American Airlines or Delta

[diddldonna]

I am looking at an internal flight in August from LA TO ORLANDO. I am from the U.K. so not aware of internal flights.

These two companies are what is coming up, which one would you pick? Are they similar? or not.

Also we will need hold luggage, how do we purchase this don't seem an option when booking,

Thank you.

 

[GoingSince1990]

Not much to choose between them in terms of quality. I would pick based upon schedule and price. Checked bag fees for both are $30 for the first bag and $40 for the second bag, per person. You can pay this fee at the airport or when checking in online, on the web or the app; you don’t pay when you buy the tickets, which is why you’re not seeing it as an option.

 

[JimMIA]

I am looking at an internal flight in August from LA TO ORLANDO. I am from the U.K. so not aware of internal flights.

These two companies are what is coming up, which one would you pick? Are they similar? or not.

Also we will need hold luggage, how do we purchase this don't seem an option when booking,

Thank you.

They are two of our major airlines, so there are more similarities than differences. Both are very good; you will hear anecdotal horror stories about both.

First, a little American terminology...because it matters when you are looking at airline info. If you haven't noticed it already, we do NOT speak English!

• "Internal flights" -- to us, are Domestic flights
• "Hold Luggage" -- to us, is checked baggage

As mentioned above, they are comparable, so I personally would choose based on fares and flight convenience.

For Delta, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, you will find most flights connecting (change planes) through Atlanta.

American is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, so many flights will connect at Dallas/Fort Worth. That said, American probably has some non-stop flights directly from LAX (Los Angeles International) to MCO (Orlando International).

Pro tip:
Check for fares using one of the travel sites (Expedia, etc), but go to the actual airline website to book. Two big advantages:

1. You will find MANY more flight options at the same price as you were quoted on the travel site.
2. You will only have one set of restrictions to deal with if your plans change -- the airline's vs. the airline's AND the travel site's.

 

[DebbieB]

I’ve flown both many times and prefer Delta. They seem to have better service and more comfortable planes.

 

[Orionreplay]

Between those two, and my father was an American airline pilot too, I'd choose Delta. His favorite motto was, "If you have time to spare, go air."

 

[sam_gordon]

I prefer Delta. Except on extremely short (<1 hour) flights, they have always offered at least snacks & drinks complimentary. I had a long (~3 hour) flight on American and only had drinks offered. Also, most Delta flights I've been on (even short ones) have had video streaming on your device.

That being said, schedule & price would trump snacks and entertainment for me. But, all other things being equal, I'd go Delta (and I also have their CC, so I don't have to pay for luggage).

 

[gatour]

I normally fly Delta. I prefer the Atlanta airport over Dallas. Although Dallas has improved since they finally got a working people mover. Having said that in general, they are comparable.

I checked Delta does offer non-stop flights from LAX to MCO in August

 

[sponica]

I'd pick whichever has the combination of best price+best time.

 

[DisSurfer878]

We're a Delta family. LAX is a small hub for Delta Airlines, and since we are based in LA, we have flown Delta (at least in my dad's case) literally all over the world.
We are Skymiles members, as well as Skyclub Members. Delta has plenty of direct flights to MCO, and I find their planes to be comfortable and easy to travel with. Never had lost luggage or a bad experience on Delta.
Except for one snooty flight attendant on a commuter jet from LAX-Vancouver. But the flight was coming off a 3 hour delay in Dallas so she was having a rough day

 

[diddldonna]

Thank you so much you have all been a great help. x

 

[KPeterso]

I live on the west coast and fly LAX to MCO a couple times a year. Honestly, both have direct flights, but I prefer Delta for my flights. Just like the airline and the people better overall. But if you find a much better fare on American, go for it. United also has direct flights from LAX to MCO. I tend to look at United and Delta first since I have their credit cards and miles with them.

 

[NotUrsula]

Unless you have a points membership that you use enough to have status, I'd look elsewhere, unless you are booking this as an immediate connecting flight the day you arrive or leave the US.
(If you are looking to gain usable European points: American is part of the OneWorld alliance with BA; Delta's international alliance is SkyTeam, and United Airlines is part of Star Alliance.) Of these large international carriers, usually United has the best prices from LAX to MCO ("MCO" is Orlando International; it has that acronym because it was originally named McCoy Field.)

If you are not looking to stockpile points, then you will probably get a better price/schedule on a US domestic carrier such as Southwest or JetBlue. Southwest does not use the reseller sites such as Expedia or Orbitz, so the only place you will find their flights is on www.southwest.com. (Southwest has the added advantage of 2 free checked bags per passenger, up to 70 lbs each bag.) Southwest is a low-cost carrier, about the same style of service as EasyJet or FlyBe, though the fee structure differs.)

Also, be aware that like London, greater Los Angeles has several commercial airports. LAX is the international airport, but there are 4 more domestics: ONT (Ontario, CA), SNA (John Wayne airport in Orange County near Irvine), BUR (Burbank), and LGB (Long Beach.) The mix of airlines is different at each one, but you can find flights to MCO from all of them. When comparing prices, be sure to take into account how far your chosen airport is from where you will be in Southern California, so that ground transport doesn't end up costing you a fortune. (For example, from Disneyland, SNA is the optimal choice, as it is much closer to there than LAX is.) If you are hiring a car when you arrive at LAX, be sure to check on any extra fees for returning it to a different airport, though most of the time there is no add'l fee if it is one of these 5.

Here is a trick to see every airline but Southwest all in one place: Go to https://matrix.itasoftware.com, and in your "Departing from" field, plug in "LAX, LGB, BUR, SNA, ONT" (the codes for all 5 of the airports within the greater Los Angeles area.) You cannot book on that site, but if you see a flight you like, copy down the details and go look directly for it on the airline's own website.

ETA: I corrected the code for John Wayne (I fly out of BNA far more often, and apparently auto-correct knows that! It came out correct when I pasted from Matrix, but changed what I had manually typed.)

 

[KPeterso]

Unless you have a points membership that you use enough to have status, I'd look elsewhere, unless you are booking this as an immediate connecting flight the day you arrive or leave the US.
(If you are looking to gain usable European points: American is part of the OneWorld alliance with BA; Delta's international alliance is SkyTeam, and United Airlines is part of Star Alliance.) Of these large international carriers, usually United has the best prices from LAX to MCO ("MCO" is Orlando International; it has that acronym because it was originally named McCoy Field.)

If you are not looking to stockpile points, then you will probably get a better price/schedule on a US domestic carrier such as Southwest or JetBlue. Southwest does not use the reseller sites such as Expedia or Orbitz, so the only place you will find their flights is on www.southwest.com. (Southwest has the added advantage of 2 free checked bags per passenger, up to 70 lbs each bag.) Southwest is a low-cost carrier, about the same style of service as EasyJet or FlyBe, though the fee structure differs.)

Also, be aware that like London, greater Los Angeles has several commercial airports. LAX is the international airport, but there are 4 more domestics: ONT (Ontario, CA), BNA (John Wayne airport in Orange County near Irvine), BUR (Burbank), and LGB (Long Beach.) The mix of airlines is different at each one, but you can find flights to MCO from all of them. When comparing prices, be sure to take into account how far your chosen airport is from where you will be in Southern California, so that ground transport doesn't end up costing you a fortune. (For example, from Disneyland, BNA is the optimal choice, as it is much closer to there than LAX is.) If you are hiring a car when you arrive at LAX, be sure to check on any extra fees for returning it to a different airport, though most of the time there is no add'l fee if it is one of these 5.

Here is a trick to see every airline but Southwest all in one place: Go to https://matrix.itasoftware.com, and in your "Departing from" field, plug in "LAX, LGB, BUR, SNA, ONT" (the codes for all 5 of the airports within the greater Los Angeles area.) You cannot book on that site, but if you see a flight you like, copy down the details and go look directly for it on the airline's own website.

Just want to add a clarification... The airport code for John Wayne is SNA. Was put as BNA twice and SNA once. Don't want any confusion!

 

[AngiTN]

They are the 2 airlines that fly in and out of our tiny little airport. I fly both pretty evenly, to MCO and to PHX. Just depends on who has the better deal on the given day.
Heck, there are a whole lot of times where I fly one to my destination and the other back, if that's cheaper (and it often is)
Honestly, there are really no differences in their service. I have credit cards with both and get free bags with both. Delta is a slightly better mileage award program. AA has a slightly better automatic upgrade program.
But when it comes to flying they operate so similar there are really no differences. Seats seem the same. For our flights, it's rare to get any video service in the plane. Maybe 1/3 of the flights with either one with have video. Most don't. We have had high success of on-time fights with both but both have had delays at times.
Both have excellent tracking with bags, giving you updates on their apps.

Just want to add a clarification... The airport code for John Wayne is SNA. Was put as BNA twice and SNA once. Don't want any confusion!

Yeah, quite a difference as one is Nashville and the other near LA, so not gonna get you the same place, LOL

 

[NotUrsula]

Ack, you're right; it is SNA. (Sorry, I fly out of BNA far more often; looks like autocorrect got me.)

 

[DisSurfer878]

They are the 2 airlines that fly in and out of our tiny little airport. I fly both pretty evenly, to MCO and to PHX. Just depends on who has the better deal on the given day.
Heck, there are a whole lot of times where I fly one to my destination and the other back, if that's cheaper (and it often is)
Honestly, there are really no differences in their service. I have credit cards with both and get free bags with both. Delta is a slightly better mileage award program. AA has a slightly better automatic upgrade program.
But when it comes to flying they operate so similar there are really no differences. Seats seem the same. For our flights, it's rare to get any video service in the plane. Maybe 1/3 of the flights with either one with have video. Most don't. We have had high success of on-time fights with both but both have had delays at times.
Both have excellent tracking with bags, giving you updates on their apps.


Yeah, quite a difference as one is Nashville and the other near LA, so not gonna get you the same place, LOL

Not trying to say you're not telling the truth or anything so disclaimer lol.
We fly Delta out of LAX anywhere from 5 to 10 times a year, and to/from Seattle almost as much. The only delta flight we have had in the last 18 months that didn't have seat back screens OR the ability to use the gogo in flight entertainment app was the 45 minute flight to Vegas.
Maybe it's different for LAX. But since the OP is flying out of there i would expect them to have screens

 

[sam_gordon]

Not trying to say you're not telling the truth or anything so disclaimer lol.
We fly Delta out of LAX anywhere from 5 to 10 times a year, and to/from Seattle almost as much. The only delta flight we have had in the last 18 months that didn't have seat back screens OR the ability to use the gogo in flight entertainment app was the 45 minute flight to Vegas.
Maybe it's different for LAX. But since the OP is flying out of there i would expect them to have screens

Not that I fly often, but EVERY Delta flight that I've been on that's over an hour has at least had the GoGo app. The long haul (3 hours+) usually have the seat back screens also.

 

[AngiTN]

Not that I fly often, but EVERY Delta flight that I've been on that's over an hour has at least had the GoGo app. The long haul (3 hours+) usually have the seat back screens also.

Oh they have the app
We just don’t get screens often
But we fly puddle jumpers from here, 20 min flight to Atlanta and it’s only an hour from Atlanta to Orlando
We also were screen less on our flight from PHOENIX last December

 

[sam_gordon]

Oh they have the app
We just don’t get screens often
But we fly puddle jumpers from here, 20 min flight to Atlanta and it’s only an hour from Atlanta to Orlando
We also were screen less on our flight from PHOENIX last December

If the app works, you don't need the screen. BYOD

 

[AngiTN]

If the app works, you don't need the screen. BYOD

Yeah but
Fair difference in size
I don’t watch stuff on my phone too small