I've sometimes thought it would be fun to fly first class for the extra room.
But then I realised that if you offered me 100 bucks to stand in a line for you for 2 hours, I'd do it.
So why would I spend 500 bucks just to have a little more room sitting for a couple of hours?
I guess I'm just cheap, but I don't think I'd want to spend 20 bucks more for a plane flight just to have an extra 2 inches of leg room. Of course, I'm pretty short so leg room isn't really an issue for me, I'm more concerned about space between seats in the aisles because I am overweight.
Once, many years ago, I was "bumped" to 1st class for a red-eye overseas flight. Maybe because I was a serviceman, I dunno how or by whom. My first indication was the ticket counter lady going "Oh.. flying first class today, are we?" For the next hour or so, I had a s$#t eating grin that was difficult to conceal. I'm 6'2", and the seating arrangements are a lot better than cattle-class. Once, I was seated next to a rather large Hawaiian, who by rights ought to have bought two seats rather than one.
>>I guess I'm just cheap, but I don't think I'd want to spend 20 bucks more for a plane flight just to have an extra 2 inches of leg room.<<
You just nailed the problem here. The industry is mind-bogglingly competitive. People choose flights on single digit dollar differences in price. Sure, a couple of people are willing to pay extra for the room, but it would kill profitability, which is already razor thin.