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Delta ranks last for award seat availability

By
May 17, 2012

Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines ranked last among airlines in availability of certain mileage award seats, according to a recent survey.

The survey by Shorewood, Wis.-based consulting firm IdeaWorks was based on thousands of booking queries for "saver"-type award seats, which generally require 25,000 miles.

According to the survey, Delta had seats available 27.1 percent of the time, unchanged from last year. But the survey also showed that seat availability on Delta declined for last-minute bookings made five to 15 days before departure. Delta said it is "always reviewing" its business to improve customers' experience.

In a tie for first place in award seat availability was Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, which began flying to Atlanta this year. Seats were available on Southwest 100 percent of the time, according to the survey results.

AirTran Airways tied for seventh place, with seats available 87.1 percent of the time.

Different frequent flier programs have different rules for redeeming miles, so comparisons may vary.

About the Author

As business team lead, Kelly Yamanouchi edits and writes business stories. She graduated from Harvard and has a master's degree from Northwestern.

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