Am I understanding it correctly that these 300k-400k “awards” are not awards, but rather Alaska taking the points and booking a revenue ticket? Something I saw somewhere made me think it was the case.

If true, it makes me wonder if this is part of priming folks for a more “dynamic” experience in general, rather than award charts, periodic devaluations, etc.

fwiw, I’ve had good luck (75k J on JX, JL, AY). But it’s either being first, being patient, or extremely flexible.