Are Airlines trying to reduce demand ?

[Koolau]

At my age, I recall when flying was intentionally a good experience. It was just at the time that typical air travel had switched from DC7s and Constellations to jets. Airlines wanted your business and travelers were mostly civilized and exhibited at least minimal social graces. Most men wore suit and tie. Ladies wore skirts or dresses. Even coach had room to stretch. Carryons were purses and camera bags since checked luggage was free. 707's and 727's were virtually as fast as 777's are today. True, air travel was relatively expensive back in the day.

Now everyone flies. Flights are "cheap." But it now actually takes LONGER to get anyplace because of security and crowded airports. The experience of air travel is dramatically worse than it used to be. I think that's what most of us are reacting to. Imagine folks who were able to switch from 2 day train rides to less than a day's plane travel from the midwest to either coast. Who would have cared about a crying baby or a rude flight attendant (which actually didn't exist at the time.) Now, we notice the degradation of the experience while the trip is actually "longer." We've regressed and the main (almost only) advantage now is that it's "cheap." Even paying more (as in upgrading to 1st class/business) offers only a bit more seating/eating comfort. Other than that, the experience is still much worse, for the most part, than 50 years ago. YMMV

 

[Texas Proud]

At my age, I recall when flying was intentionally a good experience. It was just at the time that typical air travel had switched from DC7s and Constellations to jets. Airlines wanted your business and travelers were mostly civilized and exhibited at least minimal social graces. Most men wore suit and tie. Ladies wore skirts or dresses. Even coach had room to stretch. Carryons were purses and camera bags since checked luggage was free. 707's and 727's were virtually as fast as 777's are today. True, air travel was relatively expensive back in the day.

Now everyone flies. Flights are "cheap." But it now actually takes LONGER to get anyplace because of security and crowded airports. The experience of air travel is dramatically worse than it used to be. I think that's what most of us are reacting to. Imagine folks who were able to switch from 2 day train rides to less than a day's plane travel from the midwest to either coast. Who would have cared about a crying baby or a rude flight attendant (which actually didn't exist at the time.) Now, we notice the degradation of the experience while the trip is actually "longer." We've regressed and the main (almost only) advantage now is that it's "cheap." Even paying more (as in upgrading to 1st class/business) offers only a bit more seating/eating comfort. Other than that, the experience is still much worse, for the most part, than 50 years ago. YMMV

Well, back then it was highly regulated... so there were not any low cost airlines... you paid a high price because you HAD to pay a high price... since the price was fixed, service was the differentiating factor... not anymore...


Also, security came about because the passengers demanded it after a number of hijackings.... it became much worse after 9/11... I would bet that the airlines would love to get you on board much faster and get you to where you want to go... it means more money for them... but they do not get a choice in letting people go around security....

 

[audreyh1]

I'm glad I don't have to wear a skirt or dress to fly.

And longer to get anyplace? DH finally put his foot down about driving to my Dad's because it takes 2.5 days to drive there. 4.5 hours flying plus 2 ahead which includes plenty of time for security, plus 30 mins to pick up luggage. 7 hours travel is way better than 2.5 days driving.

 

[REWahoo]

I'm glad I don't have to wear a skirt or dress to fly.

Me, too. I may have been able to pull it off in my younger days but I no longer have the legs for it.

 

[Hermit]

I'm glad I don't have to wear a skirt or dress to fly.

And longer to get anyplace? DH finally put his foot down about driving to my Dad's because it takes 2.5 days to drive there. 4.5 hours flying plus 2 ahead which includes plenty of time for security, plus 30 mins to pick up luggage. 7 hours travel is way better than 2.5 days driving.

I would much prefer the extra 1.5 days to drive. But that's just me.

 

[travelover]

I'm remembering one more reason that I hate to fly. I always, always, always end up sick. Flew Monday and now have a raging cold.

 

[meierlde]

I'm glad I don't have to wear a skirt or dress to fly.

And longer to get anyplace? DH finally put his foot down about driving to my Dad's because it takes 2.5 days to drive there. 4.5 hours flying plus 2 ahead which includes plenty of time for security, plus 30 mins to pick up luggage. 7 hours travel is way better than 2.5 days driving.

Once retired of course time should no longer be an issue. I drove to Miami for my Nieces wedding this took about 4 days each way but I had never been east of La along the coast. Of course to really see things you do have to get off the interstates, which tend to look the same most places.

 

[audreyh1]

Well DH says no way to the driving - and I'm the designated driver!

I don't mind flying at all. And considering our trips to visit family are 2 partial days of travel rather than 5 full, it's a great tradeoff even though we need a rental car.

We retirees may have plenty of time but that doesn't mean we want to spend days of it driving for family visits.

I guess I'm burned out on the long road trips. Putting >60,000 miles on an RV will do that to you. And with the RV you are only moving it between stay locations - no short trips (daily errands) like in a car that racks up miles. I drove that big rig in a big loop around the US 5 times and then some. We saw a huge amount of the US, multiple times. Now I'm just interested in getting from one point to another as quickly as possible.

 

[brett]

We have to fly to get to where we want to go. This past winter we had nine flights. Three of them fairly short.

What surprised us. How good the 2 Copa Air flights were. Great service, clean, new planes, etc. Same with the 2 Aerolineas flights that we were on. Even the budget Sky Airline had good equipment, good planes, good service.

By far the worst, not only on that trip but in general were the United and Air Canada flights that we took. Poor service, old planes with hard seats and seat backs, and a cabin crew that did not break a smile let alone hardly speak a word.

We were on points. But one thing we have noticed is how inexpensive some of the European flights are at the moment. Tempting.

 

[braumeister]

I'm remembering one more reason that I hate to fly. I always, always, always end up sick. Flew Monday and now have a raging cold.

I used to have the same problem.
About a year ago, I bought one of these, not that I expected it to really work, but because I was willing to try anything.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003IDE5YI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

At least a dozen flights since then, half international, and it seems almost miraculous. First time in my life I've gone so long without catching a cabin cold. I actually believe there may be something to this.

 

[Fedup]

I hate flying to but I saw the grilled lobster picture in one TripAdvisor review for a Bora Bora restaurant and that's enough to change my mind. I'm going by plane.

 

[Nemo2]

Flew Avianca, Toronto to San Jose, Costa Rica, yesterday.....haven't flown with them since about 1980. Flight was about 1 1/2 hours late departing, but if you can set that aside it was 'better' than many other flights I've taken.

 

[Nemo2]

I hate flying to but I saw the grilled lobster picture in one TripAdvisor review for a Bora Bora restaurant and that's enough to change my mind. I'm going by plane.

Have never understood why many, many, people are enthused about eating relatives of spiders.

 

[MRG]

Have never understood why many, many, people are enthused about eating relatives of spiders.

Cause they taste yummy?

 

[Nemo2]

Cause they taste yummy?

Isn't that the garlic?

 

[aja8888]

I would much prefer the extra 1.5 days to drive. But that's just me.

After 35 years of constant business travel, we drive everywhere now. Lots of time for bathroom stops and just taking your good old time.

 

[athena53]

I just booked travel to India- driving is not an option. Was hoping to use points to go Business Class. What a PITA. First of all, 178,000 miles were not enough. I needed to split the booking into two separate itineraries (home to LHR round trip, LHR-DEL round trip) to get the trip home from LHR in Coach. (I could have bought extra points but that would have been on top of the $1,300 or so I'm already paying to use points for my "free" trip.)
They offered me a route from DEL to LHR that changed planes in Helsinki rather than the nonstop. They offered me a route home that landed in IAD (Dulles) but connected with a flight leaving 3 hours later from DCA (Washington National). Well, they can try, I suppose. I wasn't biting.


I was reminded of why I got rid of airline credit cards and went with my Fidelity 2% cash back.

 

[audreyh1]

I used to have the same problem.
About a year ago, I bought one of these, not that I expected it to really work, but because I was willing to try anything.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003IDE5YI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

At least a dozen flights since then, half international, and it seems almost miraculous. First time in my life I've gone so long without catching a cabin cold. I actually believe there may be something to this.

Wow - amazing!

I get cabin colds too - probably because I'm not around a lot of other people otherwise.

 

[Fedup]

I just booked travel to India- driving is not an option. Was hoping to use points to go Business Class. What a PITA. First of all, 178,000 miles were not enough. I needed to split the booking into two separate itineraries (home to LHR round trip, LHR-DEL round trip) to get the trip home from LHR in Coach. (I could have bought extra points but that would have been on top of the $1,300 or so I'm already paying to use points for my "free" trip.)
They offered me a route from DEL to LHR that changed planes in Helsinki rather than the nonstop. They offered me a route home that landed in IAD (Dulles) but connected with a flight leaving 3 hours later from DCA (Washington National). Well, they can try, I suppose. I wasn't biting.


I was reminded of why I got rid of airline credit cards and went with my Fidelity 2% cash back.

What kind of airline miles? Interesting I tried to book first/business class from Australia to LAX and it was like 195k miles. But if I changed from Japan to LAX it's 70K miles for business on AA. Crazy! And I thought Japan is further than Australia.

 

[Fedup]

Have never understood why many, many, people are enthused about eating relatives of spiders.

They are yummy spiders.

 

[Out of Steam]

They offered me a route home that landed in IAD (Dulles) but connected with a flight leaving 3 hours later from DCA (Washington National).

Even with a $90 cab ride, chances of making that connection off an international flight at any hour are about 50/50.

 

[Nemo2]

They are yummy spiders.

I shall defer to the gastronomes........from a distance, that is.

 

[NW-Bound]

Have never understood why many, many, people are enthused about eating relatives of spiders.

It seems to me the relationship of a lobster to a spider is further than that of a cow to a rat. But I am wrong all the time.

What kind of airline miles? Interesting I tried to book first/business class from Australia to LAX and it was like 195k miles. But if I changed from Japan to LAX it's 70K miles for business on AA. Crazy! And I thought Japan is further than Australia.

I did not think so, but checked anyway.

Great circle distance LA to Tokyo: 4,700 mi
Great circle distance LA to Sydney: 6,500 mi

PS. The longest flights I have taken were LA/Sydney, and Atlanta/Tel Aviv. They were something like 14 hours, if memory serves. However, the longest commercial flight was up to something like 18 hours. But that flight does not cover the longest distance. Aided by a strong tailwind, the longest distance in a non-stop flight was up to 9,000 miles.

 

[athena53]

Even with a $90 cab ride, chances of making that connection off an international flight at any hour are about 50/50.

Yeah, I know- that connection involving an airport change is typical of what they offer for the lower-tier reward flights. You wonder who actually chooses them. When I was trying to book award travel to Spain a few years ago, they offered a routing from my home airport (MCI) to DFW to Miami to Madrid, even though they had a DFW-Madrid nonstop. I ended up redeeming more miles to get the nonstop. Every connection is a chance for something to go wrong.

What kind of airline miles? Interesting I tried to book first/business class from Australia to LAX and it was like 195k miles. But if I changed from Japan to LAX it's 70K miles for business on AA. Crazy! And I thought Japan is further than Australia.

American. Australia is on my bucket list but I will NOT fly there in Coach. I found out when I tried to plan that I didn't have enough miles for Business Class and the airfares were crazy high (around $8K round trip) at the time of year I wanted to go. At some point you just have to say, "Heck, no". Instead, I took UnCruise through the Panama Canal and went snorkeling, hiking, kayaking and swimming in Costa Rica and Panama last month for less than that.

 

[H2ODude]

Refreshed my hatred for flying yesterday. Went through Atlanta on Delta. WHAT THE F IS THE DEAL WITH THE "POSTS" FOR THE ZONES As in stand behind this post for 1st class, this post for Priority, this for 1, and for 2 and for 3? Still have a mob with no organization. I'm convinced they just want to promote the idea of classes so it will motivate more to upgrade. Mobs of disorganized people glaring at each other in case they jump the line. And of course dragging all kinds of carryon.

Even 2-3 mg of xanax is not enough anymore. And then standing in line on the jetway to enter the plane looking at all the nice glossy posters of flyers just smiling and having the time of their lives on these friggin airplanes. It's no excuse, but no wonder people who've had a few drinks go nuts in airplanes. Xanax, noise canceling headphones, and maybe a drink or two (I know, don't mix x with alcohol) and calm music is about it. I still hate it. Even when the end result is to see DS and grandkids. I understand the driving as a preference, but there's the overseas thing and even so, unless it's a scenic route we put up with flying if it's more than 6 hours or so. But I hate it so. I try to be courteous to the staff but they all seem like their in a foul mood too anymore.