Explanation is extreme variability of rates. A 1000 mile return ticket in Europe can be $20 and can be $500, with average about the same as in the U.S. at aroun

Explanation is extreme variability of rates. A 1000 mile return ticket in Europe can be $20 and can be $500, with average about the same as in the U.S. at around $200, i.e. 10 cents a mile. It mostly happens because most flights are between countries with extremely different living standards, and some passengers are business travellers from rich countries to poor ones, others are seasonal laborers going the other way around. There are no U.S. states with per capita GDP difference as big as U.K. vs Romania, for example.