• FelixCress@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    148
    arrow-down
    5
    ·
    6 months ago

    Someone clearly doesn’t understand how much it used to cost to travel by plane 50 years ago.

    • Wogi@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      79
      arrow-down
      3
      ·
      6 months ago

      Also this image is bullshit

      Tray tables are about half that size now.

      • EleventhHour@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        8
        ·
        6 months ago

        Ehh…

        The bottom line

        Proportionally (inflation considered), flights are much cheaper now than they were 50 years ago. Consequently, flying is a more accessible mode of transport for many and has resulted in the soaring popularity of air travel, which began after deregulation. However, despite the cost drop, the base cost of flying has increased as airlines operate small profit margins and seek to remain competitive.

        • Rinox@feddit.it
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          6 months ago

          If you want you can go first class you know. It’s more or less as much as it was in the 50s and you get possibly even more luxury. Just be ready to pay 5k instead of a hundred bucks

    • VelvetStorm@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      12
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      6 months ago

      It was like 135 bucks for the cheapest unrestricted ticket in the usa in 1975, which comes out to around 814 bucks today. Where as I can buy a round-trip ticket right now for 220, which is the equivalent of 38 bucks in 1975.

      And to really put that into perspective, an average house in 1975 cost 39k, and if you take out a 20-year lone with 9% interest, you are looking at 193 bucks per month for your rent. So a single plane ticket in 1975 was 69% of the average monthly rent for a house.

      Idk why I did all this, but my adhd told me I had to.

    • jaybone@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      3
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      edit-2
      6 months ago

      But back then the price was regulated so they had to compete on service.

      That might have been more that 50 years now.

  • BigBenis@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    85
    ·
    6 months ago

    Airliner ticket prices used to be regulated. So when all airlines had to charge the same price, they had to find other ways to be competitive in order to bring in customers. Deregulation in the 70s brought ticket costs down but that means ticket cost is now the primary point of competition between airlines and amenities now come at a steep premium.

    • SupraMario@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      20
      arrow-down
      3
      ·
      6 months ago

      Yep, you can have it one way or the other…cheap flights or super luxury and only the rich can fly. Planes are not cheap to operate and fuel isn’t free.

        • x0x7@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          6
          arrow-down
          3
          ·
          edit-2
          6 months ago

          But even with that margins are tight, so 99.5% of why your flight is expensive is that planes are not cheap to operate and fuel isn’t free. But we can pretend it’s all the other thing to maintain slave morality.

          Also when was the last time an airline stock paid a dividend? I’m sure one of them pays dividends but most pay dividends never.

      • MirthfulAlembic@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        4
        ·
        6 months ago

        Frankly for short haul flights it makes sense. Would it be worth paying double or triple for a three hour flight just to get a full meal? Anyone who truly wants a taste of old time flying can get that with a first class ticket, both in terms of cost and quality.