After an eight-year partnership, Delta Airlines has ended its relationship with Lyft and selected its direct competitor Uber as the new ride-sharing partner for its loyalty program starting this spring.
This move will allow Delta SkyMiles members to earn miles on Uber rides and food deliveries.
Members can earn one mile per dollar spent on UberX airport rides, two miles on “premium rides” like Uber Comfort and Uber Black, and three miles per dollar on Uber Reserve rides.
For Uber Eats, members earn one mile for every dollar spent on orders over $40 at restaurants and grocery stores.
Delta announced the news to Skymiles members via email on January 19 and confirmed in a press release that customers with linked Lyft accounts can continue to earn miles through April 7.
“With record numbers of travelers taking to the skies, we want to help make your trip to the airport as efficient, affordable and effortless as possible,” explains Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.
The partnership marks another step in Delta's broader efforts to expand its work with loyalty programs, which have become important revenue drivers for airlines.
Other Delta partners include Starbucks, Hertz and Ticketmaster.
Delta Air Lines ended its eight-year partnership with Lyft and chose Uber as its new ride-sharing partner for its SkyMiles loyalty program, starting this spring
Customers with linked Lyft accounts can earn miles until April 7
In a statement, Lyft reflected on the partnership with Delta: “Years ago, we partnered with our first airline to unlock more ways to improve and innovate travel experiences, turning those customers into Lyft loyalists.
“We continue to expand our horizons by joining forces with major brands that share our customer obsession, such as Alaska Airlines, Chase, DoorDash, Mastercard, Hilton, Disney and Bilt.”
Delta did not reveal the reasons for the switch, although it is worth noting that their credit card partner, American Express, is offering some cardholders credits for Uber rides and food deliveries.
In November, Delta predicted it would earn $7 billion from its AmEx partnership by 2024, with a long-term goal of $10 billion annually.
While Lyft reported 24.4 million active riders and over 216 million rides in the third quarter of 2023 (up 16 percent), Uber, with its significantly larger user base of 161 million monthly active users, recorded over 2.8 billion rides, which amounts to an increase of 17 percent. year-on-year growth.
This move will allow Delta SkyMiles members to earn miles on Uber rides and food deliveries
Uber has also expanded its offerings, including a shuttle service to New York's LaGuardia Airport introduced last year.
The new partnership was announced at the CES technology show in Las Vegas, where Delta also unveiled plans to introduce an AI-powered assistant to its app and improve its in-flight entertainment systems.
