Intra Europe flights before 1992

The only intra-Europe flight I ever took in those days was a C-130 transport plane from Rhein-Main to Lakenheath. RT fare was $13 per person IIRC, but we had to wait two extra days to go home because they had some cargo that needed to go first...

Probably not a useful answer.

I just took public transport, mostly trains and drove. Getting to/from Europe way back when was via Wardair...how service has changed.

But in those days you were using rail passes and jumping any train headed in the right direction. And I still prefer the trains over the discount airlines today. We have used but the first attempt is always the train.

Charter flights were a pretty big deal back then, because the regular fares were cost-prohibitive. There were "bucket shops" in London that sold tickets to popular vacation spots like Greece and Spain. That's how I got to Corfu and Barcelona.

Getting to/from Europe way back when was via Wardair...

Wow. Wardair. Now that's a blast from the past!

I don't think that intra European flights were even on our radar back them. No pun intended. It just wasn't a consideration, given our budget then. It was rail or car. And the Dover ferry from England to France (which still makes me seasick just thinking of it).

I, and everyone else I knew, just used the Eurorail pass. It was wonderful, just hop on any train going anywhere you wanted. It never occurred to us to even check into intra-european flights, it would have been too expensive and extravagant considering that the pass was already paid for. Sorry, can't help you with what the prices would have been back then. I'd be curious to know too!

The European Union did not exist pre-1992. I think the fact that you could go between European cities without having to go through customs/immigration made it easier for the cheaper airlines to exist. I also believe there was additional regulations. I flew Aer Lingus in 1994 and it was the only airline that had regular (not charter) flights going into Ireland from the US.

I just looked up when Ryan started, it was 1985. Their ridership jumped when the European Union opened up.

Prices were set up through international agreements that had caps and especially floors for airfares. As a result, intra-European flying was very expensive compared to the situation today, it was not uncommon for an intra-European ticket (London-Napoli, for instance) to cost half of the prices charged on transatlantic routes. Furthermore, certain countries imposed pernicious obligations on airlines to 'serve' unsustainable markets. Italy was notorious for this, it obliged Alitalia (its own state-owned carrier) to fly unprofitable domestic routes and required that companies interested in flying to Milano and Roma to also provide some flights to other cities like Bologna or Torino.

There were far more medium-speed international trains because of that. Night trains were not the minor niche they are today.

Moreover, charter companies were a hit with the middle and lower-middle classes, because they offered the only really affordable way for Mediterranean vacations with their own resorts and what not.

The idea that a college student on a tight budget could afford round-trip tickets from Madrid to Stockholm for a weekend just to attend a music festival and go back without it being the trip of that stretched his or her finances was totally unheard of.

Of course, that was a financial golden age for pilots and flight attendants, who earned almost twice in real terms as they do know, adjusted for overall wage growth. Companies could only compete on service, more space, better food, not on cheaper prices and loss-leading strategies. It was an era of easy profits for travel agents as well who earned regulated commissions of 9-13% for selling you tickets.

Just as a curiosity, I recently met a couple in their late 70s, lucid and healthy, who really dislike, almost hate the whole idea of "yield managed everything". They are tech savvy-ish (retired university professor and medical doctor), high-cultured but seem to be really uncomfortable with the whole idea that less and less things have an "official price that don't change often" everybody could rely on.

I do remember the "air pass" you could buy back then - unlimited flights for a certain period of time. We considered using one for a trip but opted for the convenience of the trains.

Memories...memories...! Those were the days when DL, US Air, and AA points were really worth something! During that period was flying weekly on business and racking up points that were really worth something! Oldest daughter spent '91-92' in France, points paid for RT to CDG, trip home for Christmas, and DW visit to her for Easter break-was equivilant of Platinum on DL and US in those days, and there was a healthy market selling points for business class to Europe and other destinations. Usually, I was automatically upgraded to First until I semi-retired in 2009 on domestic flights, and twice to business from CDG when they over-booked in 2003. Points were the main thing I used to travel until about '97 or '97 and we went almost annually to Europe.

Hi,

I flew within Europe prior to 1992. The first time was in 1971 going from London LHR to Malmö with a change of planes in Copenhagen. I don't recall the expense, since the rest of the 11 week trip I would be staying in hostels throughout Germany and Vienna and using the 2 month, Youth rail Pass.

I flew the corridor route Hannover to (West) Berlin r/t in 1971, 1973, 1984, 1987, and 1989...did that instead dealing with the commie East German border types. The flights to Berlin from Hannover lasted 35 mins and were not very expensive depending what the $ was to the DM, Hannover and Hamburg to Berlin were the cheapest departure points. Basically, you went from Hannover-Langenhagen to Berlin Tegel. The first time in 1971 I landed at Templehof, all the other times were at Tegel.

I looked at my passport that was in effect during those r/t flights (eight) to and fro (West) Berlin in the 1980s. The passport is stamped each time you landed at Tegel and departed from Tegel. I had forgotten that detail.