A Short History of the Devolution of Air Travel 

Air travel today is considerably worse than it was before the pandemic, when I was on a plane at least once every six weeks. I did that for 30 years. And a third of it was international travel – i.e., flights of 8 and 12 and 18 hours.

Back then, flights departed and arrived on schedule. And when there were delays, it was usually an hour or three. Cancellations were rare. So rare that I cannot remember one in those 30 years.

These days, delays are de rigueur and cancellations are to be expected. Now, whenever I travel by air, Gio makes two or three consecutive reservations for me. And I am frequently forced to take advantage of this extra precaution.

The problems extend to virtually everything to do with air travel. That’s odd, because it is a relatively modern technology. You’d think that, like air conditioners, heart surgery, and car travel, for that matter, it would have gradually improved.

But it has gotten demonstrably worse.

Back in the 1950s, before any of those reading this were alive or, if so, could afford to travel by plane, the experience was first class, with free booze and cigar smoking and long-legged flight attendants. (I think they had a different name back then.)

In the 1980s, when deregulation took place, air travel became a vehicle for the average bobo, and a new class of flying – they called it coach – was invented. Coach got you to your destination in the same amount of time, but with considerably less dignity. Your seating space was more limited. The seats themselves were fabric, not leather. And the meals were hospital-level cuisine served on plastic plates with paper napkins.

Then the airlines unionized, and they were forced to economize. That led to economy class, which consisted of seating so restricted you had to practically pry yourself into an upright position, your knees pressing against the seat of the traveler in front of you. Smoking became a criminal offense and the flight attendants aged rapidly, almost from flight to flight.

Most domestic airlines converted first class to business class, and some offered only economy seating. As the price wars continued, service got even worse – even in business class. Free cognac in crystal goblets was replaced by pay-for alcohol in plastic cups. And meals became little packages of stale chips or pretzels thrown at you by linebacker-sized attendants as they rolled their clanking carts by.

Comfortable, commodious seating? Gone. Leg space? Gone. Assistance with your luggage? Gone. Deferential service of any kind was replaced by prison guards that would be happy to have you dragged off and put behind bars if you violated any of a hundred new rules of traveler decorum.

And this is to say nothing about the frustration of waiting hours online to book a flight or the endless lines within the airport and the humiliation of going through security, etc.

To be fair, there are still a few exceptions. Mint class in JetBlue for domestic flights, for example, and almost any of the Asian airlines for international travel. But to travel with them, you must be willing to pay five to 10 times the rate of the economy traveler. And you still must put up with the screaming brat that is sitting two rows behind you.