Why Does Flying Suck so Much? | Robert Reich
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- Опубликовано: 5 сен 2023
- Smaller seats. Less legroom.
Out of control fees for in-flight meals, checked bags, or even carry-ons.
Charging us $25 to print a boarding pass!
Why does flying suck so much these days?
It has a lot to do with power - and how greed has overtaken our entire economy.
I genuinely don't understand how not paying flight attendants isn't wage theft. I was shocked when I learned that they are not paid for sooooo much work.
Mexicans will do these jobs for a lot less.
It is indeed wage theft, and existing laws need to be both enforced better and beefed up.
@@zoyadulzura7490 Mexicans will do it for a lot less. These people should be fired and replaced with illegal aliens.
It is ABSOLUTELY wage theft. So ridiculous that the airlines continue to get away with it.
...I totally agree with you on this one. Just some FYI stuff, Delta just recently started paying the flight attendants at the time of boarding. The American Airlines flight attendants are asking for this in their new contract, which I think they will get. So it's happening, albeit slowly.
The root cause, of everything terrible in the world, is ALWAYS GREED!
It’s called capitalism - all about greed and self-gain… One and the same!
And hate.
@@nickiemcnichols5397 And many times, the hate is rooted in greed...because Immigrants are taking our jobs, right?
It's simple capitalism. And thanks to Reagan for deregulation it's now a nightmare.
Capitalism incentives greed, making a world where the ones who are greedy are the ones who succeed
Great summary of what's wrong with not only airlines, but the whole economy.
I was raised as an "airline brat." (Both my parents worked for United Airlines.)
Mid 60's through the 90's
Until the 80's, when we traveled on their flight benefits as a family, we had to wear our best clothes as a matter of employee policy.
In the early days, flying was sexy - and fun!
The 747-400 was amazing! Once in flight, the "stuards" would come by and ask if we kids would like to take a look at the upstairs lounge - and occasionally even visit the pilots in the cockpit (*sigh - pre 9/11*)
Generally speaking, there was lots of room, pillows, blankets, meals, a movie and even a deck of playing cards (and toys!) on request. Heck, the attendants would just offer them.
All of it free!
And we would occasionally laugh at the meals, but they were really great (by comparison to today). United even maintained its own food service division back then.
These days, I take the train if I have a choice.
Thanks for the reminder, the train is a great idea! And I just watched an interview with Pete Buttegieg, and he has already made significant, needed, positive corrections and upgrades to the system, with many more ahead for 2024.
*stewards
@livinginthenow
Oh!
Totally forgot to say why I put "stuards" in quotes. When I was a kid, that's what I thought they were saying. LOL
I'm always sorry that I never got to fly on a Pan Am 747 with the piano bar upstairs. Pan Am to me was the queen of the sky. I took a class trip to Idlewild Airport in early 1963 when I was a kid. We toured the Pan Am terminal and a Boeing 707. We had to wear booties on our shoes and every boy got a junior pilot pin (which I lost, damn it!) and the girls got junior stewardess pins. We all of us got a Pan Am coloring book, which I still have. I was 8 years old on that trip.
I also recall the gold painted with blue trim 4 engine propellor plane that was lettered for Panagra, a merger between Pan Am and the Grace shipping company for service to South America as I later learned.
Sucks that you had to get all dressed up for nothing. The only advantage I see nowadays compared to yesteryear is that it is socially acceptable to dress as you will. So much more comfortable.
"Try to be a little nicer to service workers and your fellow passengers - on planes and in life. After all, we're all on this journey together." -- Robert Reich
Amen to that Professor.
True dat, to bad most of those running the show are greedy bastards.
He is truly an uplifting force in today's dark times.
Most service workers an passengers are horrible people.
I flew to NYC on a TAM (Brazilian airline) flight in Dec 2014. The flight attendants were like something out of a horror movie. It was the worst flying experience in my life, and I had flown quite a lot, in all sorts of companies, even in Soviet era Aeroflot(domestic!). Fortunately, TAM is now defunct, merged into something else; I vowed never to set foot on their planes again.
I notice Robert does not talk about how the regulators do after they take over...
I was an avid flyer for most of my life. i loved flying when i was little, and never dealt with any fear. Even served in the USAF, worked on planes, and got a few rides in them. A few years ago i decided not to fly anymore. Not commercial anyway. it is too expensive, too inconvenient, and now, too unreliable. I'd rather drive or take the train, and I'm not alone. trains that used to be sparsely ridden are now frequently full, and reservations are becoming mandatory, and further in advance.
We need to stop subsidizing profitable corporations (welfare queens), and invest in public transport infrastructure. Amtrak should be everywhere, all the time.
INcluding the subsidies the govt. pays Oil companies, the most profitable ones in history? All the while giving more tax cuts to the rich and then calling for cuts to Soc. Sec.!
Wish it were!
🎯
YES!!! Look at Europe. I got off my plane in Frankfurt, got on a train IN THE AIRPORT, and rode it all the way to Southern ITALY. IN TOTAL COMFORT.
YES, the real welfare queens are big, profitable companies! 😬☹️
The airlines refer to it as 'calculated misery.' So if you're uncomfortable, then you will be willing to pay more for 2 inches of extra legroom. They make you as miserable as possible so that you'll pay for relief. By the time I'm done booking my flight, the total cost is close enough for me to go first class. The cost of a bag, the privilege of being able to choose your seat, the cost of interacting with someone at the ticket counter, the cost of printing the damn ticket, etc. So I scrap the economy ticket and upgrade to first class. Sometimes the cost is about the same.
I am old enough to remember when flying was a pleasure. It was elitest then, and was limited to the richest portion of society. Economy then cost as much as business now (adjusted for inflation) and had about the same services. Low cost airlines undercut the majors by offering lower levels of support. The majors had to respond in kind to keep their customers. The result today is that a much larger proportion of society flies, and most of them receive less attention. Robert Reich is free to start his own airline and “do it right” but I suspect that he finds it much more profitable to pontificate.
I assume you are buying a first class ticket from now on. For you it may make sense, for others not. That's what is great about capitalism. We have choices. maybe not the choices we want, but still we have choice, which is better than having to pay an overpriced ticket because the government decides to regulate the heck out of airlines.
@@DonaldMains While I would like to buy a first class ticket on Singapore Airlines and try out a suite, sadly I can’t afford it! But basic economy is now for children and short, thin people without luggage. I am neither a child nor thin. Premium economy is for taller people (more legroom) but still favors skinny people. It does allow one suitcase in many places. Business class was designed for normal people which includes the mildly overweight and people who have two pieces of luggage. Anyone who doesn’t fit the design standards has to move up a class or two, pay a fee, or suffer.
Never fill out the questionnaires they send. That is just what they use to calculate even less leg room.
Not that many people complained, hah tighten the screws.
Sounds regulated, a time low cost discounted air lines didn't exist. Unregulated kicked in during the 70s, I think.
I knew it! When we have flown on foreign airlines, we’ve been treated so well it’s amazing! In flight meals, leg room, a little kindness…
Really not so true. Foreign airlines which I fly regularly are also trying to gouge customers in any way they can.
false generalization. Foreign airlines are not better than US flag carriers.
Emirates, is always a pleasure to fly long haul . I think it is the customers too. They have more money and a good job back in your country, college education,, everyone just seems nicer on International flights.
It depends how much the foreign carrier (and by extension its country) relies on cross-customs travel. Middle East and SE Asia ones tend to top the list; ones that cater to a large domestic customer base like China, India, Russia, or EU carriers aren't so impressive.
I recently flew on Contour Airlines, a small company with government subsidies to run less-serviced routes. It was a plane with only 30 seats, and was the only option for Paducah, KY, to the hub of Charlotte, but the price was $69 each way. Flight attendants were funny and laid back but professional, and they had a full basket of all kinds of snacks offered to everyone, as well as drink service. The flight back was delayed because of a mechanical issue, and they were the only airline at that airport, with two daily runs to Charlotte -- that was it. If they didn't fix the plane, no one was going anywhere. We didn't have to ask what was going on -- they kept us fully informed the whole time, ordered pizza for everyone, plus snacks and drinks in the tiny airport. Then they pointed out to us that they were test flying the plane after the repair, and we watched them take off and land three times, before they were okay with making the flight. They were so good to us on there, and it was a great experience.
Good to hear.
Sounds like the airline industry needs to take a few pages out of Contour Airlines’ book.!
@@seanharley6432 Sounds like the Airline Industry conglomerates need to be broken up into small companies that are able to be held accountable
@@axelolsson341 ...I think that's exactly the point Mr. Reich is making. The tricky thing is that it's hard to get airlines to break up while at the same time promote a free market system.
With regards to Contour, I realize most people here are not familiar with this, so I'd like to share a little info. Contour is a part 135 charter airline. So, they don't have to follow the more strict safety rules like the part 121 major airlines do. They can hire pilot with less hours of experience, fly them longer, give them less rest and pay them much much less. An average FO (First Officer) makes around $36,000 a year at Contour. So, as a commercial airline pilot of over 24 years, I respectfully reply to you and would say, I really hope we don't turn into a bunch of small part 135 charter carriers.
Having said that, I would agree that the service the major airlines give is at times unacceptable and needs to change.
@@BGCflyer My comment was in response to someone saying that airlines should follow Contour. I was drawing attention to the fact that Airline's wont willingly do so, therefore they need to be broken up a-la Reich's point
Had a horror story just last month. I’m a manual wheelchair user, which makes flying challenging at the best of times. For those of you who don’t know, the Americans with disabilities act (ADA) mandates that there be a place onboard to stow a wheelchair, called a wheelchair closet, for planes above 30 seats I think. I was boarding a cross country flight on a plane with 200 seats, so there was indeed a wheelchair closet. I was a good disabled person and informed the airline that I was coming and would need the closet ahead of time and was told that it would be available to me, but when I got to the edge of the jet bridge a flight attendant took one look at me and said “Sorry, you’re going to need to gate check your chair because it won’t fit.” Now, I knew this was BS. I’d literally made the same flight on the same aircraft type six days previous and had stowed my chair in the cabin with no issues. Another important piece of information here is that my chair costs $3400 and wasn’t covered by insurance. The idea of it being manhandled in any way scares the crap out of me, and I’m not leaving my _crucial mobility device_ in the hands of baggage workers unless I absolutely have to.
So I looked at this flight attendant, and looked at the wheelchair closet. It was, of course, full of flight crew luggage as it tends to be whenever there’s not a chair onboard. Ah. Mystery solved. I pointed at the closet (which had a wheelchair symbol on it) and said “This one?” She said yes and that she was sure I wouldn’t fit. I said “I made this flight a week ago on another aircraft of the exact same type, and it fit. Let me show you.” I stood up (yes I can stand, not all wheelchair users are paralyzed, I myself have a neurodegenerative disease) and began disassembling my chair. There was some grumbling while the luggage was removed, and I stowed all of my parts except for my seat cushion neatly in the closet. When I finished, I looked at the sour faced flight attendant, smiled, and thanked her for accommodating me while seething internally.
What happened to me should never happen, but it happens to wheelchair users and mobility device users all the time. Flight crew, of course, need a place to stow their stuff, and the airlines need to do a better job at cabin design to make sure disabled people and hardworking employees alike all have space, not even to mention regular passengers.
I'm glad that you realize that it's the airline's not accommodating their employees that is the root of the problem.
No wheelchair is stored in the cabin compartment.
@@lucky-gh5ox Yes they are.
@@armamentarmedarm1699 nope
This is indeed a horror story and happens FAR too often. What if your chair were damaged?? How would they accommodate you then?
The airlines and aircraft designers/outfitters all need to do a better job in accommodating the humans that are in planes. I’m so glad you stood up for yourself. Hopefully you made the road a little easier for the next person that comes along.
I flew for TWA in the 70's and 80's . We weren't paid after we checked in initially for the trip. After the flight took off we were on the clock. The pay was very good, benefits were excellent, especially dental. (got to keep the smile looking good). There was a cap on hours flow per month/ per trip. Management was strict about weight, make up etc. No extreme hairdos. I didn't have any complaints about the job. I did struggle with jet lag flying overseas for a while. I was a zombie till i figured out what worked for me. You couldn't get me on a flight nowadays free.
No, you were paid by block time. Now tell me what block time is . . .
Lack of competition.
I retired from American Airlines five years ago. When I was a kid a coast to coast ticket cost a months pay of the average worker. Deregulation led to a price war to the point where it is cheaper to fly than to drive.
Then when they canned all the travel agents everyone searched the internet. The number one factor in making a ticket choice is price. That’s why they have all those add on fees. Your $30 ticket to Vegas winds up costing $300 in additional fees and the public just goes along with it.
I don’t fly anywhere anymore even though I can do it for free. That’s how bad the industry has become.
Excellent video and commentary on the state of our country. UNION FOREVER! I will never cross a picket line. Keep up the good work.
AA was a company I used to take pride in being one of their customers. Unfortunately that has eroded over the years. They can take a flying leap now
@@grandmaida7819 If the high fuel cost is an issue, then how can the profit keeps going up every year, regardless of the fuel cost? What company was closed because of the strike? That's pure BS.
Why does the public just take this kind of behavior by the airlines, or any industry? That question has baffled me.
@@LCamp-cr7fs Watch The video about HSBC that "Frontline" did a piece on. Also read up regarding the massive levels of criminal fraud that has occurred repeatedly at Wells Fargo. That will give you the scoop (answer to your question). At least, in part.
@@LCamp-cr7fs the public demanded it. Everyone wants a Rolls Royce at a Costco Hyundai price. Before Saint Reagan and the deregulation of everything, the government set the prices according to what the airlines said it cost to operate. Thanks to the robber barons of the 1980s prices dropped to less than it cost to do business. Each company tried to starve out the competition. Now there’s no competition or any reason to compete. They all charge the same for the same crap service. When I was a kid, comedians used to joke about lousy airline food. Now there’s no food. There was even one company entertaining the idea of pay toilets! The same company that will charge you for water unless you say you need it to take your medicine.
The fact that he was able to summarize so much of what’s wrong with our economy and by extension our society right now in six minutes is amazing. Pay attention to those solutions he suggested and support businesses that are taking a better approach wherever you can.
Allowing the wealthy to bust our unions was the final proof that our grandparents were just much, much more world-wise than we are.
I honestly was getting so angry that I had to take a break from watching this.
Yet he's fundamentally wrong.
The reason airlines suck is because people go for the cheapest seat. Period. Airlines have worked this out and changed behaviour to suit.
But of course, pointing out that people are making poor choices isn't a great way to be popular - not if you can blame some other "big business" person.
Beware of people peddling easy solutions to hard problems.
@@joshduthie3401 Well, if you are on a budget, you have to get to a funeral quick smart, and the plane is the quickest way to get there, you certainly don't want the added expense of an expensive seat...of course you are going to get the cheapest seat possible. If the airline wants to upgrade you in the meantime...airline can do it at the airline's expense. You just want to get to the hotel interstate or a loved one's home, freshen up and go the funeral and then first flight home possible. That's what I had to do. Those who can afford more expensive seats, leave the cheapies for we pensioners. You are grieving for the departed as it is, don't want anymore misery added to the journey.
Oh wow, I could join you on this video. I'm 45, flown a lot both commercial and small planes as a kid, and a lot of commercial planes as an adult. Flying used to be almost like the ultimate version of "the customer is always right", which has morphed into them yelling at us and dragging us off planes. I get that this is a two way street, but it went from being a king to being cattle, something has to give. I now have only flown twice in a decade, meanwhile I have over a hundred flights in the previous decade. Some of that is work, but my wife and I now actively avoid trips that would require flight.
Our wonderful Congress who are owned by lobbies YES ABSOLUTELY owned. Bought and sold!
Reagan broke the air traffic controllers union and replaced them with new people. In the past, air traffic control had a steady flow of new people coming in and old people retiring, so they had a mix of experience levels that the new people could learn from. By hiring new people all at once, Reagan created an age gap. People are retiring in droves with lots of new people coming in, who won't be able to learn from those who are more experienced. Yet another reason why Reagan was a disaster.
I wondered about that age gap when all those controllers got fired. I was in a National Guard aviation unit (helicopters) at the time, and several of our ATCs left for other parts of the country to work at civilian airports. Nice folks, but I don't know if I'd trust them to manage swarms of airliners.
One of the few people who deserved Alzheimer's.
Airline deregulation was a good thing. Before deregulation, governments created a lot of concentration and inefficiency by regulating who was allowed to fly where and for what fare price. Deregulation made flying much more affordable to more people. Air fares have dropped precipitously in real terms since the 1970s. Sure, flying was more glamorous back then, but it was also a lot more expensive, less safe, and less accessible to the masses.
Thank God for Ronald Reagan
I would have lost it. God bless you.
As a flight attendant myself for a big airline , I want to thank you for this lovely message on being nicer to each other. Yup...in my airlines , we haven't seen a pay raise in 13 yrs..and just think how much money the company is saving by not paying us during boarding , which is the hardest part of the job.
Thank you for this wonderful video. 💖
Simple question... why do you and your fellow employees put up with it?
@rhymereason3449 Of course not , but because we have a union , it is a topic that has to be threaded carefully through the right channels , in the right way. I can only say that my company has been amongst one of few that recently picketed at several airport locations. We had plenty of coverage by the news.
I was not aware you guys were not getting paid for boarding. That is completely ridiculous. You guys are helping some of us load our carry ons into the overhead bin. Another issue I have is why do the airlines seat front to back instead of back to front like they did years ago. You clearly have noticed the traffic jams in the aisle when the second to last group (4) boards and go back to their seats only to turn back toward the front to find an available overhead bin for the carryon. Latam Airlines does the back to front boarding and they start one hour early.
@darlinnikki9514 I completely agree 💯 with you in EVERYTHING. We asked several times to change the boarding to the " pandemic " levels when they used to board back to front. Once the flying went bck to normal, my airline changed back to the original way: front to back which according to all of us flight attendants makes zero zero zero sense . Hence creating jams in the aft cabin and annoyed passengers stuck with their suitcases.
Also there is another myth : we can no longer place your suitcase in overheads compartments. Of course we help little old ladies or minors travelling by themselves but placing and lifting bags cause too many injuries to flight attendants.
Thank you for your comment. It was such a great observation under so many levels.
Not paying you at boarding and deplaning should be illegal - you are expected to assist passengers and, I'm betting, ready the plane again when everyone is off. That's *working*, and airlines shouldn't be allowed to pretend that's not part of your job.
So well put! We all have horror stories. I live in Montreal, which was the home of the only Grand Prix Race in North America for decades. One year I travelled on business from Toronto to Montreal on Grand Prix Friday! What a mistake. With overbooking and near riots at the airport. The poor counter staff were trying to rebook people. Despite having purchased an assigned seat, I could not get on my 5pm flight and ended up getting home at 1am! I do not understand how selling a seat to 2 people is not fraud!!!!
Consolidated Airlines. True words were never spoken Robert. Thank you for this excellent video. I'm 64 years old and I remember the days when people would dress up just to fly. And more importantly, people were civilized to each other.
I was flying from San Jose to Omaha with a layover in Denver. During the layover in Denver Southwest delayed my flight by 1 hour pushing the original departure time of 5pm to 6pm. They continued to delay the flight by 1 hour until midnight when they cancelled it completely, saying the next flight they could get me on to Omaha would be in 2 days (well after the family reunion I was trying to get to). I decided to just fly back to San Jose because I was going to miss the family reunion regardless of what I did. I found a flight back to San Jose that night (which I had to pay for) and was assured that my bags would make it back to the airport I flew out of. I get back to San Jose and they have lost my bags. At this point it is around 2am and there is no one in the airport to talk to about it so I decide to drive home and have them ship my bags to me. There is a mixup at the long term parking because they didn't expect me back so soon and it takes them an hour to find my car and it is a 1.5 hour drive home. I get home at 4:30am and go to sleep. I call Southwest in the morning and explain what had happened. They tell me it will be $100 to ship my bags back to me and deny any requests for compensation aside from 4 drink vouchers and no apology. In the end I ended up spending almost 3 times what I had paid for the original tickets, I didn't get to my family reunion and had one of the worst days of my life.
That is horrible what you had to go through.
wow. I've never flown Southwest. never will after your story.
Moral of the story- never fly Southwest. Or United.
I played the delayed flight game with United at Chicago
O Hare.
After a few hours, I just took the train back to my son's place.
If they don't have an airplane, they should just tell you so.
I missed a day at work and the pay I will never see .
That absolutely sucks.
You're so correct. In a 42 year career I lived it. Started with the phone company, left after divestiture. Went to work for a regional airline that was merged twice. Started my own shop that I sold after nine years and it was merged. Retired from one of the four telecoms left after several more mergers and acquisitions. Glad to be out of the game. P.S., being a union steward saved me on several occasions.
I bet. Many was the time I wished for a Union.
You sold a company that was merged! Don't you see you admitted to being part of the problem!
I agree with everything you said. My last flights on Southwest and then Spirit were really quite miserable, particularly Spirit. They didn't even offer a drink of water and everything was an extra cost.
Fortunately I flew Delta recently and, while the snacks were smaller, at least there were some and I didn't have to pay extra for my carryon bag.
- I think he sold it and it was merged after he''d done so.. Likely a franchise of some sort?
He sold it.. What they did with it once they owned it has nothing to do with him.
He doesn't control the company after the sale - so what you're trying to do is called "shaming the little guy, for the sins of the big guy"... Like trying to blame product suppliers for Walmart being anticompetitive.
Go back to your troll bridge and stomp those tiny feet some more.
That’s just another reason why I prefer Amtrak. It may in most cases be the only choice for train travel in the US, but it’s not trying to pay stockholders, so the money goes into the operation. No charge for up to two checked bags, two carry-on bags plus a personal item allowed. Plenty of leg room, wider seats, nicely reclining seats, and leg and toe rests in coach. Of course, the main reasons are the scenery and the potential for chatting with others.
Spot on, Amtrak a convivial and pleasant way to travel.
Also, no games with ticket prices on Amtrak. Everyone pays the same price.
This summer, my wife and I were flying from Aruba to Asheville with a layover in Atlanta. An afternoon thunderstorm caused such a problem for the airline that our flight was canceled. We had to drop hundreds of dollars on cab and hotel accommodations which they wouldn’t reimburse us for because the delay was “weather related” despite other planes flying out that night. Long story short, they booked us on a second flight the next day which also got cancelled and we ended up driving the final leg of the trip. It took an additional 2 days after that to get our bags. Did we get any money refunded? Nope.
Try getting travel insurance or a credit card that covers that. Airlines cannot control the weather!!!
@@johnp139 They can't control the weather, but they often use weather as an excuse while other planes are going in and out of the airport before and after your flight was cancelled. I've had that happen as well.
On my trip home for Xmas to see my wife, the flight from Iceland (where there's an active Volcano & gusty winds regularly up to 100km/hr) to Amsterdam left on time & arrived early. My connecting flight from Amsterdam to Vienna was cancelled "because bad weather"...... if it was so bad, how did I fly in? & how is bad weather (nowhere near as windy or any volcanoes) in Holland such a problem? Compensation for my 22hr journey - denied.... because hey "airlines can't control the weather!"
These days I will literally drive up to a couple of days to get somewhere instead of flying, because in the end, it's not more expensive, or much slower, or less convenient. I have my car at my destination, I have my own time schedule, & I have my own comfort.... more importantly I have my sanity! No security checks, squashy seats, screaming kids & lame excuses from ridiculously rich corporations.....bad weather my a#%*!
Airlines have no control over the weather. Had you been patient they would have complied with the contract of carriage. You elected to default on the contract, not the carrier.
@@buckmurdock2500 if you'd bothered to read the comment in its entirety, other flights took off & landed (as in my case) airlines just use it as an excuse so they don't have to pay. Why do you feel the need to justify the airlines actions? You a shareholder? Or just work directly? Either way, that's part of the problem, & as ol' mate says, this lot have us arguing with one another so the focus stays away from their abuse of the system & others. The system is broken..... I really hope we are truly stuck in the Matrix
I think the biggest factor, across the entire economy, is the shareholder driven fantasy of exponential growth.
Bingo
Yes. And politicians who think the same. The Economy shouldn't simply be measured by wealth alone and should really be an overall measure of the quality of life of citizens (happiness, accessibility to good and cheap health-care, sustainability, median incomes, homes, access to green spaces in cities or wilderness areas outside, cost of quality food, etc.).
How does that play out? The airlines don't get exponential growth, so what evidence is there that they base anything on that as an expectation?
Ding, ding, ding!
It's not just shareholders, I don't think.
House owners, for example, expect property values to also go up in value exponentially, to be their retirement funds. The house my late parents bought for less than $30k about 50 years ago is now assessed at about $4M. Aaaand, how many today can afford that? What about 50 years hence?
I absolutely HATE flying. I am old enough to remember when it was a pleasure to fly. Now it's just downright PAINFUL.
It’s not that bad, just BE PREPARED and do some homework!!!!
No amount of "homework" will increase leg room
This is why I refuse to fly most of the time. It has to be a necessity or I cannot....
Thank you Robert for addressing a pet peeve of mine. I am old enough to remember a better flying experience on so many levels. Recently on my last flight, a TSA agent was yelling at 2 older people who were not doing something properly. It was very uncomfortable to hear her yelling and I could relate to the elders moving too slowly. Flying used to be an adventure, now it’s a nightmare. You have hit the nail on its head! THANK YOU!
I appreciate that he uses something that people almost universally hate (flying) to point out similar problems in our entire economy.
And he's pointing out the diversion that business owners are doing when trying to explain away the higher prices for everything. All businesses seem to have attended the same seminars.
Given the choice between an Airline flight or going to a rock fight, I'll take the rock fight any day.
Makes an excellent point understandable to all. Perfect.
You hate flying through the sky like a mythical god because you're spoiled rotten.
My family and I were going on vacation and had tickets to fly into a regional airport. We had one stop to change planes. Got off the plane in Charlotte and found that the second leg was cancelled for no apparent reason. I asked the guy at the service desk what we were supposed to do and he held up his hands and shrugged. We had to rent a car and drive the last leg. They wouldn’t give us a refund or pay for the rental car, just gave us a voucher for a future flight.
I wonder if they ever got exposed for having a foul reason for cancelling that connecting flight. By not revealing any discernible reason, they must've had something worse to hide.
they absolutely owe you a refund for a cancelled flight, contact a lawyer and they will see dollar signs in their eyes
We had this happen with Frontier. We couldn't get home from vacation because they delayed the flight for 8 hours...and then just cancelled it...and we were traveling with children! I couldn't believe it! They tried to give me a voucher also and I wrote a letter to their disputes and said that I would open a new dispute with a case number every freakin' day until they refunded my money. It only took a week.
In Europe they would have to pay for any purchases related to your delay.
Sounds like a scene from Planes, Trains & Automobiles 😮
We are so desperate for re-regulation of industry, blocking further mergers and stipulating what private industry can do with government monies...for a start. Thanks, Dr. R. for your valuable videos to raise awareness.
Yeah, cause re- regulation always works so well. How's New York City's attempt to regulate the housing market going?
Nobody is desperate for re-regulation. Only clowns who have no clue of what regulation means spout off this nonsense.
Thanks so much for these facts. I was just telling my family recently that I didn’t understand why flying was so pleasant when I was younger and is a TERRIBLE experience nowadays. It all comes down to the twin ogres: greed ( airlines) and complacency ( customers). I’m going to follow your excellent suggestions about stopping both.
The corporate greed is so sad. It’s soul-sucking!😣😩😡
It's called capitalism.
@@karlabritfeld7104 Yes, correct. I just wish there was a system that combined the best elements of capitalism & socialism.
there is, demsoc is just too much equality for these greedy nutcases to handle, they love a world where money can buy them anything they want @@l.m.stewart
Business is a cost-plus endeavour. Only Government gets to run with deficits forever.
I worked as a flight attendant from 1990 through 2002 (and then took a leave of absence before I separated from the company in 2007). It was my dream job as a little girl, and I am eternally grateful for the many years of global travel I was able to do. It's a different job now, and I don't miss it at all, but I sure do miss the way it was.
I miss those fancy boarding passes that came with their own sleeve. Today's airline tickets are just printed receipts.
We all miss the way it was. Loved it in 1962. Avoid it like the plague today.
I flew once as a kid pre-9/11, I recall it being a pretty relaxed chill time. Flying now, fuck that I'll take Amtrak and make a day of it.
@@RapsCalorie , so only the continental United States for you then?
Remember that small claims court can be a legitimate consumer option. I took United to small claims and won. They have to pay their lawyers more than the actual dispute often.
Wow! That’s amazing! What did you take them to court over?
Flying the way Robbie refers to was in a highly subsidized industry back then. There was an entity called the CAB which he fails to mention that compensated airlines for unprofitable routes among other things helping to insure their bottom line. Ronnie Reagan did away with that and forced airlines to sink or swim. All of this ultimately creating our current state of airline travel.
My family was flying back from a trip to see relatives. The day before our return flight, I checked us in and confirmed the four of us were seated together and printed our boarding passes. The next morning, I went to the airline website to check that our flight was on time and see what terminal we were flying out of and discovered they had moved my family from our confirmed seats and stuck us in single seats all over the plane. My oldest is disabled and my youngest was around 7 at the time. I called the airline and they said "Sorry, we had to change planes and the seat configuration is different." I asked why they made ZERO attempt to seat a family with minor children who were all on the same reservation together and they didn't care at all. I went to the ticket counter at the airport and got the same "Whatever..." response. My husband said "We're just going to have to ask people on the plane if they will swap seats." So frustrating. And if you read Reddit subs dedicated to travel and flying, they are full of angry stories about "entitled Karens" who need to swap seats to be next to their children. Other people are blaming the families being "too cheap to buy adjacent seats" or "too stupid to plan ahead" when 99% of the time it's the airline's fault for making last minute switcheroo and forcing passengers to work out a solution.
And aside from the inconvenience and other issues related to being separated from your small children, you often have to pay a higher fare for the "right" to select your seat. So you select a window or an aisle seat and pay $50 more for your ticket. They then cancel your flight or switch planes and stick you in a middle seat with no credit or refund of the premium you paid for seat selection. How is that not theft? What other business could get away with this?
Yup! This has happened to my family before as well! They switched to a different plane with fewer seats, so no one got the seats they paid extra for and everyone is angry, trying to switch seats because basically every party got split up. Luckily everyone was mad at the airline for that one not each other, so we all tried to work together to make sure everyone got a seat set up similar to what they paid for.
Cancel flight and catch another or take a train I have never had a problem on a train ,put people want to get there now .that is the problem
@wendwllhickey6426 Many places in the US aren't serviced by a reliable passenger train. I live about 2 hours from Chicago, and my family was traveling to Colorado. Changing our airline tickets to an Amtrak trip would have meant swapping a 2 hour flight for a train journey that took more than a day and didn't actually stop at our final destination. The sad fact is that most trips in North America require air travel.
It's like what happened at Boeing. Boeing used to be an engineering company that focused on excellent engineering, quality manufacturing and passenger safety. The workers were listened to and they had a say on how the company was run. Then the executives, MBA's, beancounters, financiers, business types and investors took over and turned it into an ATM machine. It's the same thing and its happening all over.
My father-in-law was a Boeing engineer in the late '70's and '80's and proud of it! Whenever my wife and I flew she was happy to be on a Boeing plane, but if we were on an Airbus she'd sneer, "ugh...we're on an Airbutt!" 😂 When Boeing moved it's corporate headquarters from Seattle to Chicago, moved construction elsewhere and the recent scandal with the 737 Max she says her dad is spinning in his grave right now. It all comes down to Corporate heads bowing to shareholders...
When we can my wife and I fly British Air, they've mostly taken pretty good care of us (there are hiccups now and then, but hey whaddaya gonna do?) but as we get older (and arthritis etc gets worse) we endeavor to upgrade out of coach to the next level to at least get a few more inches of legroom, at least when we can afford it!
And AT&T. And 3M. And Google.
As an engineer, it's so disheartening. I just want to make solid products for our users.
And then two planes fell out the sky because of it
You left out the attorneys, which are generally an expense, but applied correctly can be turned into a net a$$et.
Are you trying to imply that during some golden age there were NO executives, MBA's, beancounters, financiers, business types and investors?
As a former airline employee, I love our new sprinter van. The problems we're seeing now on aircraft is absurd, yet it's a reflection of how quickly our society has declined. We no longer have any grace, tolerance or especially patience for others. Quick to anger over things that are truly minor. When flying so many no longer respect others personal space or have normal decency. People do bizarre things that you'd never hear of before, like the woman that wore 10 layers of clothes to avoid a checked bag fee. We've turned the fantasy of flight into a flying herd of dimwits too often these days
Thanks Bob, for speaking important truths in a way that's fun to hear and easy to understand! I'll be sharing your videos!
Robert Reich is a national treasure. We need HIM on cable "news" 24/7.
He sure was wrong about NAFTA. LOL!!!
Exactly!
@@seanharley6432 I loved listening to his apology. I wonder if that is available on You-Tube? I'll go look..
If you've never been wrong about anything raise your hand.
@@SmallwoodMedia Obama deported 3 million illegal aliens.
I remember this one time when I was traveling home on leave. I got upgraded to first class because I was in uniform. I sat in the seats and thought, " wow this is pretty nice." A gentleman across from me noticed that I was impressed and asked if it was my first time in first class. I told him it was, and he said economy class used to be this. That first class had all these other luxuries that you can't get anymore. Ahh the Pan Am golden days I guess.
I got upgraded to business class for free in 1997 because my flight was delayed 2 hours due to weather at another airport. Business class all the way to Frankfurt Germany from San Francisco!...sat next to the CEO of Greenpeace International. We had a great conversation most of the way, so much so that the time flew by...and the food was fantastic and the stewardesses kept delivering those mini bottles of wine to me without me having to ask once!
Not likely. No seats that covert into beds. The meals were decent, and you had real flatware, glasses and dishes. And lots of legroom plus, Americans weren't so fat!
Nowadays a lot of what they pass onto customers as "first class" is a joke. So they have an even more posh class with made up foo foo fancy sounding names and only on certain routes.
@@drdr76I have been a conscientious supporter of Greenpeace for its gutsy environmental activism. Now I wonder how much of my donated money is going to CEO salary/salaries there. Is flying first- or business-class a legitimate perq or not?
What a fabulous, accurate, informative video. It's a plesure to have found your channel and to be a new subscriber.
It's crazy to me that a flight attendant has to be at the airport like an hour before their flight, deal with 30-45 minutes of boarding passengers and don't get paid until the doors close. I do agree that people need to be kinder to each other. Flying is stressful for everyone these days.
Only they DO!!!! They get paid a salary ON TOP OF THE FLIGHT HOURS!!!!
@@johnp139 wrong
They don’t even get paid when the door closes, it’s after that when the parking brake releases!😅
I think the underlying issue is that we have allowed sociopaths to rise through the corporate ranks to become the executives of nearly every corporation. They also occupy most political positions, which is why the laws support the corporate greed and lack of empathy. This will not change until we, as a people, decide that empathy has value and that ruthlessness does not. I'm not holding my breath for this to happen in my lifetime...
Not everyone is or should be equal. Equality is a lie told to fool people into trusting the system.
Airlines were tightly regulated so they had to operate routes that were necessary but not profitable in order to get profitable routes. Most airlines ran at a loss, but a regular and predictable loss, so they were owned by businesses that were very profitable and needed to balance those profits against losses in order to actually keep more of their profits. Reagan undid all that.
Airline deregulation occurred during the Carter administration.
Airlines were deregulated under Jimmy Carter in 1978.
In the States these days, I always travel by train. Yes it's slower and old fashioned, however, it is a very pleasant and convivial way to travel. You get to meet a lot of interesting people and see a lot of interesting places along the way. That more than makes up for the time.
I do the same! I live in NYC and my family are all in Florida and I always take the train. It's about a 24 hour trip, not bad. Gives me time to unwind after leaving the city and I arrive relaxed.
I didn't know flight attendants don't get paid during the boarding process. Wow that is terrible. I remember being delayed on the tarmac for 2 hours. Yikes
How is tht legal?
@@TravelingToday-yu9gvbecause government regulation is bad and evil, haven’t you heard?
I though the same thing! How can that be legal? They're clearly working. Why would their union allow that?
Why haven't the flight attendants' unions filed a joint grievance to the DOL and the NLRB? If an FA is in uniform and on the airliner, they are on the job. They should be getting paid, whether it's moving or not.
We can thank Ronald Reagan for encouraging monopolies.
And busting Unions in general...and our response? Near nothing for decades...sad.
And union busting, and the whole “trickle down” myth, and…..
Absolutely
Yeah he laid off air traffic controllers. I remember that!! Jerk.
Reagan was another 💩 president. Big corporations are turning this country into a war zone with its 'us vs them' racketeering.
What would we do without your pointed reporting?
Your're priceless.
You have a lot of good videos out there and I show some of them to my friends to educate them. Thank you for educating us the economics of life.
Stuck on the tarmac in Vegas for hours, the heat on the plane was getting unbearable, nerves were fraying. I’m a bad flyer as it is due to phobia, this was my worst case scenario nightmare. They pack you in like sardines, and give you peanuts, and wonder why people are mad.
They won't even hand us peanuts anymore! If we're lucky it's only $6 for a can of soda and $4 for a tiny bag of purple potato chips. 😡
You get peanuts?!?
They could at least pack you in like peanuts 🥜 🥜 and give you sardines 🐠🐟
Delta? The same happened with me in Atlanta, I had a panic attack because the unbearable heat. They are criminals.
Airlines don’t control tarmac delays. That is ATC, controlled by the FAA. The FAA is an administration, which means they answer to…the President. Complain to Joe, not your captain.
Speaking for all flight attendants; thank you for making this. I fly charter and this includes military as well. Our company is doing amazingly well, but it doesn’t trickle down to us or the pilots. The pilots still have some thing better than we do. After 30 years in the air, I’m grateful for the experiences, but saddened at what has happened to our industry.
Not sure who you fly with but if you are flying legacy airlines then I'm sure you and the pilots will be well compensated. Not sure many industries pay someone $500K/year to pilot a vehicle that has autopilot and with the lowest accident rate and fatality rate of all transportation options.
@@JW-cx8tg unfortunately, I don’t fly with the legacy airlines. I only commute on them. Flying military contracts, and we are nowhere near that pay scale.
@@JW-cx8tg Either you're only an idiot or you have vulgar habit of interrogating people.
@@merrilew Quit. Not being harsh but quit and go corporate. I flew Mil contract for about a year then woke up one day. Now Im making almost triple, working half the days and staying in WAAAAy nicer hotels. MIL/Gov contract flight pay very well. You company is screwing you over.
Why should it trickle down to you? Rich people put in all of the hard work. They should get all of the reward.
I wish there were more journalists or just people in general were like you, Robert.
I enjoyed flying in the 1970s. Then everything got crowded and flying across country became complicated where you'd have to change planes twice. As far as the experience, when I could afford it I was able to fly first class twice. That was great. Anything less than first class is an ordeal. Airports have not been upgraded in 50 years. Airplanes have doors at the front and rear but gates are only designed to enter the front door of the plane. If both doors were used then entering and exiting planes would be quick and easy. But, no.....
I have chosen not to fly anymore! The experience is so dehumanizing that I just can't bear the discomfort anymore. I live in the southwest of this country and will drive to New York for the Thanksgiving holidays rather than face another degrading experience of a holiday crowd in an airport and an overcrowded plane! This country is full of wonderful people and they are very willing to be kind to strangers when you meet them in their natural habitat. When you get crammed into a too-small seat next to them the experience is very different. Thank you Robert for putting together such an amusing and to-the-point video!
I agree. I've probably flown over 2,000 plane flights. In the 1990s, I was elite on 4 airlines. Yet I now choose not to fly if at all possible. I drive a car I love at my own pace. Fewer hassles (except sometimes all area hotels sell out). I've gotten to love truck stops which are fancier than airport shops or airline service. So I can actually eat while traveling without having to worry about hours open. So much better and free-er feeling!
My family doesn't get it. Even after I picked one up at 3:30 am after multiple delays. Or others had cancellations, sometimes without flights the next day. I got sick of the bad customer lines where you can write a book before rebooking a flight.
The last time I was on a plane was 2011. I've flown a lot in the past and I used to enjoy it, but I'm hoping to never need to fly again.
Good luck on your drive from KY to Italy.
Yes, there are consequences associated with each and every decision we make. This is true for me and it true for the airline executives. Without doubt if I wanted to go to Italy my choice would make that difficult. The point is that commercial air travel has become so ugly and uncomfortable that I am willing to make other adjustments to avoid it. If you are in the business of selling seats on a plane that's not what you want to hear your former customers say!
@@JW-cx8tg Never heard of ships? They still exist.
I hate to distract from the message about consolidation, but I just want to say this video is phenomenally well-produced. It looks very clean, you and your team make these topics super entertaining.
I agree! It really makes people keep watching it!!
But he’s also 100% wrong.
So you want entertainment not education? Thats maybe part of the american Problem. The best Entertainer gets the most views.
So you want entertainment not education? Thats maybe part of the american Problem. The best Entertainer gets the most views.
What an excellent video ❤! When I lived in the USA, i used to fly on Delta, TWA, etc. but now, I never travel with any American airline. I am lucky because I live in Japan. When I go overseas, my airline of choice is Singapore Airlines. Excellent service! Failing that, I will fly on either ANA or Japan Airlines, also great, but not as wonderful as Singapore. Last year I also flew Lufthansa in Europe. I have never ever encountered the horrible service and lack of customer courtesy I see on RUclips, that American airlines have. Just awful and unbelievable! This video explains why the airline service industry in the USA is in the pits! Thank you for this!
Thank you for your insight and explanation of our economic situation.
Unchecked greed
American Airlines flat out stole $200. I accidentally booked a flight for October instead of September (senior moment) and didn’t realize the mistake until a couple of days laterlater. I cancelled and rebooked but no refund. When I called the customer service they said “you agreed to the terms and conditions. Since you didn’t notice the mistake within 24 hours there is no refund.” But I caught the mistake more than a month from when it was (accidentally) scheduled How is that not illegal? They have more than a month to fill the seat (and probably will)
The problem with computers. If you had been able to go to a travel agency this wouldn't have happened.
Ridiculous, especially given that you bought a ticket for your intended day!
That's illegal in several states. There airlines have to give you 24 hrs to change your mind or fix a problem. They won't tell you, but check with your states AG's office.
Never,ever fly american- just terrible ,delays,cancelations,break downs,lies and on and on.......
These people are there to win and keep your money even if you want to reschedule. That is why they have regular tickets and flexible tickets. Flexible tickets are more expensive, but that is why they give you the luxury of cancelling and rescheduling for a later date as long as you use the voucher they issue for you to use. Regular tickets don’t have that and they were refundable for a while during the pandemic until they weren’t. Trust me I know. What I wish is for tickets being refundable regardless of ticket prices. Only then I consider traveling comfortably and cancel if something arises that may ruin my trip.
I'm 60. In my younger years, I remember being treated like royalty by the airline staff. Even in the coach section.
Do you remember, "Hi, I'm Jackie. Fly me to Miami?" Those were the days.
Ooh la la...@@Selena-T629
Great opening, Robert! So well explained. Thank you! The kabuki theater of travel 😨
Not only does it suck. The workers hate working there now. Any time companies have stocks, they start to suck.
When I was a kid there was actual food on planes. I was invited to tour the cockpit and even sat in the pilot's chair. Today it's like taking the Greyhound, I have to show up hours early to mitigate the airport's lack of organization, and even though I'm an honorably separated Army veteran, *every single time I walk into an airport* for the last twenty years, I get treated like a potential terrorist by someone with four weeks of education in security who looks like they couldn't get hired at the cable company.
I don't fly anymore. Amtrak is a better deal and far less stressful. Yeah, I mean, when I travel for work, they have to pay me for two more days.. but they're saving a ton of money on the airline tickets I don't buy anymore. If that's what the big airline corporations' CEOs wanted, fine. Maybe they invest their dividends in Amtrak stock instead of their own companies to avoid the SEC's attention.
What really hits me about all of this is how much it changed in half a lifetime. I hear stories about what flying was like in the fifties and wonder if they're understated so people won't immediately reject them as lies.
Amen!! I too am an Amtrak fan...so relaxing!!
The Train is *CHILL.*
If you have serious-level “social phobia,” dealing with the TSA is like facing the Nazi *Secret State Police* - the *Gestapo.*
Then there’s the absolute crush of people, their noise…
Riding Amtrak, in contrast, was *quiet* and *peaceful* from start to finish. Stayed in the Roomette almost the whole time - in May, 2021.
Oh, and the Virus was a lot stronger and more troublesome then, too. I wasn’t that worried about getting it myself, but I was *really* worried about catching it and *THEN* giving it to my aged father.
Flying in the fifties was a whole different experience than today. There were no security lines, you had plenty of leg room, the food was excellent, the service was wonderful, everyone was on their best behavior, and everyone dressed up. Air travel in the fifties was an elegant experience. Today, air travel is just a Greyhound bus ride in the sky.
@@gorgthesalty Emphasis on " everyone and EVERYWHERE". So you could not ride in a car (cuz your parents smoked), or a train or a bus.
I am 51 and think flying was great up until 9/11 happened in 2001. Security wasn't so stressful and I never got felt up, you could greet your loved ones right at the gate as they exited, there were no fees for bags, and meals were still given if I remember correctly, without paying fees. Now it's just on international fees you get nice food and wine but the cost is astronomical.
This is SPOT ON! And it reminds me of another pet peeve. These days, many services (Dr.s appt, on-line or phone purchases, etc.) are followed by surveys asking me to rate my experience. I've even seen automated machines in public restrooms asking me to push a button to rate cleanliness, etc. What they really mean is "help us dominate the grossly underpaid worker who helped you." There is NEVER a question about the CEO or the company's policies. I either give a great rating or no rating at all. I don't work for the personnel department and I'm not going to help them keep their employees in line. They can do their own dirty work!
For employed physicians part of our compensation is tied to those survey responses. So if the small percentage who fill out the survey don't rate us excellent, then we are paid less. It's a way for them to decrease our pay and blame us because we didn't satisfy the patient (even though they may have been put off by something totally unrelated to our service)
@@tbillroth Just as I suspected. I'm sorry it's set up this way -- I've had excellent doctors with less-than-stellar personalities. Medical care isn't a popularity contest -- it should be about outcomes, only. Hang in there!
@@tbillroth You mean like instances where a tweaker is faking something to try to get a prescription for opiod pain medicine and you don't give him one?
And you're told every time to give the highest score.
One thing that irritates me is something of a similar subject. Reviews of things on Amazon. If a review is a legitimate review, good. But when there's a 1 star review for something and the person said "the mailman dropped my package", it's like how in the hell is that the fault of the product or the company? I HATE that type of thing.
Excellent, Robert!
I'm an Aussie & have never flown with our national carrier QANTAS & never will. I have used their budget airline Jetstar & will never fly with them again either. When I go to see my wife & kids in the Philippines I fly Singapore Airlines. 30kg free checked baggage, 7kg carry on & meals, drinks & a hot towel before takeoff. All this in economy class. I have to have a layover in Changi Airport as I fly from Darwin. Not that much of a hassle as Changi Airport has plenty of areas where you can lay down & relax & sleep. Best airline & best airport in the world as far as I'm concerned. 😊😊😊😊
I remember choosing an empty row in the back of the Red Eye and stretching-out for a nap as we flew across the continent. Flying used to be fun. For the last couple of decades, I've been driving my business trips instead of flying whenever possible; the time is often similar and I can carry my pocket knife, stretch, eat, and _whatever,_ pretty much when I want and in far more comfort.
Agreed. Unless I have to cross an ocean, I'll drive. I don't care how long it takes.
Oh, the pocket knife. I had a 3" long nail file in a cute little red plastic sheath, which lived in my cosmetic bag. It was confiscated when I went to Australia in '12, and now lives in Hong Kong airport or environs.
Maybe if people band together and get loud enough, we can bring back plane experiences like that.
You also forgot to mention the fact that there is no competitive ground. Options for travel such as high speed rail or a quality bus service.
I get to go to Europe for about a month every year. Great accessible and inexpensive trains and buses. I book my flights as far in advance as the airlines allows.. Having nearly 7 decades of commercial flight as a passenger, I remember the "way it used to be."
I'd love to see a separate video on that.
@zoyadulzura7490 That would not be a bad idea. Then, we can see how Americans pay too much for travel versus Europeans.
United Airlines and American Airlines both canceled flights a few years back at my different business trips and cost me my job. They have no mercy.
This video format is sharable!
The one time I missed a flight was with United. I showed up to the airport more than 2 hours before the flight was scheduled to take off, but when I got to the airport, there was a huge line to check bags and *nobody* at the counter. After about 45 minutes, a single counter opened and by the time I got in the front, I had missed my flight.
I literally missed a flight because United was so severely understaffed that it took over 2 hours to check a bag.
One of the many reasons I never fly United anymore!
Hmmm...seems like everyone else got on their flight fine. If an airline is having this issue with so many pax missing due to TSA or check in issues then they would hold the flight. You probably should plan better.
He didn't say he was the only one to miss the flight. @@JW-cx8tg
People just don't want to work anymore.
@@JW-cx8tg Seriously? How early should I arrive before a flight? As it was, I arrived 45 minutes before the checkin counter even opened. The airport wasn't even busy that day -- just United's understaffed baggage check.
In 2017 I had occasion to travel across the United States from Boston to visit Seattle, and I found I had a choice: air or rail. To fly to Seattle I could pay $1,700.00 for a first-class ticket on Delta, and deal with all the issues you describe so well. Or I could pay $1,700.00 for a first class ticket on AmTrak's Empire Builder line, and spend three days relaxing in a private compartment reading, thinking, or just watching America roll by, all while enjoying three delicious (free) meals a day, plus cheap and plentiful coffee and booze in the bar car, chatting with my fellow passengers. As I wasn't in any particular hurry, the choice was pretty obvious to me. The trip went more smoothly than any airline flight I've ever been on, going all the way back to my first flight in 1976. The only passenger-related incident was when the conductor halted the train in the middle of the night at a whistle stop somewhere in the deep wilds of Montana to put someone off, for the offense of smoking in the stairwell of the bar car. At this point I think the only justification for flying is either a) you're in a big hurry, or b) you're a masochist.
Or c) there is no train to where you're going. I'd love to be wrong, but as far as I know there is no train from Alaska to the lower 48 states. My husband and I both have elderly parents in Alaska. We have to take a 3 hour shuttle from our mid size city to a larger city, then a flight from there to Alaska. My husband is retired, and would love to take a train instead.
Your travel experience sounds lovely, and I hope to have one like it sometime. But it won't be going back home to visit my dad :(
@@OneTraveller Hmm. Turns out you're absolutely right: while there seems to be plenty of rail travel within Alaska, there is in fact no through route from the lower forty-eight. I blame the airlines. 😁
the conductor must have been a real tyrant lmao
@@aceous99 You have no idea. Being the nerd I am, I'd brought along a scanner set to the railroad's radio channels, so I got to listen to the whole conversation between the conductor and the engineer. After it was all over the conductor came on the PA system and explained what had happened, and he was definitely in "You will respect mah authoritah!" mode. 🤣
I blame the mountains in the way. Building a rail line would be expensive, and there just aren't many people living in Alaska. @@TimTheTerrible
I admire this guy’s positive outlook. Especially when you look back like 20-30 years ago when he was literally preaching and warning what the country would turn into if we didn’t take what he said serious. And literally everything he warned came into fruition. Most people would be frustrated but he continues to just keep laying out the facts calmly.
I am so used to flying being a nightmare, but last summer I flew Turkish Airlines - it almost made me cry. WITH JOY! It was almost like it was in the good old days. At first we were looking for the menu in the seat pocket, but there were none. So we settled with not getting anything to eat and drink on the three hour flight.
But then this wonder happened: the super friendly crew served food, beverages, desert, cake, coffee, tea - all very, very high quality, REAL cutlery, no plastic. No extra cost. It was AMAZING.
I highly recommend Turkish Airlines.
Canadian. The federal government cracked down on poor customer service here. When I flew home from the US, in January/23,my flight was cancelled. I was rebooked the following day. Air Canada reimbursed me for my hotel and meals, plus they paid me$1000. for the inconvenience ( approximately $100/ hour, if the delay is caused by the airline, and is 3 hours or more).
We flew Air Canada recently and it was OK. Just OK. Our flight had a layover in Toronto that should have been 2 hours, but that flight was cancelled and our next leg was changed to a 8 hour layover in the airport. I spent more time in the Toronto Airport than I did flying the Atlantic Ocean, but I got there and back home OK. Service and food were good, on-time performance -- not so much.
@@eaglechawks3933 we had company in NS this summer. His return flight stopped briefly in Toronto. There is just barely enough time to catch the second leg to Florida. Unfortunately, the NS- Toronto flight was slightly late, so he couldn’t make his connection. He rushed, but couldn’t get aboard the flight. He could see the plane still parked, but the access was shut off. That was not his fault, since his flight arrived late in Toronto due to winds.
Airlines have no business scheduling flights so close together it requires a favourable wind, and running, and customs being efficient and in a good mood in order for a customer to make their next flight. This guy knows the airport, and was highly motivated to catch his To- Tampa flight, as he had one more day of vacation at home before going back to work.
Through no fault of his own, he couldn’t make the flight. Not only was he stuck in To because his incoming flight was incapable of landing ion time, but the counter person was hateful to him, told him he had time to make the flight, when he clearly didn’t, and told him so in a condescending, very rude manner.
He was not compensated. He was lectured. Oh, he was given 2 vouchers for food, which had to be used in the airport. So in his case, the airline was as unreasonable as ever.
It took less than eight hours to fly from Amsterdam to Newark with United. Then it took me more than eight hours to get to my final destination of Rochester NY, because of several screwups in domestic air travel. Next time I'll take the train to Rochester.
I remember when people used to dress up for flights, and the 747 (I think) had an upstairs lounge you could walk to and walk around in. Then they filled it with paid seats, then with more and smaller paid seats.
Flying did improve in some ways, as they used to let people smoke away in the plane, and sold people more cigarettes in flight….so everyone’s clothes reeked of cigarettes after flying.
Very informative and in a way very comforting I like your message. be polite to each other and especially the Service people
Can confirm that we’re not imagining the seat shrinkage.
Last year I flew on an old plane (How old? The armrests had ASHTRAYS) and it was like being in freaking business class. I’m a bigger guy, and other than the rare occasions I’ve lucked out on an upgrade it was the first time I’d been comfortable on a plane in decades
Consider a diet.
@@byteme9718Consider getting some friends.
Big can mean tall, you a-hole@@byteme9718
Business class/first class are similar to what economy used to be. The way we are treated by the aviation industry is egregious.
I've been flying since 1969, and flew a lot from the 70's into the millennium........and yes, it was wonderful!!! And in all those years, I might add, I never saw bad behavior, or anyone wearing pajamas! I won't go near an airport now.
I'm with you!!!!!
tee shirts shorts & flip flops ....
@@direwolf6234 TRUE
It was a different time back then when airfares started at what we pay for business class today, so of course it was more pleasant with the lack of plebes.
So you preferred the riff raff, including minorities, being priced out of a seat...okay.
Boarding is the most stressful time for flight attendants! Crazy!
Its common for more arguments to occur when folks become more tightly packed. Its normal and predictable. Personal space is important.
Retired airline pilot here .. I take Amtrak nowadays. I have yet to encounter a single delay. I don’t have to go through the TSA checkpoint, I eat good food in a dining car like a restaurant, I have a private room and there is a shower available if I want.
Write your congressional reps and demand more train service!
You may not have ever had any issues with Amtrak, but my train was so delayed once that I missed my connecting train even though I had a 5 HOUR gap between the two trains! Got stuck in DC for 20 hours waiting for the next connection to come and had to fight to not be charged double for it since it wasn't my fault I missed the second train and I refused to pay for a new ticket because the damn train was delayed!
Here on the west coast, the freight companies own the tracks and Amtrak is often delayed. As I understand it, if the Amtrak train is even 1 minute delayed, it loses its priority for use of the track and will have to pull over any time a freight train is coming. On a recent trip to Klamath Falls OR, I thought we were going to arrive on time, but then we had to pull over for 30 minutes because a freight train was loading cars.
I still prefer traveling by train when I can, but it would be even better without having to pull over and wait on nearly every trip of an hour or more. And if we could get high speed rail ....
Trains in Europe are AWESOME! Trains here in Australia, not so much. And yes, our airlines are greedy jerks too.
@@lauracoutinho5478 all the more reason to demand change from politicians
I like what you said about corporate monopolies getting us to blame each other for the excesses of rich companies and individuals. I also see people blame themselves for doing poorly in a rigged economy. I picture a sheltered workshop system that would benefit 3 populations: seniors who can’t afford to retire, the disabled who need special accommodations to be able to work, and single parents. All three of these groups could thrive (and by extension, increase our GDP, productivity, and individual prosperity). We need something like a sheltered workshop system (funded by the 15% corporate minimum tax), to insert prosperity at the bottom of the socioeconomic pyramid, and balance the poverty Out of society. Thank you for shining the light in the distorted places. 💙🦋☮️
I remember back in the early 1980’s when flying was never a problem. There was plenty of room. I last flew in 2016 and the seats were tight and we were jam packed. A lot of changes and all for the worst.
I worked for Boeing in commercial aviation manufacturing and remember in the early 2000’s when the airlines began requesting that planes be built with smaller leg room and all the seat tracks were moved up to make room for one more aisle, then two, then three. They torture passengers to put in three more rows of seats and honestly, they are now working on stand up seats for the serious economy tickets. It’s obscene and they won’t stop at that. I won’t be surprised if they offer cheap tickets to fly strapped down on the wing or in the cargo hold with the luggage. The government is going to have to decide whether they will let this continue because these greedy airlines won’t stop.
I've been flying for 60 years. It's been a gradual fall from the heights of greatness punctuated with sudden dives. There is only one thing better about airplanes now than 60 years ago, and that is "no smoking".
No Smoking is a huge improvement!!!!
Canadian here. Not a Reagan fan. He destroyed PATCO. At the time, his decision looked brave. NOPE. It took 15 years for the industry to recover proper staffing of competent airline controllers.
My airline horror story: Back in 2007, when I was a broke 19-year-old, I needed to make my way from New England back to my home in the Pacific Northwest on US Airways, with a stopover in Philadelphia. My flight to PHL was uneventful, but the flight out of PHL was overbooked...by quite a bit. They asked for volunteers to go on a flight the next morning, offering hotel and travel vouchers. But because I was broke and had a terrible job, I tried to stay on that flight so I could be at work the next day. I'm guessing that a lot of people were in a similar situation, because about a half hour later, I heard my name along with about 10 others over the PA. Lo and behold, I was kicked off the flight and put on the one the next morning. When I asked for my hotel and travel vouchers, they said they didn't have to provide them because I didn't volunteer to be bumped. I slept on the terminal floor that night because I literally didn't have enough money for a hotel room that day.
By some miracle, I actually made it back to my home airport with maybe about an hour to spare before I had to clock in for work. I was stinky, tired, and I got an earful from the general manager because "I obviously pulled an all-nighter and didn't look professional." I tried tirelessly to get some kind of compensation from US Airways, but they went and got gobbled up by American a little while later. Good fkuicgn riddance. (I haven't flown American in well over a decade, but I can't imagine that they treat their passengers any better.)
at least in europe the airlines HAVE to provide a hotel and catering in that case..
The US governemnt needs to step up here
How the F is this even legal, they basically stole the ticket you paid for.
I would have never got off the flight without knowing what hotel I'm staying at.
PS I also slept in a terminal but for different reasons. It's bad.
@@rochester212 They bumped me before boarding. I had no choice.
I used to fly every three weeks for work from 97 to 2018 and I remember when they didn't charge for checking bags or a least one bag. Then 9/11 happened and slowly throughout the years things began to change like the things you mentioned in your video. One of the things that pissed me off the most was that sometimes I would get to the airport several hours early for my flight and in the past they would allow you to change your flight to an earlier departure time if there were empty seats available at the time. But they eventually changed that and wanted to charge you to change to an earlier departure time even if the flight had empty seats available. It never made sense to me that I was willing to fill an empty seat on their plane so that they could have more seats available on a later flight.
After 9/11 the so-called "Patriot Act" came out in no time. That thing on paper is around 7 inches of stacked paper. Nobody can work that fast. The USA is sh!t now. "Freedom" my ass!
It’s revenue management and profit maximization by software algorithms. The airline is gambling that it can sell those empty seats at the last minute for a much higher price and it has the historical data and computing tools to estimate how much extra money they can make with those decisions that seem absurd.
RR is absolutely right. We've been convinced that 'competition' makes for a better and richer consumer experience. Meantime billionaires utilize a tax code that is rife with loopholes such that the "One Percent" have never been so rich. Down with 'trusts'.
❤❤❤ grateful that you continue to teach us and most of all remind us.
Would love to see gov't action on hidden fees. Last month scheduling flights for my upcoming trip, it wasn't until the checkout page in an obscure barely visible place it highlighted that there was a separate charge for carry-on bag (not checked, carry on) and then I had to dig around their website to see how much it was: $45 for a carry-on bag each way which made it more expensive than the alternative and wasted a ton of my time. Needless to say, I went with the alternative both to save a bit and on principle.
Same nightmare trying to book hotels too--hidden fees galore making it take hours to find what's actually a deal and what's a scam in disguise looking to pounce an extra $100+ on you when you check in. It's just ridiculous. Robbing us all blind through obfuscation.
You're fkkin kidding me, right?
The worst I had recently was an American Airlines flight being delayed almost two and a half hours when I had a connection. There were 11 people on the same flight with the same connection and even though (most) people let us off first and we ran through the airport we all missed the flight.
What was infuriating was that the connection was also American Airlines, so they knew we were coming, but also that the connecting flight left 10 minutes early. The gate attendants and customer service tried to tell me the flight did not leave early but I took pictures of the time they closed the door which was shown at the gate. We had to wait 11 hours for the next flight and “the best they could do” was one meal voucher per guest for the food court. It was a $10 credit which is barely enough to get a coffee in airports.
I will never fly American again.
Thank you so much sir. Your'e so correct and onpoint about this all.
Ah! Yes! Airlines consolidations.
I remember well on "This Week with David Brinkley" Sunday morning news program on ABC-TV [US], back in the 1990s when the president of American Airlines [AA] was interviewed.
That prez told the TV audience, in a closing comment, that the traveling public would be better served if AA grew larger with acquiring other airlines.
I recall that very well, as my impression, as well as my mom that also viewed the TV show was, in cynical sarcasm: 'Yeah! Sure!'
Thanks Bob! The world is a better place with you keeping us informed.
Thank you for relaying that 8” of length & 2” of width has been removed. On my flight back to the U.S. from Switzerland, I literally had to keep walking down the aisle & do stretches near the lavatory the entire flight because the cramped seating was so unbearable, especially if you’re tall.
The 2 inches of width statement is misleading. On narrow-body jets (like the Boeing 737), seat widths are the same as they were in the 1950s. The 737 has the exact same fuselage width as the 727 and the 707 (which entered service in 1958) before it. All of these aircraft have the same 3+3 seating configuration, and the same average seat width. You can even look up seating charts from the 1960s for comparison.
On the other hand, seats on some widebody aircraft (777, 787) do vary by up to 1.5 inches in width. For example, an economy seat is 18.5 inches wide on a United 767, but only 17.1 inches wide on their 777s and 787s.
@@rosco0101except the exit row of a A321 tons of space but they have those arm rest tables and the hip room is tight on those. It is true they have used the same fuselage width across the 707,727, and 737 I bet the seat framework has been reused for decades. Ever get on a plane that still has blanked off ashtrays? Was quite common until a little while ago.
Thank the Lord it was a 2 aisle plane. You are not allowed to do that on single aisle narrowbody planes. I have the same problem and usually wait until the crowd have deplaned before moving to take my baggage out of the overheads and make my way in one movement to the exit and out towards the gate. I cannot stand for long periods due to knee trouble.
💯 agree. My last trip was so bad, even though I love to travel the thought of 2 hr flights crammed in between two people unable to move detours me to fly.
Consumers are faced with tiered services, from concert tickets to airline seats, etc etc