Why not? The same people who were buying the Air 2 when it was the best 9.7" iPad will probably be the ones buying this new Pro, and would have bought it if it had been called the Air 3. They're the ones who walk into the store and say, "excuse me, I'd like to buy an iPad", and the sales person will take them straight to the newest model and explain why it's the one they need to get, and they won't know the difference between it having 2GB or 4GB of RAM.
BTW, if I'm not mistaken, the 9.7" Pro is the same weight and physical dimensions as the Air 2, or at least close enough for the difference to be negligible.
Yeah just a difference in price, but you have a point with the sales person - if they can sell it to someone with no knowledge of the cheaper alternatives then it really doesn't matter what the specs are.