud to be a loyal Delta flyer.
Their political stance has also been spot on inspite of what’s written in this article... keep it up!
Just wish they started this from Jan 1, as I already have 53 MQSs, $7900 MQDs (have enough MQMs from last year's rollover that I have 133k, so enough for Diamond). But I'm good with this, even taking 2 months off from flying due to my son's birth soon, I'll hit Diamond by August/September. And the fact that coffee and cocktails are coming back in two weeks, things are looking better.
Allowing medallion qualification on award flights will substantially reduce miles hoarding from those who requalify without a lot of extra travel above qualification levels. This takes liabilities off the books for the airline. It's a win-win. I think it has been an effective change for hotels, as back in the dark ages, award stays didn't count for requalification and since that has changed they have taken some points liabilities off their books.
I do hope this positive change sticks around -- along with no change fees. Watch out and airline travel might get civilized... but no... they're not going to stop cramming economy pax in like sardines.
With DL and VS going down the path of award flights being elite qualifying, you'd have to think that Flying Blue will follow suit, especially if DL makes this permanent.
What if i purchased tickets before April 1 but the travel isnt until end of May. Will that ticket still be eligible for the 50%-75% bonus?
Scott, yes it is. It's all on when you fly. I have flown all but one week since April 1st, all have gotten the bonus (flights were booked before 4/1).
I flew JFK to Ams to dxb on delta one then klm buisiness on an award ticket with my dwlta miles. The flight came up as not eligible for mqd or mqm acrual. I talked to a representative in the sky club and they told me award flights don't acrue mqm etc then I showed them their own delta web page and they told me it was the first they heard of this. I still can't get through to a delta rep to see if they can correct this. Thoughts? Help? Ideas? Ty
As a life time Gold member with their platinum card and with almost 3 million miles they are screwing their most loyal customers!