I think the behavior UA is trying to incent is pretty clear here. They are rewarding the behavior of the CK equivalents (GS) which are the big spenders anyway. They're trying to drive get more revenue out of the EXP equivalents (1K), and rest of the program is a carrot at the end of a stick to everyone else. For the mid and low tier elites, they'll enjoy the free UX F on the 50 minute feeder flights to the hubs; from say CLE to ORD, only to get stuck in the back of the bus on the ORD to LAX connection.