Are Frequent Flier Miles Programs dead - $675 for a "free" flight on British Airways!

A month ago, it cost me $260 to get a "free" ticket to London with American Airlines. A couple of days ago, British Airways on its website, wanted to charge me $675 for a "free" ticket to London. When I called the airline to ask about this, I was told that this was because of taxes, charges, and fees. When I checked online for a purchased fare, the airline's website showed these as $174.40 on a fare of $880. So cashing in frequent flyer miles results in a fairly modest savings as British Airways charges such a high premium for doing so. Clearly, with shorter and shorter expiration times, less availability and hidden charges, these programs will become not loyalty generators, but creators of immense resentment.