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[Tabris]

So I'm moving to SF for a year or so in a couple weeks, and need to pick a new airline to fly with since my previous one (Air Canada) won't be available from SFO unless flying back to Canada.

So a couple questions for you and your airline:

1) How do you like the loyalty program?

2) How are the flight service experiences?

3) How often do you get upgraded if you've attained status?

I prefer Emirates for my international travels (International carriers are so much better then North American carriers) and have booked up some Elevate sky miles, but most of my sky miles are currently booked with Star Alliance. So that looks like it leaves my options flying from SFO to:

United (Star Alliance) and Virgin America (Elevate)

But I don't mind having to start from 0 on sky miles, so hopefully someone else has something else of a better experience and I can try them instead (I'm dreading having to go with United, but never flew Virgin America).

Oh, and if you don't have a "preferred airline", you should pick one as you're wasting sky miles by not picking a single airline.

 

[Stinkles]

Alaska.

1) How do you like the loyalty program?

Quite simply the best domestic program. I almost always fly first class on free upgrades and usually have tons of upgrade codes I can apply to other people's flights. Great international partners in Asia, Middle East. The Delta and BA partnerships are REALLY useful too.

2) How are the flight service experiences?

As good as can be expected for US domestic. Comfortable, pleasant, on time.

3) How often do you get upgraded if you've attained status?

Almost literally 100%. I'm 75k though. Gold may not do so well.

 

[PillarEN]

1) Sky Team Member but I only fly back and forth like twice a year so I'm lowest on the pecking order of actually getting anything.

2) Service is fine I guess. Delta and KLM seem to be the most common airlines I fly with.

3) Just before I went into "Pleb mode" I was upgraded into first class for a flight from Chitown to Amsterdam. That was neat. Otherwise always flew coach.

I used to know someone who worked at Air France (I still know them but they are not in that business anymore) and so I got a gold membership back in the early 2010s. Slipped all the way to the bottom by 2014 I think. I still rock the gold card on my luggage though because I secretly hope it helps me from having my luggage miss connecting flights.

 

[RustyNails]

Dont fly Southwest

 

[xxracerxx]

Alaska.

Hell yea!


Oh, and welcome back Tabris.

 

[Tabris]

Oh, and welcome back Tabris.

Thanks!

Dont fly Southwest

That's scary.

 

[Pickman]

American Airlines

1) How do you like the loyalty program?
It's pretty good. I don't fly enough for a lot of perks, but just for being a member you get a bag discount and a few small perks.

2) How are the flight service experiences?
Fantastic. The staff just seems nicer than any of the budget airlines and I enjoy my experience much more for longer flights.

3) How often do you get upgraded if you've attained status?
Only once to business that I didn't pay for, but it was glorious.

 

[Mik2121]

For me it's been all over the place, but as you said, I should pick up one to get those miles. Recently I've been flying ANA and Asiana Airlines for my flights around Asia, and Lufthansa for my flights back to Europe. All of them are Star Alliance so I'm getting miles via them, but I also use SkyTeam members like Air France and KLM to go back to Europe...

Thinking about it, I've probably lost so many miles... Not very smart.

 

[Sai-kun]

I don't fly often enough to have loyalty shit apply to me, but my favorite airline of all the ones I've flown is probably Virgin. Super comfy, neat aesthetic, and the folks working are usually always super nice and friendly and helpful.

 

[soundahfekz]

All of the national domestic except delta, but mainly Southwest these days

Thanks!



That's scary.

its really not though, engine failure happens from time to time and airplanes have multiple redundancies. Pilots and FA's go through extensive training for situations exactly like the one above

 

[gutter_trash]

I thought Canada was limited to almost no choices for "what airline" you can chose

as a Montrealer, I don't pick my airline, I pick my destination. Choices are ultra limited, I opt to avoid connection flights, that's all

 

[Tabris]

I thought Canada was limited to almost no choices for "what airline" you can chose

Someone didn't read the OP

 

[danthefan]

I live in Europe, if work are paying I use CityJet and if I'm paying I use Ryanair.

If I'm going to a different continent I'll just use whoever is cheapest, have gone with Emirates and Etihad to SE Asia in the past, with about 3 different airlines all in a single trip to South America.

 

[h1nch]

I don't fly enough to pick a single airline. I choose airlines based on airfare and convenient scheduling. That said, airlines that I've enjoyed flying with:

Virgin America
British Airways
Alaska Air

Virgin was great. My first flight ever with them I was able to upgrade to first class and it was a great flying experience. I've also flown coach with them and it was fine. I like the ambiance of a VA flight.

BA was somewhat surprising to me because I flew on a codeshare flight between American and BA. My flight to Europe was on British Airways, and the return flight was with AA. The difference in the quality of service was noticeable. I've only flown Alaska Air twice, but both times it was a good experience.

Of the 3, Alaska Air is the only one that flies to my home airport

 

[Irnbru]

Alaska is pretty fantastic. The people that work in corporate are too, really great work environment from what my friends tell me.

 

[soundahfekz]

I live in Europe, if work are paying I use CityJet and if I'm paying I use Ryanair.

If I'm going to a different continent I'll just use whoever is cheapest, have gone with Emirates and Etihad to SE Asia in the past, with about 3 different airlines all in a single trip to South America.

I gotta do Emirates soon, I hear its nice. Cathay Pacific has been my favorite so far

 

[loaf of bread]

Whatever the cheapest ticket is that isn't from an airline that looks like it'll go down midflight.

 

[BronsonLee]

YOU AGAIN

 

[danthefan]

I gotta do Emirates soon, I hear its nice. Cathay Pacific has been my favorite so far

Yeah tbh I don't find much difference with a lot of these carriers, I've done long haul with Emirates, Etihad, KLM, Turkish and they are all fine. I'm happy to go with the cheapest one for a given flight.

 

[PillarEN]

Whatever the cheapest ticket is that isn't from an airline that looks like it'll go down midflight.

I'll go ahead and also second this. Sure I'm a Sky Team member but it all comes down to the ticket price. All I know is that flying from Prague to the Mid West has become expensive. But oddly enough flying from Berlin to the Mid West is stupidly cheap. But not with Sky Team members.

And I think I will never fly Aeroflot because the airline just scares me. Every Russian airline scares me. Even more so since that one KHL team perished. Shit. If they don't give a shit about a team playing their valued national sport then fuck if I'm any more important.

 

[TurtleSnatcher]

Preferred airline is American Airlines by a country mile. I actually get pissed when I have to fly Star Alliance or Skyteam. It's kinda brutal because I live in Vancouver and AA only flys to DFW and LA from here but thankfully partner airlines exist with Alaska to Seattle and my options open a crap ton. Also BA to London which is OneWorld Alliance.

My flight service experiences have been great. It's weird because I hear about complaints from others about AA but I feel like they are always consistent. First Class and Biz Class service is always great and they have upgraded so many planes in the past few years. It's no Cathay Pacific but it's not too bad. Also Cathay is OneWorld anyways

Ive been Executive Platinum a few times and it was pretty much 95% on all domestic or international flights in which I was upgraded. I'm now Platinum and haven't been Gold or lower in 10 years and it's about 65-70% of the time. I do like how I can choose Main Cabin Extra seats immediately for free with no restrictions as well.

I'm also sitting on about 175,000 miles on AA. I used to be sitting on 400,000 miles which was nuts so I started blowing them on flights to Vegas.

Due to living in Vancouver flying AA is tough sometimes so I'll usually go through Seattle on a connection to get a flight. If it's Canadian and Domestic I actually fly Westjet because they have Status Match.

 

[DietRob]

Whichever is cheapest with no layovers.

 

[Tabris]

Whatever the cheapest ticket is that isn't from an airline that looks like it'll go down midflight.

This is a fair way of thinking, but I personally can't stand it as it's caused the race to the bottom in the US with all carriers leading to really bad service.

I rather pay just a bit more to ensure better service from airlines.

 

[BronsonLee]

All I know is that I've had to sleep on the floor of an airport 3 times

And all 3 times it was Delta Airlines' fault

So fuck them

 

[peteykirch]

I only fly JetBlue.

The flights tend to be dirt cheap, the people working the flight are nice enough, and I never had any issues with lost bags, late flights, or cancellations for silly reasons.

 

[captive]

1) How do you like the loyalty program?

Southwest and yes, i want free trips, which i get easily flying business select for work. Just bought 3 round trip tickets to Belize for free off of 44k miles, which was generated from 4 work trips since january this year.

2) How are the flight service experiences?

its fine, its southwest you know what to expect

3) How often do you get upgraded if you've attained status?

no such thing on southwest.

I prefer Emirates

i could have told you that before you even said anything. Beause you come off of as pretentious, arrogant and better than everyone else.

Oh, and if you don't have a "preferred airline", you should pick one as you're wasting sky miles by not picking a single airline.

thats all well and good except for when only certain airlines fly to certain areas. To visit our in-laws we can only fly united or detla, there is literally nothing else and i just saw United is going to stop flying there. To go to Barbados its american, delta, or jetblue or flying something like air canada.

 

[RBH]

I've flown with Delta for most of my life since I previously lived in Atlanta for many years and they are Delta's main hub.

Pretty much always had good experiences with them in terms of timeliness, service, number of nonstop flights available, the number of places they fly to, and on-board entertainment.

The loyalty program is ok. Delta's SkyMiles have a rep of not being as valuable as other airlines, but they make up for it in the areas I listed above.

 

[Phoenix4]

If you fly a lot and have to change airlines/alliances try getting your status matched. I moved to the UK and got my status matched from Flying Blue Gold to British Airways Executive Club Silver (= same level). I do fly a lot for work though so that might have helped. Check statusmatcher.com for success rates and where to try.

 

[SlipperyFishes]

Virgin Atlantic - aside from a missing Vita it was solid.
Flybe - I'm screwed here because they have a stranglehold on me

 

[Skellig Gra]

United cause it's cheap and a major hub of theirs is 10 minutes from my apartment. I can't give them any glowing reviews but for the prices and the vast amount of routes they fly it's within expectations.

 

[rrvv]

Qatar airways

1) pretty much get free flight for every 2-3 flight with them

Spoiler

and most of my flight is free due to job anyway

2) damn nice, always have a movie that I put it in backlog. Never get bored with their selection. I huge anyway
3) usually I stick around silver. Rarely gold

 

[Purkake4]

The cheapest one going to where I need to go.

 

[Ban Puncher]

 

[manzoman96]

Southw...

Dont fly Southwest

Oh dear.

Well for me it's always been either them (and airtran before they bought them) or American (since they bought US Airways)

Spoiler

Airlines merging is the worst.

 

[reggieandTFE]

Southwest because I have to often change my flight at the last minute for work and they don't charge insane change fees. Also, one you're A-list, you'll get a decent seat no matter what and the free Wifi is great.

I also use American when Southwest doesn't fly to a city in headed to. It's really great being in Chicago and being a hub for multiple national carriers and being able to book direct flights almost anywhere I go.

 

[dluu13]

Heh, I was about to say Air Canada but I guess that's out of the question. I don't fly enough outside of Canada to know much about any others. I only started collecting miles last year.

 

[SlipperyFishes]

Southw...


Oh dear.

Well for me it's always been either them (and airtran before they bought them) or American (since they bought US Airways)

Spoiler

Airlines merging is the worst.

I flew American a few times when en route to Peru from the UK and it was the worst. What is it with US based air crew that makes them so miserable when doing their jobs?

 

[BronsonLee]

I flew American a few times when en route to Peru from the UK and it was the worst. What is it with US based air crew that makes them so miserable when doing their jobs?

They tend to fly quite a bit of flight hours with very little rest

 

[Hoo-doo]

Me and my girlfriend flew with my dad's KLM platinum SkyTeam (Elite Plus) card last year. He's a lifetime plat card holder and it's the highest tier available with Skyteam airlines AFAIK.
The pre-flight lounges were a big plus. All you could eat buffets and booze wherever you touch down, with amazing lounge chairs and zones to relax. It makes any waiting go by pretty quick. The stuff like priority check-in and luggage are neat too, never had to wait for anything anywhere.

We still flew economy of course, but it was still neat to feel like a bit of a VIP on these airports. Stewardesses calling me by my last name and asking us if we wanted champagne and stuff.

 

[nekkid]

Virgin Atlantic, most of the time.

Not unreasonable pricing for good service, good entertainment, food, drink and air miles rewards.

 

[Elitist1945]

I've only flown WestJet and US Airways. Both were just fine and fairly cheap.

I do remember US Airways' flight attendant coming back periodically to ask if I wanted a refill though - that was nice.

 

[TheAbsolution]

All of the national domestic except delta, but mainly Southwest these days




its really not though, engine failure happens from time to time and airplanes have multiple redundancies. Pilots and FA's go through extensive training for situations exactly like the one above

Plus as you can see, the Twitter handle is from a Southwest pilot.


I fly Southwest all the time. It's awesome.

 

[NoctisVsStar]

Not a single JetBlue mention :S

 

[Apple Turnover]

All I know is that I've had to sleep on the floor of an airport 3 times

And all 3 times it was Delta Airlines' fault

So fuck them

I flew Delta this summer and on my return trip, my connecting flight was overbooked. However, I got an $800 USD prepaid visa and they put me in a decent hotel overnight for volunteering to give up my seat. So I was quite ok with them for that.

 

[platakul]

Whichever one it is, its more extravagant and beautiful than OP can afford

 

[spuckthew]

I've been flying Delta for a few years due to us organising trips using my girlfriend's mum's platinum account. They're pretty good I guess.

 

[Juice]

Delta, and I love them.

I've flown all 4 major US airlines at least two dozen times and Delta is head and shoulders above the rest in customer support and status perks.

 

[dluu13]

Whichever one it is, its more opulent than OP can afford

FTFY

Spoiler

 

[Camp1nCarl]

I can tell you to at least stay away from SouthWest. I've never had a good experience with them honestly lol. Anytime I am supposed to fly on SouthWest it's definitely a "Oh great what is going to go wrong this time?"

 

[brerwolfe]

I'm platinum on Delta and can't really complain. I've flown with them 35 times this year and have only had maintenance issues or luggage/flight delays three times. Last year I flew more and maybe had one issue, but it's never been enough to make me hate them.

I love the Comfort+ seating, the Sky Priority baggage check, Sky Priority baggage claim (a lot of airports have separate baggage claim for Sky Priority baggage). I love that in the off chance you have to wait 20 minutes or more for your baggage they'll give you 2500 miles. And their customer service is fantastic, whether calling in or dealing at the airport, or messaging on Twitter. They're the best airline out there.