I still contend one of the best (former?) benefits of DM was ease of using Asia Miles awards and almost constant award availability as DM. Until the change recently, you could almost guarantee a mileage redemption/upgrade in J or F as long as the flight wasn't actually 100% full. It allowed maximization of Asia Miles, and took some of the sting off having such an inferior earn/burn ratio than those using AA miles. At least I had the flexibility to always score a J or F redemption/upgrade seat at the last minute, whereas (from reading this board) it seems like people on AA tickets have to do a bit more strategizing and advanced planning. So that's the trade off and I stick with MPC. Sounds like there is a chance this benefit is now gone. I always thought CX should do a better job of making the unofficial benefits "official," since op-ups order preference and things like ease of AM awards really are key reasons why I stick to CX.