I think what really killed "personal aviation" was the interstate highway system and the advent of extremely fast efficient cheap cars. In the 1950s, there was

I think what really killed "personal aviation" was the interstate highway system and the advent of extremely fast efficient cheap cars. In the 1950s, there was a dream that millions of average people would have their own personal planes for commutes and vacation because a 500 mile road trip was an epic days long journey to be made on unreliable roads with manual transmissions at 45 mph. But the equation just doesn't make sense anymore, even ignoring cost. A 500 mile trip in a private plane would take about 4 hours, or 7 on the highway today, with all the logistical savings of avoiding airports and having ground transportation at your destination.