Originally Posted by
superangrypenguin
No, the AC system rewards you by way of AQS or AQM. The WS system as many, and i'm sure you know, is based on spend.
If one can book a Flex fare on WS, one can hit gold even easier. So one is also incentivized to book Flex on WS if possible - in fact, I'd say one is EVEN MORE incentivized to book Flex on WS b/c it's not about miles or segments, it's about pure $$$
With a max $6k spend (unless that has changed) WS program isn't even a FF program. It is a "I think I am" FF program. An entirely different thing.
And none of any of this constitutes a rational defense of the fare difference between Tango and Flex. The only reason, as in singular, there is no other, is this: because they can.
There are no benefits sufficient to justify the difference to anybody other than somebody who wants status, the benefits that entails, and is relatively cost insensitive as long as it is a Y fare (ie. OPM). No amount of hand waiving will change that. You are paying $235 for a couple thousand AQMs. That is it. That is approximately $0.10 per mile. Think about that.
They may not be a charity or whatever else, but if I was responsible for corporate travel, I would tell AC to go "f" themselves, pay for Amex Platinum for my FF flyers, and have a policy of nothing but Tango. This strategy is going to backfire on them if they aren't careful.