The flight time is most useful for people short of multi time. My friends had very little and a week later they had 50 to qualify for the ATP. That's where it's real use is.

Upgrade for me is looking like 2.5 years from DOH. Month after month the pace remains the same for this. The current upgrade awards are for people at around 4 years. A year or two ago it was closer to 7. It's all about timing.