如果你是达美航空的忠实旅客，那么你现在正是美国联合航空（United Airlines）最热衷争取的目标。本周，美联航主动出击，向达美航空和美国航空符合条件的精英会员提供忠诚度等级匹配优惠。一些达美航空客户在网上抱怨，该公司需要提供更好的产品来留住常旅客，包括更顺畅的互联网服务。美联航的X（原推特）账号回复了多条此类投诉，鼓励他们考虑转投美联航。
If you're a loyal Delta flier, you're one of United Airlines' hottest targets right now. United went on the offensive this week, offering eligible elite members of Delta Air Lines and American Airlines a loyalty status match. Some Delta customers have complained online that the company needs to offer better products to retain its frequent fliers, including smoother internet service. United's X account replied to several complaints, encouraging them to consider switching.
程序员兼作家大卫·汉森（David Hansson）在X上发文称，正是因为星链（Starlink）服务，他会考虑从达美航空转投美联航。达美航空选择不使用星链，这一决定激怒了埃隆·马斯克，也为美联航提供了可乘之机。汉森周三写道：“我是@delta的钻石级会员，总体上对这家航空公司感到满意，但唯一能让我转投@united的因素就是星链。它真的好用得多。仅仅因为不喜欢埃隆，就拒绝为客户提供最好的服务，这简直太疯狂了。”
David Hansson, a programmer and writer, wrote in an X post that he would be convinced to switch from Delta to United because of Starlink access. Delta has opted not to use Starlink on its planes, a decision that has riled Elon Musk and given United an in. "I'm a @delta Diamond Medallion flier, and I'm generally happy with the airline, but the one thing that could make me switch to @united is Starlink," Hansson wrote on Wednesday. "It's just so much better. Crazy to deny your customers the best just because you don't like Elon."
其他人则借机调侃两家航空公司在机上WiFi方面的不同策略。另一位X用户写道：“美联航是一家面向知识型工作者的蓝领航空公司，即使坐在飞机上，他们也需要用笔记本电脑工作。”投资者兼初创企业创始人乔什·卡普兰（Josh Kaplan）在X上表示，他已经是达美航空钻石会员10年了，但今年将是最后一年。卡普兰写道：“我确信抱怨达美航空听起来像是‘幸福的烦恼’，但算了。有几件事最终让我忍无可忍。”
Others used the moment to poke fun at the airlines' different approaches to onboard WiFi. "United is a blue collar airline for knowledge workers who need to work on their laptops even when they're on a plane," another X user wrote on the platform. Josh Kaplan, an investor and startup founder, said on X that he's been a Delta Diamond member for 10 years, but this year will be the last. "I'm sure complaining about Delta will sound like a champagne problem, but oh well.
他列举了升级座位困难、休息室排队时间长、WiFi不稳定、登机过程混乱以及票价高昂等问题。
A few things finally broke me," Kaplan wrote, citing difficult upgrades, long lounge lines, unreliable WiFi, chaotic boarding, and steep fares. United isn't alone.
美联航并非唯一采取此类行动的航空公司。美国航空也于周三推出了等级匹配促销活动。该公司在五月表示，计划从2027年第一季度开始，在500多架窄体客机上安装星链WiFi。
American Airlines also launched a status-match promotion on Wednesday. The carrier plans to begin installing Starlink WiFi on more than 500 narrow-body aircraft beginning in the first quarter of 2027, it said in May.
这些举措充分体现出美国各大航空公司为争夺高价值常旅客而展开的激烈竞争。这类旅客在高端舱位消费、购买航空信用卡以及商务出行方面的支出，使他们成为整个航空业中最具价值的客户群体。会员等级互认是航空公司长期采用的一种策略，通过让旅客保留原有特权来吸引竞争对手的优质客户。在最新的营销活动中，联合航空着重宣传其新推出的Starlink无线网络服务，以此作为吸引常旅客转投旗下的又一卖点。
The moves underscore how fiercely the biggest US airlines are competing for high-value frequent fliers, whose spending on premium cabins, airline credit cards, and business travel makes them some of the industry's most valuable customers. Status matches are a longstanding tactic airlines use to lure elite travelers from rivals by letting them keep perks. In its latest campaign, United touted its Starlink WiFi rollout as another reason for frequent fliers to switch.
不过，联合航空的这一举措也招致了部分自家常旅客的反对。他们认为，会员等级理应通过长期忠诚服务来获得，而非轻易授予那些从竞争对手处转来的客户。“我此生都是联合航空的忠实粉丝。虽然偶尔会开些玩笑，但我绝不会离开它，”咨询公司Chartwell Strategy Group的董事总经理乔·博雷利对《商业内幕》说道，“但忠诚度应该是双向的。”
United's offer has drawn pushback from some of its own frequent fliers, who say elite status should be earned through long-term loyalty rather than handed to customers switching from a rival. "I am United till I die. I might tease but I'm never leaving them," Joe Borelli, managing director of the consultancy firm Chartwell Strategy Group, told Business Insider.
博雷利称联合航空拥有“最优质的服务”，但允许他人“走捷径”获得高级会员身份的做法却有失公平。“对于像我这样几十年来一直持有联合航空信用卡、多年积累飞行里程，且始终选择联合航空而非其他航空公司——甚至包括一些廉价航空公司的旅客而言，这种做法实在不公平，”他补充道。
"But the loyalty has to work two ways." Borelli said United has the "best product" — but letting people "skip the line" feels unfair. "It's not fair for people like me who have had credit cards going back decades, mileage plus accounts for years, who have chosen United over their competitors, even some low cost competitors," he added.
投资者、市场评论员以及《焦虑的投资者》一书的作者斯科特·纳申斯也持相同观点。“我并不怪联合航空，但作为联合航空的金卡会员，如果我的等级低于那些从未乘坐过该航空公司航班的人，我肯定会感到不满，”他在社交平台X上写道。
Scott Nations, an investor, market commentator, and author of "The Anxious Investor," concurred. "I don't blame United, but as a United Gold flyer, I'm going to be angry if I have lower status than someone who's never flown the airline," he wrote in an X post.
周四，达美航空发言人在回复《商业内幕》的询问时称，该航空公司提供的免费高速无线网络服务规模“远超全球其他任何航空公司”，目前已有近1300架飞机配备了相关设备。该发言人还表示，随着跨太平洋航线即将开通，达美航空将成为“唯一一家在全球所有航线网络上均提供该服务的美国航空公司”。至于联合航空方面，在《商业内幕》于非工作时间发出的进一步询问，至今尚未得到回复。
In a statement to Business Insider on Thursday, a Delta spokesperson said the airline offers "more fast, free WiFi than any other airline in the world," with nearly 1,300 aircraft equipped. The spokesperson added that, with transpacific routes coming online soon, Delta will be "the only US airline to provide it across our entire global network." Delta and United did not respond to further requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.