We wrote about the ‘golden age of flying’ well before the pandemic hit, and you had another level of fear and anxiety to deal with.
But this post seems too ironic to not re-share. So let’s first just compare some of these elaborate, extravagant, and downright stress-free moments with today’s reality:
Ahh…. What a difference fifty years makes, huh? Indeed, outside of a $30,000 first class flight to Dubai, today’s reality is quite different than it used to be. And the craziest part is, if you had asked someone from 1960 what they thought flying in the year 2020 would be like, we bet they’d have quite a rosy view of the future.
While it might be painful, here’s what that golden age really did look like:
Vintage Everyday gives us a glimpse into these earlier days of flying, and it’s definitely a time capsule. We see in-plane bars, elaborate meal services, and exquisite uniforms on flight attendants.
Flying in the 1950s and 60s was quite comfortable and luxurious, with spacious cabins, elegant service, and a sense of excitement that you’d be hard pressed to find these days.
Continental 747 Ponape Lounge, Airline Attendant
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines
DC-6 Mainliner United Airlines 48
Delta Airlines Convair 880
Delta Airlines
Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) Electra Jet
[…] They look so happy but they weren’t, really. People of that era were all drunk nearly all the time and/or on amphetamines, and in private, at home, they bickered bitterly over the slightest thing. Life was jagged. All the food did taste better, though, even airplane food, because they were young. The older you get, the more everything tastes like cardboard, and the more salt and spices you have to put in it to make you want it at all. (via NagOnTheLake) https://mossandfog.com/the-golden-age-of-flying/ […]
Great insight.
And the demographics of those who flew were decidedly, massively skewed to the wealthy, as there were not 10s of thousands of flights daily, 737s held 100 and not 170, and flew to other regional airports, and not transcontinental, nor to Hawaii. And the price was thus unaffordable to the average person. Now a trip to from the USA or Canada to Europe, or vice-versa, costs
a week’s pay for the lowest paid in our societies.