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Recently, in the german edition of the Spiegel, there was a similar column[1] saying there was "something really going wrong" when a flight from Berlin to Colog

Recently, in the german edition of the Spiegel, there was a similar column[1] saying there was "something really going wrong" when a flight from Berlin to Cologne costs 15€ while the train ticket for the same destinations costs 120€. The same article said that the flights were "absurdly cheap" and that the budget airlines are "displaying the type of capitalism that is disconnected from reality". Im not joking. The question they asked themselves was not why the Deutsche Bahn [2], receiving billions ins subsidies every year, is unable to compete agains budget airlines, but why the government doesn't forbid such low costs flights. The elitism of the authors really scares me. It almost seems as if they want a minimal ticket fee, making flying a luxury once again. Ryanair and Easyjet are well run companies that are enabling millions of poor people to see the world, visit family members they haven't seen for decades, leave their countries for better opportunities abroad. [1] http://www.spiegel.de/kultur/gesellschaft/billig-fluege-der-airport-kapitalismus-a-1223690.html http://www.spiegel.de/kultur/gesellschaft/billig-fluege-der-... [2] The major german railway company, privatized in 1994, but still fully owned by the government

rjsw 8y ago
Aircraft fuel isn't taxed. It ought to be taxed at the same rate as that used for ground transportation.
Spooky23 8y ago
Cheap airlines are unsustainable and subsidized. I just flew Norwegian from New York to Europe for less than $75. Parking my car at the airport cost more than the flight. That entire airline is some sort of financing scheme and won’t exist in a couple of years.
- sparkling 8y ago
  Out of curiosity: what was the origin and destination airports?
  - Spooky23 8y ago
    Stewart Airport (Newburgh, NY) to Shannon, Ireland. They fly out of several US cities. They run specials frequently and you can get flights to London, Bergen, Barcelona, etc. A friend and his wife were able to fly to London to see Hamilton last year for less than it would have taken to see it in NYC!
mi100hael 8y ago
> The major german railway company, privatized in 1994, but still fully owned by the government Sounds like someone in Germany needs to crack a dictionary
- germanier 8y ago
  It was transformed from a public office into a private company with all shares owned by the state. They planned to sell those shares but this never happened for various reasons.
A2017U1 8y ago
Journalism aside, what is the reason? Are railways really that inefficient? I remember the RyanAir CEO once saying he could do base fares for free if it weren't for airport taxes. I love travelling on trains not to mention the environmental benefits but the cost was unjustifiable compared to flying in Europe.
- em500 8y ago
  > Journalism aside, what is the reason? Are railways really that inefficient? Most likely they (are forced to) cross-subsidize the non-profitabele routes from the profitable ones like Berlin-Cologne. Unlike national railways, cheap airlines can choose which routes they want to serve. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_subsidization https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_subsidization) (https://johnhcochrane.blogspot.com/2018/06/cross-subsidies.html https://johnhcochrane.blogspot.com/2018/06/cross-subsidies.h...)

rjsw 8y ago

Aircraft fuel isn't taxed. It ought to be taxed at the same rate as that used for ground transportation.

Spooky23 8y ago

Cheap airlines are unsustainable and subsidized. I just flew Norwegian from New York to Europe for less than $75. Parking my car at the airport cost more than the flight. That entire airline is some sort of financing scheme and won’t exist in a couple of years.

sparkling 8y ago
Out of curiosity: what was the origin and destination airports?
- Spooky23 8y ago
  Stewart Airport (Newburgh, NY) to Shannon, Ireland. They fly out of several US cities. They run specials frequently and you can get flights to London, Bergen, Barcelona, etc. A friend and his wife were able to fly to London to see Hamilton last year for less than it would have taken to see it in NYC!

mi100hael 8y ago

> The major german railway company, privatized in 1994, but still fully owned by the government Sounds like someone in Germany needs to crack a dictionary

germanier 8y ago
It was transformed from a public office into a private company with all shares owned by the state. They planned to sell those shares but this never happened for various reasons.

A2017U1 8y ago

Journalism aside, what is the reason? Are railways really that inefficient? I remember the RyanAir CEO once saying he could do base fares for free if it weren't for airport taxes. I love travelling on trains not to mention the environmental benefits but the cost was unjustifiable compared to flying in Europe.

em500 8y ago
> Journalism aside, what is the reason? Are railways really that inefficient? Most likely they (are forced to) cross-subsidize the non-profitabele routes from the profitable ones like Berlin-Cologne. Unlike national railways, cheap airlines can choose which routes they want to serve. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_subsidization https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_subsidization) (https://johnhcochrane.blogspot.com/2018/06/cross-subsidies.html https://johnhcochrane.blogspot.com/2018/06/cross-subsidies.h...)