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Delta System-Wide Upgrades Now Available for Use on Air France

Oct. 16, 2010
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3 min read
Delta System-Wide Upgrades Now Available for Use on Air France
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As a Delta frequent flyer, you can choose an array of benefits when hitting the 75,000 and 125,000 Medallion Qualifying Mile marks. System-Wide Upgrades (SWUs) are an option, but they have always been a sore point with Delta elites because they require booking into expensive fare classes (Y,B,M) when flying internationally. Many times, these fares are more expensive than discounted business class fares, so the SWUs can sometimes be useless.

However, Delta just announced that they can be used to upgrade one class of service on Air France. You can either go from Economy to Premium Economy or Premium Economy to Business class. This is great news, because Air France has been discounting their new Premium Economy product, so upgrades to their business class (which I wrote about this summer here) can be done much cheaper than if trying to upgrade a Delta flight. For example, I did some price shopping and economy was $750, Premium Economy $1,400 and M class $2,800 from JFK-CDG. Business class and bonus miles and MQMs for $1,400 and an upgrade certificate sounds like a great deal to me.

How to do it:

1) Check to see if upgrade space is available on the flights you want to book (note- this can only be done on flights that have Premium Economy, so that unfortunately cancels out flying on the new A380 or Miami to Paris). Upgrade space comes out of the normal award ticket buckets, so there are a couple ways to check that. The easiest is if you have an expertflyer.com subscription- its a paid service, but they offer trials and discounts. You can search "Award & Upgrades" for Air France. If you want to upgrade to Premium Economy you'd need to search for Premium Economy - Classic Award (E). If you want to upgrade to business class you need to search for Business - Classic Award (O). Altenatively, you can call Delta or Air France to check for you. I find expertflyer.com to be much quicker and more accurate than calling.

2) Once you confirm that space is available, then book a qualifying fare. For Economy -> Economy Plus upgrade you need to book economy class fares Y,B or K. For Premium Economy -> Business, you need to book Premium Economy fares S,A or W.

3) Once booked, call Delta and let them know you want to use a SWU to upgrade an Air France flight. The rep should be able to process painlessly.

FYI Premium Economy fares on Air France earn 150% Medallion Qualifying Miles, so a JFK-CDG return ticket will net roughly 11,000 MQMs- not bad considering Premium Economy tickets can sometimes be purchased for only a couple hundred bucks more than regular economy.

In all, I think this is a great enhancement to the SkyMiles program and in my experience Air France has lots of award availability - especially at the last minute, so I look forward to using this in the future.

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Why We Chose It

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Pros

  • 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
  • 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
  • Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
  • Solid welcome bonus

Cons

  • Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
  • Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
  • You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
  • $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
  • $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
  • $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
  • $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
  • Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fees.
  • Annual Fee is $325.
  • Terms Apply.