Posted on 09/18/2026 5:18:43 AM PDT by fruser1
A ticket could cost as much as a whole month’s salary; a one-way ticket from Britain to Rome during the golden age would cost the equivalent of £3,000 in today’s money, according to Key Aero.
Pan American World Airways, or Pan Am, introduced the Tourist Class in 1948 – and that's when things really took off (quite literally).
In-flight meals could have up to five courses, with reports of steak and lobster being served not uncommon. Silver service was the norm, with white linen tablecloths and real silverware used.
So, what on earth has happened?
Seat-price competition was key. The deregulation between Britain and Ireland in 1986 brought reductions in fares of more than 50 per cent – and passenger numbers doubled.
As a result, flying became more accessible, cabins became fuller and the path was paved for the introduction of low-cost carriers.
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Personally, I would say the last "good" flight I had was on Pan Am in the 80's. I'd also say (though most would not) that it was better to have smoking on flights under the theory that it kept everybody calm, just like beekeepers use smoke to keep bees from swarming.
I agree today’s travel is like being packed into a sardine can. I took my first flight last year in 50 years from Bismarck to DC. I was looking forward to it. What a disappointment. I was stuck in the middle of three seats where my arms literally touched the guy on both sides. The leg room was pathetic. The meals were fast food junk they simply warmed over.
My last flight decades ago had reclining seats, good side room and excellent meals with little head phones to listen to music or a movie being played. None of that on last year crappy Airbus 320.
I looked forward to the free deck of cards too, back in the day.
The “Golden Age” of air travel continues - in corporate jets.
Lower prices were the result. The real cause is in the story as a throw away - de-regulation.
Regulated airlines couldn’t compete on price, so they competed on service. The last airline to try to compete on service was American “more room throughout coach”. It didn’t work.
All of the legacy US carriers, and most of the non-legacy, either went through bankruptcy or were bought out in the post regulation era.
A lot more people could fly after deregulation. That’s good. It’s the government that screwed up.
Bring in the Third World, become the Third World.
My unusual flying experience is that it wasn’t until my 6th plane/jet flight, that I got to experience a landing, but I did get to experience the years of meals and all the free drinks you could consume, sweet, great looking stewardesses, the airport so glamorous that it was just exciting to be there.
2024 was the last time I was on a plane - 6 hour flight. My strategy is to expect to have the worst experience possible - crying babies, flight-long insipid conversations louder than dinner table volume, flight long reclined seat in my lap, child or adult kicking my seat, piss all over the lav, arguments, fist fights, disgusting fat bodies next to me and a snack and drink I finish before the attendant moves the cart. When I was younger, I would board loaded so I could sleep, but now I just sit there and take it. It’s no different than being in jail or Walmart or at a sporting event. I’d rather take an asswhippin than get on a plane again. The worst of humanity in an aluminum sausage casing.
My life has not always been easy. I take things as they come. I’m a relatively small person and there’s enough room.
Perhaps airlines could have a section with more space and an upgrade fee in a choose your seat webpage. A lot of Americans are quite large.
The main thing that bothers me is how long it takes to get off the plane.
Perhaps airlines should make checking a bag free and limit carry on.
I took a flight in 2024 and the food was generally awful. I flew the same airline in 2025 and the food was better.
“”””I looked forward to the free deck of cards too, back in the day.””””
Wings for the kids to pin on their shirts, America used to be a much warmer and friendly place.
Hence the rise of companies like NetJets, Flexjet, Wheels Up, FlyExclusive, JetOptions, Jet Linx, Airshare, etc.
They are the only way to fly if you can afford it.
I flew a few times a week in the 70s for my job. I could write a book about some of those adventures.
I don’t know if deregulation itself was a bad idea but the fact that the US Congress kept bailing out failed airlines was. It gave the failed airlines an unfair advantage that made it harder for the “good” airlines to fill planes.
Braniff was good then too.
There is an YouTube video about flying in the 1960s. Men in ties and Females in dresses...Dad told us that he in the 1970s wore pants and polo shirts when he flew to his private school...
You can get the better service and more room, easily, by simply paying for First Class.
If you are willing to pay as much as people used to do (in inflation adjusted dollars), you can get the same service, often better.
When the airlines were heavily price controlled and regulated, before 1978, coach class subsidized the premium seats. Now the premium (First Class) seats pay their own way, and constant dollar prices tend to be close to what they were pre-1978.
Yes, but in the Golden Age of flying it was really ONLY for rich people and corporate executives. Which is why you see pictures from the 1960s where all the men are wearing suits. All the women are in dresses. Flying ANYWHERE was too expensive for the common folk.
In the USA it was Southwest that really broke the mold. They and many companies that tried to copy them made it so the average person could fly in the USA. They put a lot of other carriers out of business.
I just flew Jet Blue from Boston to Milan. It was almost half the price of what I paid a couple years ago to go from Boston Rome. The flight left on time. Arrived on time. I even got food and free booze. Plus there is a multimedia screen built into the back of every seat. They give out free headsets. I think WIFI was even free. Most other airlines charge you for all those extras.
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