Much of what you all of said aligns with what I’ve suspected - that is, that BA is looking for more stability in terms of their schedules relative to the countries they fly to and the return of passengers to the skies on a consistent basis. I see 787s and 777s with F seats deployed to fairly strong/reliable markets (LAX, SFO, and JFK, but even SEA). Many of those cabins are completely empty on many dates.

It makes sense to me they wouldn’t want those filled in favor of downgrading without impact to booked F travelers. Still, not everyone traveling on BA is going to the UK, and would hope BA could see that possibility as travelers return to Europe and other onward destinations that may be opening up.

Thanks for the quick and helpful replies! Much appreciated.