Originally Posted by
lost_in_translation
(And this point is of borderline relevance anyway, the implication is these flyers only go to HNL *because* of the attractiveness of the route as a BAEC earning opportunity rather than because they wanted to go and therefore chose BA/AA as the best option).
HNL is a long way from anywhere and therefore a great mileage earning opportunity on any programme that is not purely revenue based.
UA and DL also fly there, at fares that are comparable to BA/AA's.
BA status being predicated on TPs per segment (so that BA11/15 earns more than BA15, QR/RJ and to a lesser extent FinnAir paying more TPs than BA for basically the same routes, and LHR-JFK-LAX earns double LHR-LAX) is an anomaly, however.
Nonetheless, someone who's flying OSL-LHR-LAX twice a year on business to get silver is probably attracting at least as much
discretionary revenue than someone who gets to choose between VS/UA/BA for LHR-LAX maybe one time in three (when they are close enough in price within a business travel policy).