I do understand your point of view, but because of one map and my experience with it, I have come to appreciate the air strike.
Islands - I'm on Nod, our air strip is down as well as our Hand of Nod. Ramjetters/snipers keep picking us off from that perch on the GDI side. I'd go Marksman, drag their health down slowly and they would go to refill. I would pause for a bit, allow them to come back and deploy an airstrike before they can get a beat on me and kill them.
Their ref was down, so losing that $1000 character hurts. The airstrike is the only way to get them there too, since the Marksman, even with two headshots, cannot kill a cautious Havok.
It was also super convenient when APC rushes occurred around our ref, only to have them blow up and the people who hopped out hoping to deploy ion cannon beacons die in the air strikes.
Without the air strikes, we would have lost. We won in terms of points.