Guess what tickets cost in 1989?

[MillauFr]

WOW! Good for you guys!

Airline tickets here in Kansas City have gone through the roof in the last couple of years. It cost me $2,000 for a my family of 4 to fly last March...it use to cost me around $900. The main reason is competition. Southwest came in and knocked everyone else out (for the most part) then they jacked the prices up. The few airlines that fly through KC simply matched SW prices and now we are stuck. If we flew out of LAX or O'Hare, it would be better.

Yes but if you compare airline ticket prices to those back from the 70s and 80s they are far cheaper today adjusted for inflation.

 

[bumbershoot]

Yes but if you compare airline ticket prices to those back from the 70s and 80s they are far cheaper today adjusted for inflation.

Even if you don't adjust in my experience they are cheaper now. $800 round trip TWA SFO to the DC area in 82ish. I won't take a one way trip for $400 domestically. I simply won't do it. And I've always found much much cheaper.

 

[Mr Snappy]

Yes but if you compare airline ticket prices to those back from the 70s and 80s they are far cheaper today adjusted for inflation.

You are correct. The airlines were once regulated and the prices were set by the Govt. When they became de-regulated, the companies were free to compete on price.

This was both good and bad. Good = Prices dropped dramatically. Bad = Service and amenities also dropped dramatically.

In the 70's we lived in England and a trip back to the US was insane. I was a kid at the time, so I don't recall the exact amount, but I do remember that my wealthy grandfather paid for them.

 

[tdhickey]

You are correct. The airlines were once regulated and the prices were set by the Govt. When they became de-regulated, the companies were free to compete on price.

This was both good and bad. Good = Prices dropped dramatically. Bad = Service and amenities also dropped dramatically.

In the 70's we lived in England and a trip back to the US was insane. I was a kid at the time, so I don't recall the exact amount, but I do remember that my wealthy grandfather paid for them.

I have found that competition has actually made service better, but yes amenities have dropped. You now pay $100 less for a flight, but have to pay $10 for a meal with it.

 

[jamalana]

We have been annual passholders since 2002. The current cost for parking alone is almost the same price we used to pay for the Southern California resident annual pass. And that would be for the upper tier SoCal AP since SoCal Select didn't exist back then.

 

[profa]

Wow I went in 1990. drove with college friends to SD for spring break from Seattle. We stopped at DL for 1 day. I probably couldn't have afforded the current price tag. Wow what a bargain.

 

[Mr Snappy]

I have found that competition has actually made service better, but yes amenities have dropped. You now pay $100 less for a flight, but have to pay $10 for a meal with it.

Hmmmm,
You must have exceptional luck, because as a whole, the airline industry is consistantly rated as some of the worst in terms of customer service.

http://www.farecompare.com/news/airline-customer-satisfaction-worse-than-the-cable-company/

 

[tdhickey]

Hmmmm,
You must have exceptional luck, because as a whole, the airline industry is consistantly rated as some of the worst in terms of customer service.

http://www.farecompare.com/news/airline-customer-satisfaction-worse-than-the-cable-company/

I generally fly West Jet and Alaska, so maybe that's it as both have pretty decent customer service.