I have been preaching – for years – that we are going to hate what Delta is becoming. Let me tell you there is absolutely ZERO satisfaction with being proved right over and over and over. Everyone who reads the blog should have at this point seen my post about why it is no longer worth it for anyone to chase after Delta Diamond Medallion status due to the simply crushing changes to loyalty over the past many years but especially so during the pandemic. Well there is more.
For quite some time now Delta has, in a positive move, allowed us to search on Delta.com to see if there is either Regional Upgrade (RUC) or Global Upgrade (GUC) space available on the flights we want (when logged in as an elite). Let me show you what I mean:
If I search for a flight for myself, in this case paying cash, from Atlanta to Los Angeles on the 1st of June Delta flight 898 has space for me to use a RUC to upgrade at no additional cost to first class. However, the later flight 501 does NOT have any RUC space and I would have to use a GUC to upgrade to first class – at this moment in time anyway.
This search change has been a HUGE time saver as in the past we top Delta elites had to call the elite line over and over (did I mention over) to see if space had opened up. Now instead we cam simply do what I have shown above and if I really wanted to be on Delta 501 I would simply have to keep searching Delta.com untill it changed to show RUC space open and then a quick call and have the rep process the upgrade.
That now seems to be sometimes broken.
Delta.com is displaying “phantom upgrade space”!
I have a flight from Florida later this year, taking a nearly free 11 day cruise from my Wyndham Diamond to Caesar’s status match, and I have been checking for a number of weeks to see if space has opened up for me to use my RUCs. It has stubbornly only shown GUC space on Delta.com.
But not today as you see above. RUC space for two opened up.
Wahooo?
Nope!
It seems that this space Delta.com is showing is in fact false. Just how bad is the issue? Oh really bad. Take a look:
I searched for 6, yes 6, seats and it still displays that space is in fact available for me to use RUC certs for my flight from Florida.
Yikes!
With so many of the old, highly competent, Delta elite reps gone during the pandemic the current lot of elite reps is not very impressive and needs a lot more training. Let me give you an example of some of the responses I got trying to get my upgrade processed from the Diamond line – a number of different reps fyi:
- One said you are not in the right fare class for a RUC.
- Another said only new bookings are open for RUC space.
- Yet another said I have to be booked in Comfort Plus to use a RUC (an ongoing issue for years btw).
Again all of the above are quotes from the DELTA DIAMOND MEDALLION phone reps. Let me also promise you all of the above that was told to me is false and does not apply to RUCs. All you have to do is book in main cabin or higher, spending either Skymiles or Cash, to use an RUC to upgrade to first class if space is available. The only thing missing that I did NOT hear, but half expected to hear, was a rep to tell me you can not use RUCs on award tickets.
I reached out to Delta about this situation and I will be sure to update the post if I hear back from them about the phantom upgrade space issue.
Bottom line is you should not – for now – trust the RUC space Delta.com is showing you. Oh and in the past, when there was an issue like this where “dot com” was not agreeing with what phone reps could see they could either fix it or transfer you to dot com support to fix and honor what was incorrectly displayed – well not any more!
I can not wait to see what reason number 6,393 to not be a Diamond Medallion presents itself likely on my next whatever interaction with Delta! – René
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Yes, I remember the days when if the webpage showed a result that come to the “purchase now” button and then it says sorry, cannot do, you could call in and speak to an IT guy would verify what saw, then make it right. That’s when Delta was a consumer friendly outfit.
Also be careful about booking via the new online vs phone process, and then needing to cancel or change the flight… the phone reps will need to complete “a new form” to “cancel” and then reissue the RUC/GUC to your account, in a supposed 72 hrs. In my experience, I’m still awaiting the RUC’s to be returned.
I’ve run into a couple of issues with the search showing RUC availability with connecting flights but then the agents not being able to confirm the upgrade for the full itinerary, only for one segment. The explanation I got was that only 1 segment was available out of 2. It appears that the search results often seem to show the whole flight available as married segments, but when you search each segment, 1 is available and 1 is not — the agents have said that the upgrade is done segment-by-segment, hence the problem with display vs reality. The second issue I’ve run into is that even if both segments are available, the automatic RUC application on the purchase page upgrades only one segment. I then still have to call in to have them apply it to the whole itinerary.
Related issue is that the complimentary upgrade indicator from the old days is gone, but at the beginning of the RUC indicator, the complimentary upgrades would clear within the 120 hour DM window if the RUC was available; however, over time it’s changed so that an RUC might be available up to the last few hours, but the complimentary upgrade doesn’t clear before the gate.
I have had exactly the same issue myself.
My issues have been only one upgrade space available when traveling as two. Just like Rene you cannot tell online if 1 or 2 or 6 upgrade spaces are available. Online search does not distinguish the number of passengers in the search.
@Frankie – It should work if you change search for more than 1 passenger. Right now, clearly it is broken!
What benefit does tier status provide that a premium cabin ticket does not? One already has the “upgrade” so to speak. And, if one is traveling on points, tier status earn rate is irrelevant.
In your example, the difference in points is just above 16,000. How many points would it be over the course of a year for all trips? With all the various means to earn points, can one not simply pay the extra points? Is saving the number of points worth jumping through all of the hoops necessary to maintain tier status? Life is too short.
@Todd – Umm… did you read the opening paragraph (or the linked post) where I stated status with Delta is not longer worth going for?
Rene, my comment was affirming as opposed to critical. Sorry for the confusion.
@Todd – Oh ok I got you. Thanks so much.
This is very frustrating. Aren’t you also frustrated by the fact that it’s now almost impossible to use a regional upgrade (vs global upgrade) on many of the flights that Regional Upgrades were designed for? Case in point. I just researched a trip to/from Hawaii using miles, and found that on two flights where every Delta One seat is free (JFK>LAX and LAX>DCA) you can use a Global Upgrade for an upgrade, but only waitlist for a Regional Upgrade. That was if you research individual legs. If you research the whole leg including BWI to JFK and LAX to OGG, it says that there is no availability at all for any type of upgrade certificate. This is for months away.
@Barry – What I may be equally frustrated about is that Delta does not seem to care at all.
The company does not care (clearly) as you can not longer get to “dot com” support to get they to fix it or force your seats due to their “false advertising” if you will nor does corp care as they did not get back to me about the phantom space issue with a quote.
I hope you are all filing complaints in the correct place which is Delta customer service. Make that wheel squeak!
@Jackie – Delta reads the blog and in this case I reached out directly to their corporate communications department so they do know about this issue yes. Now if they do anything to fix it – time will tell.
This all sounds like rich people problems. Delta is in business to make money for their stakeholders. They do this by loyalty but only to a point.
I was a Northwest flyer and there was a time period of about 3 years when the dinosaurs were still around where I never flew coach and never paid to upgrade.
As Rene said, there is no reason to chase status. If you want to sit in front, pay for it.
@Fred – The problem is RUCs are a stated benefit of status and they brag about how to check if you can get an upgrade online at Delta.com. When it does not work – that is a problem and it has nothing to do with their business to make money.
Well other than the fact that issues like this may drive more folks to book other airlines and THAT could impact how much money they make! 😉
René,
You’re correct. You opened my eyes. Just finished booking Singapore Airlines JFK-SIN-HKT for 3 separate trips, 2 in PE and 1 in Business Class before the end of 2023. Delta’s lost out but they don’t care and neither do I. Better overall product. You even get “Book the Cook” in PE.
Thanks for the great article. What makes it even more unfair going for Diamond, are the reports of Delta giving away so many Diamonds to gain favor with politicians etc. The result is a bigger pool of elites competing for a smaller pool of upgrade space.
@Robert – Really? Wow! Any links to this?
Rene, I’ve had the same experience with the Diamond Line….many of the rep are clueless! When I connect I always ask where the rep is located. If ATL I just hang up and call back. There are a few good reps there but usually it is a waste of time with an ATL rep as they all seem to be new. I haven’t gotten a rep on the Diamond Line in Chisholm in a long time now. They were absolutely the best. If they couldn’t fix an issue it simply could not be done. Does anyone know if that center is still open?
@Bill – While the old secret Chisholm direct number still rings, it now just dumps you into the new Delta whoever picks up cue. Truly sad.
My biggest frustration is the outright lie that is the RUC and GUC names. The reality is that RUC’s are capped based on difference in fare from Coach to First/Biz it has nothing to do with distance or even available seats. I’ve seen GUC’s required on flights from ATL:MIA. Last I checked that’s a short “regional” domestic flight. I wonder how much longer they’re go on with this charade and simply give you 10x $100 “buy-up” vouchers or the like to be used. It would match perfectly with the Skymiles fixed value scheme in place for the last handful of years.
I have booked flights where one was 7 hours and the other 40 minutes and tried to use the FC upgrade vis certificate.. It applies the certificate to the 40 minute flight vs the 7 hour… so you must call and HUCB serveral time to make sure the cert only applies to the longer flight!!! Not good..
Forget Phantom Upgrades.
Delta.com is full of Phantom fares, at least TPac, between Vietnam, Japan and west coast.
After weeks of frustration, I finally called Delta and after the second or third call, found a knowledgeable agent.
She then spent 20 minutes trying to understand why even she could see the fare, but was unable to book it.
She reached out to some folks and eventually came back and told me that they were “placeholders” seemingly put there by non Skyteam carriers who non the less, had code share agreements with Delta.
Understanding my frustration (you are not told fare is unavailable last step, until after you put in payment information), she found a comparable non Skyteam fare for me.
I love the Delta people, but the bean counters in charge are ruining the company for me.
I only have 955,000 lifetime miles with Delta since the Pan Am takeover, but the only thing keeping me is the Skyteam partner, Vietnam Airlines, which essentially has coach service as it was 20 years ago.