Surprise and delight? Delta Air Lines gifting status to some lucky SkyMiles members

Talk about an upgrade! Delta Air Lines is proactively upgrading some Medallion members with a boost to the next elite status level.

From reports we've seen in our inbox and on social media, some Delta SkyMiles members who ended the year short of Medallion Qualification Dollars, but with excess Medallion Qualification Miles, are being given the next level of status anyway. Delta is currently sending email notifications to those who got the upgraded status.

However, even if you didn't get an email, you may want to check your SkyMiles account anyway; the changes may already be live.

Here's an example of an email granting Platinum Medallion status to one lucky member:

"The loyalty you have shown to Delta means so much, and you were so close to achieving Platinum Medallion® Status this year. To show our gratitude, we're gifting it to you."

TPG founder Brian Kelly has received reports of these status "gifts" via social media, too. And we're similarly hearing reports of this from TPG readers and in our TPG Lounge on Facebook.

Though this may feel like an olive branch of sorts in the wake of the program changes announced in fall 2023, Delta says it's a longstanding practice.

"This is something we do every year for select Medallion members who were just shy of achieving that next status tier," a company spokesperson told TPG.

TPG reader Daniel Turley was among those surprised to find out he'll have Platinum Medallion status.

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"The weird thing is I wasn't [that] close," Turley told me. "I was 23,489 MQMs short, barely qualifying for Gold. I had 16,684 MQDs, so I qualified for Platinum by that metric."

Turley suspects those with big spending on Delta are being targeted with the gifts; he carries the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card.

Of course, not everyone is thrilled. Some readers worry the gifted status could further bloat the ranks of elite members at a time when they had hoped Delta was narrowing the field.

As you'll recall, thinning the herd was a key reason Delta gave as part of the massive SkyMiles changes unveiled last fall, the thinking being that if everyone has elite status, then no one really does, as it makes it harder to deliver on benefits such as upgrades. The company drew a significant backlash in making the path to Medallion elite status much more difficult, to the point that Delta ended up rolling back some of those changes.

As I pointed out in my story on my end-of-year status plans, I'm once again invested pretty deep in Delta as it has backed away from some of the worst changes we first heard about last September.

I'm holding on to my Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, and I'll keep Diamond status for the next few years thanks to the ability to take my excess MQMs and turn them into an extra year of status. If you have rollover MQMs, there are several one-time conversion opportunities available, including choosing complimentary Delta Medallion status at your current tier for one year for every 100,000 MQMs you have.

Related reading:

• The best credit cards for airport lounge access
• The ultimate guide to getting Delta Sky Club access
• The 7 do's and don'ts in an airport lounge
• The best credit cards to reach elite status
• 9 domestic lounges that are worth going out of your way for
• Best Delta credit cards