Very little in the immediate, physical execution of airliners have changed (but very many small things certainly has - and a 747-8 being delivered today is a ra

Very little in the immediate, physical execution of airliners have changed (but very many small things certainly has - and a 747-8 being delivered today is a rather different machine than a -100 rolling of the assembly line in 1970, and the 787 is an amazing machine to fly, the air pressure and humidity controls, enabled by the composite body, make a huge difference). But prices have dropped steeply, democratising air travel to an unprecedented degree with an unprecedented speed. Practically anyone who can afford to go on holiday at all can afford to fly somewhere, rather than being limited to the range/speed of ground transportation. The kind of trips to Greece/Spain etc that are completely routine these days in northern Europe were once-in-a-lifetime experiences for my (reasonably well to do) grandparents. Everybody loves hating on Ryanair/Spirit Airlines/increasingly dense economy class layouts, but the fact is that you can in many cases (if you're out early) buy a discounted premium economy ticket (or even if you're lucky business class) for what regular economy tickets would cost just 20 years ago, much less 40, and get a much better product.