Make sense. I know a lot of them do it via published promotions (e.g., Bermuda for 20k this summer on United), but what you're talking about is a regularly updated list of discounted awards. I'd love to see that. (CO is the one U.S. airline I know little about, so if they're already doing it, kudos to them.)

The only catch, of course, would be that these routes probably wouldn't have a very high ROI in terms of value for your miles. By definition, they'd be off-peak destinations where airfares are also low. (Although the UA example is running during a good season for Bermuda, so maybe it doesn't always have to be this way!) But...if they threw some discounted J/F awards in there, I might still bite.

Anyone know what this thread is about?

Didja read the OP? It's about finding ways ("creative" ways, per the title) for airlines to reduce their outstanding FF mile liability by encouraging people to use miles on lower-load/emptier flights.

Maybe I'm just dumb and it's not as straightforward as that, but that's what I thought...

the rules haven't changed that much
 

Ditto for the first point (only 9 award flights in the last 3 years) and absolutely believe the second point. Made a similar point on a recent post. I simply do not understand how people can feel that they are being ripped off (remember point 2).

I'm the OP and you have it right. Even the proposal for "reducing" the FF mile costs for the weekend "bargain" e-fares has something to be said for it, a way for the airlines to "burn off" miles putting butts in otherwise unoccupied seats, optimal cost-accountant's approach.

I harbor an edge of resentment to the "late redemption fees", charging for rewards booked on short notice. Not only do they "cost" the airline no more to reserve and ticket (and "charge" my account), but a late reward certainly represents the use of a seat likely to go out empty.

I still return to one of my original claims, howver, that prospectively empty Winter seats to Potato Bog, Maine and East Lapland International ought to be marketed at lower "prices", both for "Savers" and regular redemptions, warming up the Treasurer by burning off mileage liabilities.

Interestingly, Alaska Airlines uses terminology to reinforce what happytraveling says: the capacity-controlled (20,000-mile) awards are called "standard" awards and the non-capacity-controlled (40,000-mile) awards are called "peak."

Fortunately, standard (aka "saver" or "non-peak") award availability on AS is pretty darn good. Unfortunately, they don't have the route structure to offer international availability, and so trying to redeem international "saver" awards on other carriers (BA, QF, AA, etc.) puts you against the same brick wall you face on those carriers.

I just find it interesting that AS acknowledges that most people view the cheaper awards as standard and the more expensive ones as not desirable. It's all semantics, but...