With LATAM leaving Oneworld and Delta picking up a 20% stake in LATAM late last year, all that was left was finding out when Delta flyers would start to see the benefits of reciprocal award travel that American Airlines AAdvantage members used to enjoy. That was announced today.
In this article
LATAM Leaving oneworld after April 30th
Per the oneworld website:
LATAM Airlines Group will end its membership in the oneworld® alliance effective 1 May 2020, following the group’s decision to leave the alliance. oneworld benefits for LATAM customers will be offered on oneworld flights up to and including 30 April 2020.
Reciprocal Award Redemptions between LATAM and Delta begin April 1st, 2020
I find it interesting that there will actually be a month of overlap wherein you can use oneworld alliance miles (like AAdvantage) or Delta miles for LATAM award travel. Lots of choices.
I have a feeling that Delta’s award chart (and of course I mean their ever changing, never set in stone, not shown to members chart that still governs award travel on partners) will be more expensive than using AAdvantage mile in most (or all) cases.
One fun award using AAdvantage miles is Santiago, Chile to Papeete, Tahiti with a stop in Easter Island. It’s 50,000 miles in Business Class from Santiago (SCL) to Easter Island (IPC) and 30,000 miles in Business Class from Easter Island to Papeete (PPT). You can fly either or both segments but you can’t combine them into one award so you may as well take a couple of days to explore Easter Island, one of the worlds most remote islands.
Only Delta knows what this will price out at using SkyMiles, but I just think it will be more.
You’ll want to check for the award space availability on the British Airways website and then call AA to book.
Reciprocal Revenue Flight Mileage Earning and Elite Benefits
Delta says this with regards to earning miles across the two airlines and future elite benefits:
Frequent flyer benefits, including reciprocal mileage earn and redemption, will be effective for Delta SkyMiles Members traveling on LATAM flights on or after April 1, 2020. Reciprocal mileage earn and redemption will be applicable for all flights in the Delta and LATAM networks. Elite reciprocal benefits, including lounge access and priority boarding, bags and seats are expected to launch later in 2020.
The devil will be in the details. Might Delta and LATAM offer complimentary elite upgrades for the other airline’s program members? Or are the seats mentioned simply for choosing the best seats, like Delta Comfort+ and/or LATAM Premium Economy?
I’ll look forward to more details from Delta and LATAM here.
What are your thoughts on the Delta / LATAM tie-up?
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