Originally Posted by tryinginvain

I'm guessing you're relying on the AE site to plan your trip. If you are, that's your problem. RTFF and learn about the other planning tools. I use the ANA site. If you avoid partner airlines that don't charge YQ you can get a pretty low cost itinerary. It can be time consuming to find a good itinerary but it you have some flexibility it's doable.