Update: These surcharges have now been removed. It isn’t clear exactly what is going on here (were the initial surcharges a mistake? does Delta plan to readd them) but for now they are no longer appearing. We will continue to call Delta out whenever they devalue their award chart or overall value proposition.
Delta no longer publishes an award chart, this allows them to devalue their SkyMiles without advanced notice or any announcement at all. This is clearly evidenced by the massive increase on business class awards on Virgin Atlantic:
- ~ One year ago: 125,000 miles round trip
- August 2016: 140,000 miles round trip
- April 2017: 170,000 miles round trip (205,000 miles if booking within 14 days of travel)
Previously you’d pay a $5.6 fee, now we’re seeing carrier imposed surcharges of ~$1,000. This is only affecting upper class (business) Virgin Atlantic flights and not economy or premium economy. This shouldn’t come as a huge surprise to anybody, Delta is the best in the business when it comes to devaluations.
Hat tip to OMaaT
