A fair point, but were it not for mileage programs, most of us would not be traveling in F to Asia on our own nickel. So while I agree this calculation may not be an accurate measure in terms of what we would be willing to pay for the seat, it does accurately measure the worth of the seat as measured by the marketplace.

For the reason you point out, I never even consider this calculation (although I almost always look up the "list" price of my free seat, because it's fun to know). But what I am well aware of when I redeem an international F award is that I am traveling in a manner that I would not permit myself to if I had to go out-of-pocket for the cost. So while the dollars-and-cents calculation might be irrlevant, when I consider what I go through to accumulate the miles, and the benefit I get when I use the miles, there is no question that it's worth it.