One must remember that advertising, especially for premium brands is not always entirely about selling the product, increasing exposure or acquiring new customers - instead the aim is to foster brand loyalty amongst existing customers by making them feel part of an exclusive group and to assuage any lingering doubts about having purchased said product in order for those customers to spread the word/retain future bookings.
Thus poking fun at US3 carriers is the point, to try and convey the message of "well done for choosing EK, here's a reminder as to what you're missing"
The major and most obvious example of this is luxury motor car advertising - I leave it to readers to research the various automobile manufacturer marketing chiefs spelling out this strategy
