I agree. This is a pretty despicable practice by JAL and other airlines that continue to market their FF awards as "free" seats when they are not free by any stretch of the imagination. A fuel surcharge is not a tax, it is just a fare increase called by a different name. And when they levy fuel surcharges on so-called "free" tickets, those tickets cease to be free.

I recently paid $500 for a "free" ticket to Chicago this spring.