The higher-end American AAdvantage Aviator Silver’s new benefits include refunding cardholders up to $50 each year for in-flight Wi-Fi, granting up to $25 savings per day for onboard food and beverage purchases, and providing two $99 companion certificates for spending $20,000 in a year.
Of course, those perks sometimes come at a cost, with annual fees getting bumped up as much as $100 per year. For that reason, Kelly says, “This isn’t a slam dunk for consumers.”
Delta’s Democratic Approach
Delta’s Reserve card in partnership with American Express is also getting a makeover, adding access to Amex’s excellent Centurion lounges and boosting earning bonuses so that airline purchases earn three points per dollar, instead of two. It also covers the cost of Global Entry and TSA PreCheck. For those enhancements, customers will pay a top-tier fee of $550 per year—up from $450.
But Delta and American Express have recognized that this isn’t a deal for everyone. If you don’t travel enough for this to be worthwhile—or aren’t as loyal to a single airline—there are a half-dozen other Delta cards that might better suit your lifestyle.
“The Reserve is for uber-frequent fliers,” explains American Express executive vice president of global consumer partnerships, Eva Reda. “They are on the road a lot and care about comfort, ease, and convenience, so they value the benefits [such as lounge access] that go along with that frequency.”
“They also care a lot about earning Delta Medallion status,” Reda continues. That’s why Reserve is doubling down on its elite Medallion Qualification Miles benefit, doubling cardholders’ earning potential and offering the ability to accrue up to 60,000 Medallion Qualification Miles per year. Doing so will cost you $120,000 in annual purchases, but it’s also enough to qualify for mid-level Gold Medallion status.
At the other extreme, the no-fee Blue Delta SkyMiles American Express was launched in 2017, as “an entry-level product for people just starting to travel and get engaged with Delta,” according to Reda. It currently earns two miles per dollar on Delta purchases and at U.S. restaurants, but will begin waiving foreign transaction fees and extend earning that bonus to restaurants worldwide in January. The aim is to make the card attractive enough for relatively new and infrequent travelers to make it their mainstay, even when heading abroad.
In between are Delta-branded offerings such as the family-friendly, $95-a-year Gold card—whose perks include free checked bags—and a $195-a-year Platinum Business card that makes sense for small business owners. (It’s worth noting that these cards’ annual fees will soon go up to $99 and $250, respectively.)
The bet that Delta, American Express, and their competitors are making is on diverse demographics—not just power users. And that, says Kelly, should work to everyone’s benefit.