"The U.S. airline industry, Sitaraman points out, got more than $50 billion in government bailouts during the pandemic because it provides an essential service. But it is not being required by policymakers to deliver adequate service to the American public. At the core of its dysfunction, he argues, is that we treat flying like a luxury instead of what it is: basic, critical infrastructure for a big country in a fast-moving age.
Airline industry leaders often defend the status quo by arguing that a free market creates the best conditions and lowest fares for passengers. But a truly competitive marketplace for air travel has not emerged since deregulation, given the high barriers to starting an airline and to achieving economies of scale. Instead, we’ve seen decades of bankruptcies and consolidation, as well as ever-shrinking options for reaching smaller U.S. cities.
The FAA or Congress could set a minimum size for legroom in economy-class travel, which has shrunk over time. Although the FAA held a public comment period on the topic in 2022, it has failed to regulate seat size or pitch (the distance between the back of one seat and the one behind it).
Riding fast, far-reaching, on-time trains in Europe and Japan — admittedly, over smaller geographic terrains than in this country — leaves me wondering whether we can still muster the political will to have good things in America.
Indeed. The question is whether Americans will bring our anger at high altitude down to the ground — to demand more of airlines and our political leaders. Consider this, for a start, my official complaint."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/02/08/airlines-flying-misery-solution/