In September 2019 it was announced that Delta would be buying a 20% stake in LATAM, and that the two airlines would be forming a joint venture.

There’s significant work required here, as LATAM currently belongs to oneworld and partners with American. We know that LATAM will be leaving oneworld as of May 1, 2020, and we now have some more details about the timeline for frequent flyer reciprocity between the two airlines.

Reciprocal mileage earning & redemptions coming April 1, 2020

Today it has been announced that Delta and LATAM will introduce reciprocal mileage earning and redemptions for flights as of April 1, 2020. As of now mileage earning rates haven’t yet been published, though I imagine they will soon.

This means there will be an overlapping period where you can earn and redeem oneworld miles or Delta SkyMiles for travel on LATAM.

Soon you’ll be able to earn and redeem SkyMiles on LATAM

Reciprocal benefits coming later in 2020

Interestingly as of now no details have been announced of reciprocal elite benefits between the two airlines, like reciprocal lounge access, priority check-in, boarding, seating, etc. I imagine details of this will be revealed soon.

Delta and LATAM say that we can expect this to launch “later in 2020.”

Expect Delta & LATAM to offer reciprocal lounge access later this year

Delta & LATAM Co-Locating In Sao Paulo

Several weeks ago we learned that Delta and LATAM would co-locate in Terminal 4 at New York JFK as of February 1, 2020.

Now they’re continuing that trend of moving closer together — as of March 29, 2020, Delta will be joining LATAM at Terminal 3 at Sao Paulo Guarulhos International Airport. This will facilitate easier connections between the two airlines.

Delta will be moving to Terminal 3 in Sao Paulo

Delta & LATAM expand codesharing

Delta and LATAM have already started codesharing, and as of now that includes LATAM’s operation in Colombia and Ecuador, and LATAM’s operation in Peru as of March 29, 2020. It has now been announced that this will be expanded even further.

The airlines have now reached an agreement to launch a codeshare between Delta and LATAM Brazil beginning in the first half of 2020, subject to government approval. This would cover 37 LATAM routes from Brazil, and 65 Delta routes from the US.

When fully implemented, these codeshares provide connectivity on up to 74 routes from the US and up to 51 routes from South America.

Delta & LATAM are progressively rolling out codeshares

Bottom line

I’m sad to see LATAM leaving oneworld, though it’s at least nice to see the pace at which Delta and LATAM are moving forward.

I’m quite surprised that the two airlines aren’t introducing reciprocal elite benefits until “later” in 2020, since you’d think they’d want to make the experience as seamless as possible sooner rather than later.

What do you make of Delta & LATAM expanding reciprocity?

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