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> round trip air fare has basically halved since 1979 I don't think that number will hold up if you include square feet of personal space and lbs of luggage th

> round trip air fare has basically halved since 1979 I don't think that number will hold up if you include square feet of personal space and lbs of luggage that might need extra fees.

notahacker 4y ago
The airlines.org figures includes a column with bags and fees. More or less halved in real terms since 1990. You might have lost an inch or two of legroom. Then again, you might not because they made the seats skinnier...
- rightbyte 4y ago
  Ye well I agree that it has become cheaper to fly. I just don't think it is a 1:1 between the ticket price tag change and the value for me change.
johnnymorgan 4y ago
Or factor in the loss of purchasing power, along with the shrinkflation. I love when people adjust for inflation in these debates but don't factor in purchasing power of the dollar comparison. The ticket price is more expensive now, than 1979.
- rightbyte 4y ago
  Ye there should be a 10 column table with: Gallons of milk in my grocery store. Lbs of potatoes of X species. Feet of 2 by 4s to X spec. sq inch of flat in Dallas. Hours worked for a white collar clerk. Etc. "Inflation adjusted" dollars are not quality adjusted really. In the same way a economy class ticket is a worse experience than in the 90s, e.g. a chicken is a worse chicken too.
idopmstuff 4y ago
That's the point, though - what you get has diminished, but the trade is that you pay substantially less. If you want more, you can still pay for premium economy or business. It's better to enable people with less money to fly, while still letting people get a better experience if they want to spend more.
lucas_membrane 4y ago
Not to mention order of magnitude reduction of the amount of fresh air per passenger allowed to enter the cabin. Not to mention that the flight attendants used to be registered nurses; now they might not even know how to work the oxygen bottles.

> round trip air fare has basically halved since 1979 I don't think that number will hold up if you include square feet of personal space and lbs of luggage that might need extra fees.

notahacker 4y ago

The airlines.org figures includes a column with bags and fees. More or less halved in real terms since 1990. You might have lost an inch or two of legroom. Then again, you might not because they made the seats skinnier...

rightbyte 4y ago
Ye well I agree that it has become cheaper to fly. I just don't think it is a 1:1 between the ticket price tag change and the value for me change.

johnnymorgan 4y ago

Or factor in the loss of purchasing power, along with the shrinkflation. I love when people adjust for inflation in these debates but don't factor in purchasing power of the dollar comparison. The ticket price is more expensive now, than 1979.

rightbyte 4y ago
Ye there should be a 10 column table with: Gallons of milk in my grocery store. Lbs of potatoes of X species. Feet of 2 by 4s to X spec. sq inch of flat in Dallas. Hours worked for a white collar clerk. Etc. "Inflation adjusted" dollars are not quality adjusted really. In the same way a economy class ticket is a worse experience than in the 90s, e.g. a chicken is a worse chicken too.

idopmstuff 4y ago

That's the point, though - what you get has diminished, but the trade is that you pay substantially less. If you want more, you can still pay for premium economy or business. It's better to enable people with less money to fly, while still letting people get a better experience if they want to spend more.

lucas_membrane 4y ago

Not to mention order of magnitude reduction of the amount of fresh air per passenger allowed to enter the cabin. Not to mention that the flight attendants used to be registered nurses; now they might not even know how to work the oxygen bottles.