The saga of Delta Air Lines’ recovery following the CrowdStrike continues — and, from what we hear, seems to be improving. We all knew it would. It just seemed to take forever (and that’s coming from someone who didn’t experience it firsthand!). Hopefully, Delta’s brain trust will do whatever is within their power to make sure this kind of thing doesn’t happen again. And here’s hoping Delta employees get a little something extra in their stockings this year.
Speaking of getting a little something extra, we’ve heard from readers who received 12,500 SkyMiles from Delta. That is the airline’s way of apologizing for any inconvenience. (This news report says Delta is awarding 10,000 miles.)
The value of SkyMiles — like most reward points/miles — varies by redemption. We wrote the other day that they’re worth around a penny each. Some award bookings (especially during flash sales) and make those miles even more valuable.
For the sake of argument, let’s say 12,500 SkyMiles is worth $145. Heck. I’ll be generous and say $150. (Some people will say that’s undervaluing them; others will say that’s a gross overvaluation.)
Is that enough for people who were inconvenienced?
Like SkyMiles redemptions, I think it varies per person. That’s probably fine for someone who delayed a couple of hours. But for folks delayed for days and who missed important events? That seems like more of a slap in the face. (Should the SkyMiles deposits be per day? Based on what this Delta release says, perhaps they’re going in that direction.)
Remember that not all travelers involved in this mess are regular Delta flyers. Delta might’ve been their best (or relatively only) option to get wherever. 12,500 might be utterly useless to them.
By giving people SkyMiles, Delta is giving people incentive to travel again on Delta. 12,500 SkyMiles isn’t enough to cover my trip! you say? Don’t worry! Delta is happy to let you pay with miles and cash! Or, better yet, sign up for a Delta American Express card — then you’ll have a bunch of miles if you meet the bonus requirements. And you can get a 15% discount on award travel! See? Really, you should be thanking CrowdStrike and Delta for this gift 😉 .
What say you? Please cast your vote in our poll below and feel free to share your thoughts in the Comments section!
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How does a publicly traded company get away with misrepresentations (if not outright lies) in public statements about the real cause of these problems?
Bastain is a cancer on the industry. A pompous cult leader who has finally been exposed for what he is. an arrogant p***k. [Edited by EotF]
I believe the BIGGEST reason why it took Delta soooooo long recover from this meltdown is that they put all their eggs in one BIG HUB — ATLANTA. When the cards falls, all the flyers are vying for the same (LIMITED) resources at that one single hub. If Delta just wake up and compare the number of cancellations vs operated flights during that same period, I think they will see both LGA and JFK fared much better than ATL.
Second, the compensation should not be a one-size fits all approach. I think Delta needs to award the compensation based on how much a passenger is inconvenienced during the meltdown. It took a friend of mine 3 days to get from LAX to FLL; and I would say 12,500 Skymile in his case was an insult. It is not even enough for a round trip domestic ticket. On the other hand, if a passenger was just inconvenienced for only 24 hours and s/he was reimbursed the out of pocket expenses, then I would say fair.
Ah, SkyPesos. Their motto for reward tickets should be: “Well.. you’ll never go to Spain but you can be in Oklahoma”.
I just looked and I only got 12,500 points. I was rebooked 7 times over three days and finally on the 4th day I got a one way car rental!
Gross. I’d complain to Delta and tell them all that. And remember to submit for rental car reimbursement!
For what it is worth, I got 57,500 SkyMiles and $400 in eCredit. I got multiple emails with various SkyMiles (3 @ 12,500 and 1 @ 10,000) and a phone call where they gave me another 10,000 SkyMiles and the $400 eCredit. I was canceled originally Saturday, but my rebooks for Sunday and Monday were also canceled. I am a Platinum Medallion and booked a full-fare first class seat.
No, it is not enough. They stuck me overnight in MSP, and rejected my taxi receipt to the hotel because it wasnt a rideshare app that includes pickup/dropoff addresses on the receipt. And you cant submit receipts for expenses for lost bags because their upload server is *still* broken and their fax lines are not stable. 12500 miles is a slap in the face after a 12+ hr delay and 8-10 hours of hold time and buls* (so far) to get my bag back and get out of pocket expenses reimbursed. Two lost workdays and counting.