About a year ago, I wrote Santa and asked for just three things from SkyMiles. It wasn’t that I did not desire more, I just thought it best to pick three improvements that Delta could make to the program and hope for the best. For posterity’s sake lets review my wishes.

  • One-way Awards
  • A Working Award Calendar
  • Improved Systemwide Upgrades

In late 2013, Delta actually announced improved SWUs (Regional for Platinums, Global or Regional for Diamonds). Of course, they took away complimentary upgrade eligibility on their Business Elite transcons which really hurt some fliers. In announcing the 2015 SkyMiles program, Delta committed to one-way awards and an improved award calendar. Further there is at least some evidence that their award availability has already improved a bit. Would love to hear your thoughts on that.

While I’m disappointed that we have to wait until 2015 to get one-ways and an award calendar that works, there is a tiny bit of promise in SkyMiles 2015. Admittedly, I haven’t talked about redeemable earning yet. I am one who will be slightly better off under the new rules for earning so on the whole, assuming Delta executes, SkyMiles will be a better program for me. Delta seems to have the market cornered within the airline industry on executing things well. Am I wrong to be a tiny bit hopeful about the future?

-MJ, May 19, 2014