Originally Posted by
GNRMatt
I think you completely missed the point of the post. The point was that the it would cost the OP more to upgrade from Y-->J as an EXP than it would for a non-status member to do the same thing. The OP is complaining (and perhaps rightfully so) that AA is giving better pricing for the upgrade to a non-elite than an EXP.
IMHO, we're missing a critical data point -- that being the fare classes of the non-status member's ticket and the OP's ticket. It's possible they're the same but also possible they're not with the non-status member purchasing a higher fare class.
And, be careful about going to DL or UA. I have just as many friends who fly them with top tier status who complain about the very same things.