U.S. Airways, Delta Air Lines the worst for frequent fliers

Posted - Nov. 1, 2011 at 10:12 a.m.

Pat Parkinson
 
U.S. Airways, Delta Air Lines the worst for frequent fliers

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SALT LAKE CITY -- Though several rule changes aimed at protecting the rights of air travelers have been approved, one group continues to get picked on by some airlines: frequent fliers.

Results from the second annual ezRez Reward Seat Availability Survey did not bode well for major players like U.S. Airways and Delta Air Lines, which were the two stingiest carriers when it came to redeeming points. In contrast, two of the least expensive airlines — Southwest Airlines Co. and GOL — topped the rankings.

According to the survey, the five most difficult airlines for redeeming frequent flier miles were:

  1. U.S. Airways
  2. Delta
  3. Emirates
  4. AirTran Airways
  5. Turkish Airlines
Survey results were based on 6,720 booking requests submitted last March and April by The IdeaWorks Co. Requests were for travel dates between June and October.AlphaFlightGuru.com CEO Tim Gibson said the numbers show how difficult buying an airline ticket with frequent flier miles has become.

U.S. Airways had availability 26 percent of the time. From the popular Delta Air Lines SkyMiles program, tickets were only available about 27 percent of the time.

Estimates are that less than 10 percent of the $50 billion worth of miles issued by airlines and hotels each year are redeemed.

–- Tim Gibson, AlphaFlightGuru.com CEO

“It’s become a joke in the industry, the blackout dates and how few seats are available,” Gibson said. “Estimates are that less than 10 percent of the $50 billion worth of miles issued by airlines and hotels each year are redeemed.”

There are about 9.7 trillion unredeemed miles sitting in accounts around the world.

That's enough miles for somebody to circumnavigate the globe 449 million times, or fly to the moon and back 19 million times, Gibson said.

He added that when valued at 1.5 cents each, the unredeemed points are worth more than $145 billion.

Redeeming points for business or first-class flights overseas is especially difficult.

“International business and first-class flights to Europe, Asia and other popular destinations are the hardest to find with miles and points,” Gibson said. “Booking one international flight using frequent flier miles can take more than 12 hours we estimate, if it’s available at all.”

Many companies earn millions of points each year from purchases on procurement credit cards, including American Express, Chase Sapphire and AAdvantage. When they go to redeem the points and find that flights are not available, companies like Utah-based AlphaFlightGuru.com step in to help these businesses use the miles for cheap business class and first-class flights.

Gibson had these tips for companies trying to reduce the cost of business travel.

  • Be flexible with your dates, and consider an extra stop or non-traditional routing.
“We helped one client fly less than an hour from Salt Lake City to Denver to catch a non-stop flight to Frankfurt on Lufthansa, just one day before his ideal date,” Gibson said. “A $70 Delta connecting flight saved him thousands. He got the BMW of flights on Lufthansa with his Continental miles by mixing alliances. His bags were transferred without issue, and the trip went smoothly.”- Look for flights from major hubs, where hundreds of seats are available every day. “Adding on a cheap and short connecting flight can get you a seat when you’d otherwise get a ‘No’ from the airline,” Gibson said.- Businesses hoping to redeem points should wait to book business flights until a few days before their travel date. Many airlines won’t fly with empty business and first-class seats, but they won’t release seats for an award reservation until three to seven days before the flight. “Just like we have been trained to do when booking hotels with Priceline, you can get a four or five star airline for two star mileage redemption, if you can be flexible with brands and book last minute,” Gibson said. Pat Parkinson is a writer in Park City who worked for more than 10 years as a newspaper reporter. His articles have appeared in the Salt Lake Tribune, Standard-Examiner, the News-Press in Fort Myers, Fla., and other publications.

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