Originally Posted by
TravelGuy_2007
Honestly, I had a little success but not much. Which begs the question about why bother.
I hear a lot of FT members complain about upgrade success and how they got the perceived short end of the stick. And yet, people will spend money on MR's just to keep their status, or get to the next higher level of status, which makes me wonder who's being gamed here.
I prefer to believe we are the target (money) and if we cave into such gaming we are being used for the benefit of the airline.
TG
Ah, I had the same thoughts a while ago. Reckoned that the modern "loyalty" program is nothing more than a thinly disguised revenue generation program, tempting repeat business, at maybe higher cost than alternates, through the promise of often difficult to obtain benefits. No problem with that, and if I get a status somewhere then that's a bonus. In the meantime I've saved money by not chasing one airline and enjoyed some great flights on airlines i would not have tried if I'd chased the loyalty road.
For the serious high milers, it's likely well worth it as the airlines do look after their absolute best but for the majority, I question the value.