$323 Less than Other Airlines and Your Ticket to an Elite-Status Accelerator.
This special report has no intricate strategies to impart or mileage-partner backflips to recommend—just low fares and easy upgrade math. It’s simply about jumping on published anomaly fares.
Just last month we reported on Delta dumping domestic First Class for travel through mid-September. Now Delta is at it again (see July 16 alert when FCF first broke the news), slashing fares almost 27% over American and United.
Low-Cost Upgrade Math
Take Los Angeles-Honolulu on Delta, which is about 5,106 flight miles (non-stop) and currently has a First Class fare of $896. That yields a cost-per-flight-mile of about 17¢. An economy fare on that same route is $618, and has a cost-per-flight-mile of about 12¢. That is only 5¢ more for First Class, or in this case only $139 more each way.
See Delta’s screenshot below for Los Angeles-Honolulu, which shows the fare difference between economy (V class) and First Class (P class). The second box, headed Delta’s Comfort+ (W class), refers to economy class seating with a bit more legroom and Sky Priority boarding access.
After you figure in all the fees economy class can involve—checked bags, Delta Comfort+, and meals—the difference between First Class fares and economy (i.e. the cost to upgrade) can often drop to only $10 per hour in flight (round-trip flight time LAX-Honolulu is about 11 1/2 hours).
Example Upgrade Cost on Delta—Los Angeles-Honolulu
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Don’t forget to weigh in the value of miles earned, especially if you’re an elite. That can knock another $100 or so off the price, which results in a near-zero cost to upgrade.
Sample of Delta's First Class Fares to Hawaii Starting as Low as $896
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Free Bonus Upgrade: How to Score a Free “In-Class Seat Upgrade” through Delta’s Little-Known Aircraft-Deployment Anomalies to Hawaii
Sometimes Delta uses internationally configured aircraft (A333s and B767s) on Hawaii routes (other times mostly B757s). The Opportunity: Choose your itinerary thoughtfully and you can get the airline’s international Business Class seat, Delta One, a 21-inch-wide seat that converts to a 76.5- to 81-inch-long flat-bed (length varies by aircraft).
So keep in mind the flight numbers and routes mentioned in the chart below when picking schedules for your booking.
Where to Find Delta’s International Business Class Seat to Hawaii
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Forget About Using Free or Upgrade Awards
Why try for a free or upgrade award? They reduce the value of your miles to less than one cent each (e.g. bad deal), on the non-stop LAX-Honolulu route, the lowest free First Class mileage award FCF found was 80,000 miles and upgrades cost 60,000 miles round-trip. Save the miles for high-priced international destinations.
Low Premium Fares are Elite Status Seeker’s Fast Track
You don’t have to wait until the end of the year to do an elite status run. You can use this quick getaway to reach your elite status goal—if you’re still locked into a loyalty program. (I’m not suggesting elite status programs are advisable, as you know if you’ve been reading FCF for long, but I know many of you still are elite focused.)