Originally Posted by SPN Lifer
While I can empathize with the do-it-yourselfers who like to get the most bang for their charitable buck, it seems those with actual experience on the back end of these deals acknowledge their value. See Posts #6 & #8, supra.
If it were truly a scam, I'm sure regulatory authorities would be on top of it. Of course, some airlines do have better reputations for candor than others.
Please don't me wrong. I certainly don't think it is a scam in the sense that the airline takes our miles but don't give them to people in need - I am sure that they fly a lot of people (using donated miles) who otherwise wouldn't be able to - and there certainly is great value in this.
However, my point is that the airlines fly thousands of empty seats a day. Can't the airline fill a small percentage of those seats with people in need - the same people that would be flying on donated miles? And couldn't the airline write off the expenses for that donated seat? ...they know how much it costs to transport one passenger X number of miles.
Why would the airline even consider taking its customers' miles, when it can very well fly a person in need without the use of those miles? It seems that the airlines have figured out a way to separate us from our miles, and be praised and respected for it.