Originally Posted by
aaupgrade
Wrong. With the prices of airline tickets going up the return on using points is that much more appealing even if you have to pay a fee. Some ballpark examples: DCA to CDG/LHR in Y $800-1600 used to be $350-900; BWI to HNL $1000-1300 used to be $500-800; Hawaii YUP $2200+ used to be $1100-1300; WAS to SYD in F $26000 used to be $16000, in J $20000 used to be $12000.
Actually, this is totally wrong. It's true that if fares double in price, the miles double in value. But then, you also paid double for the flights on which you accrued those miles. So on net, nothing has changed -- IF the airlines keep the award structures the same. If in addition to this the airlines charge more miles for the same seats, there's been a devaluation -- regardless of the fact that the seats have gone up in value.