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Research the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. Fares used to be set by the feds. After the Act, it's been a race to the bottom.
Recreational flyers complain about airlines not providing services, but they will switch carriers for a $5 fare difference in a heartbeat. That means ticket price is everything for those types of travelers, and service doesn't matter. Carriers like WN (Southwest) and others wouldn't have existed pre-deregulation in their current form.
Thread closed! Nothing more to see here folks, move along.
Sure most of us prefer pretty and young flight attendants (the most amazing ones I met on Asiana and Korean Air ) but when it comes to the overall flight experience, I want a crew that is experienced and capable of evacuating the airplane quickly, that knows how to handle unruly passengers and those with fear of flying, and that is always professional. I would trade in the eye-candy for safety and professionalism at any time.
Research the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. Fares used to be set by the feds. After the Act, it's been a race to the bottom.
Recreational flyers complain about airlines not providing services, but they will switch carriers for a $5 fare difference in a heartbeat. That means ticket price is everything for those types of travelers, and service doesn't matter. Carriers like WN (Southwest) and others wouldn't have existed pre-deregulation in their current form.
I used to fly weekly or more for business. A round trip COACH ticket between Chicago and NY/NJ typically ran in excess of $800 ( about $2,413 in 2016 USD) in the 80's. It was necessary to stay over a weekend to get a discount or engage in the back to back ticketing game. Back then, there was a tad more leg room. No steak or lobster in Coach. A cocktail cost $4. If I missed the 4:00, no worries there was a 5,6,7 and 8:00 flight and usually seats available.
For those with high levels of frequent flyer point, one could upgrade to first class for $40. No steak or lobster but alcohol was free and hot noise washcloths were disbursed.
Deregulation led to price wars, and survival of the so called fittest.
30 years later, the same flight costs a fraction of what it did 30 years ago. Seems beyond unreasonable to expect to pay a fraction of the former ticket price and expect the same leg room, food and benefits.
I have a neighbor who is 70 something. She continues to fly long haul between Chicago and Hong Kong. In terms of seniority, there are about 100 flight attendants with more seniority than her.
I used to fly weekly or more for business. A round trip COACH ticket between Chicago and NY/NJ typically ran in excess of $800 ( about $2,413 in 2016 USD) in the 80's. It was necessary to stay over a weekend to get a discount or engage in the back to back ticketing game. Back then, there was a tad more leg room. No steak or lobster in Coach. A cocktail cost $4. If I missed the 4:00, no worries there was a 5,6,7 and 8:00 flight and usually seats available.
For those with high levels of frequent flyer point, one could upgrade to first class for $40. No steak or lobster but alcohol was free and hot noise washcloths were disbursed.
Deregulation led to price wars, and survival of the so called fittest.
30 years later, the same flight costs a fraction of what it did 30 years ago. Seems beyond unreasonable to expect to pay a fraction of the former ticket price and expect the same leg room, food and benefits.
I don't care about food or benefits. They can keep their yucky airplane food, and I don't need wider seats or leg room. What I dislike the most is being treated like a criminal because of a terrorist attack that occurred almost 15 years ago that has made the flying experience miserable for many, if not most travelers. It takes forever to get through security, and it only gets slower and slower every time. We waste so much money on the TSA that we should be spending on other things, especially since they are ridiculously inefficient. And security only gets more invasive. And for what? To reduce the chance that a one in a zillion attack will occur.
The odds of another attack happening are microscopic. There is risk in everything, and we will all die someday. Don't get me wrong; 9/11 was a terrible tragedy, but ironically, we allowed the terrorists to win by going overboard with security procedures, and endlessly harping on how dangerous they are to us. I would be willing to take a higher risk on a plane to reduce the screening process somewhat (and probably not even reduce its effectiveness one bit) and preserve my dignity.
Simple answer - Travel by air has become necessary.
From 2013 - "On average, every day more than 8 million people fly. In 2013 total passenger numbers were 3.1 billion—surpassing the 3 billion mark for the first time ever. That number is expected to grow to 3.3 billion in 2014 (equivalent to 44% of the world’s population)." (IATA - New Year)
The goal now is to get from point A to point B, not for relatively few to have a glamorous experience.
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) but when it comes to the overall flight experience, I want a crew that is experienced and capable of evacuating the airplane quickly, that knows how to handle unruly passengers and those with fear of flying, and that is always professional. I would trade in the eye-candy for safety and professionalism at any time.
