by Stronghart on March 18th, 2007

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Should the USA re-regulate airlines with an eye to comfort?

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by centrator on March 18th, 2007
Yes. I would enforce more comfortable seating even if it would drive prices up slightly. competition for the lowest price has made millions of air travelers into back weary, exhausted victims of seat torture.

I would not change much else--maybe require better, faster security checking, which cost I'd like to see taken from the airlines and put back to the government where it belongs.
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by Old School on March 18th, 2007
No, the government should re-regulate the airlines in the interest of *safety*.

The ultimate 'discomfort' in air travel is having your plane crash.

http://www.iasa.com.au/folders/Safety_Issues/others/MSG3.html
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- Yes, it should be regulated. I have clicked on the link provided by Old School, and it is, indeed, very enlighening and scary. But do the stats show an increase in crashes?
  
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  by centrator on March 18th, 2007
- centrator - I don't know if crashes are up. But I recently saw a TV documentary (can't find it on the Web) about decreasing standards in aircraft maintenance and inspection. It may be that we're in the "lag" period where the previous standards are keeping the aircraft safe for a time until issues start piling up and the new more lax standards miss them. We'll see...:-P...
  
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  by Old School on March 19th, 2007
- More scary yet.
  
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  by George Dufferin on March 19th, 2007
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by Mirage V2.0 AWOL on March 18th, 2007
As a Libertarian, I cannot support excessive government regulation.

Airline comfort is available for a price.

Even with government standards, if planes carried fewer people, increasing comfort, prices would escalate equitably and we'd be back where we started.
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- Yes, I know about business class and first class. But airlines have become servants to the lowest price instead of to the customer. Your answer is reasonable and I respect it, but I don't think that pricing for the monied is the answer.
  
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  by centrator on March 18th, 2007
- Customers demanded low prices. Capitalism is about options. Airline fares are reasonable now. When regulated by the government, only the wealthy could travel or the business man. When it comes to economy class, all luxuries, even elbow room, are eliminated. If you reduce the number of flyers, prices have to go up. As it is, the airline business is not a very profitable one. Bigger seats will equal higher fares.
  
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  by Mirage V2.0 AWOL on March 19th, 2007
- BTW I love to travel, but air travel what with security and cramped quarters has really curtailed any opional flights for me. For distances less than 500 miles, a bus is much more comfortable and almost as quick.
  
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  by Mirage V2.0 AWOL on March 19th, 2007
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by mcsegeek1 on December 9th, 2007
Well I'm sorry but if the top answer is to "not change much except the seats" this person apparently doesn't fly much.

The airlines lie to us. They steal from, lose and mishandle our belongings. They hold us hostage. They commit acts of gross rudeness and abuse daily. I fly every week and have seen it all.

Yes, when the industry was regulated, flying did cost more money. So what? Not everyone needs to or even should fly. Under regulation, working for an airline was an elite job and the airline employees knew they were special and took great pride in their work. The grossly underpaid and unprofessional airline workers of today are a direct result of an industry that must slash costs in an unregulated environment.

Change only the seating? Please. I would change EVERYTHING. Maybe there could even come a day when flying was fun again.
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