Once, we were in a golden age of aviation. Everything to do with aviation was better. The seats were comfier, there was more legroom, service was far superior. But now, many argue that we are in a new golden age of aviation. An aviation renaissance, if you will. But are we really in a new golden age of aviation?
Whilst many who lived, and traveled during the (first) golden age of aviation, their answer would be unequivocally “No!” However, for many, especially those who never flew during the (first) golden age of aviation, the answer would be a resounding “Yes!”
We spoke with 15 frequent fliers from both ‘golden ages’ of aviation. We asked about why they believe we are/aren’t in a new golden age of aviation.
Why we aren’t in a new golden age of aviation
The seats are far too small, and have actually become less comfy. We have already discussed the issue of aviation seats, and how they are too small. Unless you have your own private jet, the seats on commercial aircraft are just not fit for purpose, where they were in the original golden age.
Too much fear of aviation. Since September 11th, aviation authorities have changed their outlook on air travel. Everyone that now books and boards a flight is now a suspect. Why do you need that much luggage for that long of a trip? Why are you bringing three IPads when there is only one of you? This never happened during the original golden age of aviation.
Longer queues. Due to the increased fear, there is more security. This has increased the queues in airports all over the world, to a point where some have said that they are not fit for purpose. This opposes the original golden age of aviation, as there were no queues at all!
The meals are terrible! If you’ve been on a commercial flight in the past 15 years, it’s likely that you’ve had at least one in-flight meal. I’m sure we can all agree that these meals are generally terrible! However, during the first golden age of aviation, the meals were cooked in-flight, and are actually better than some private jet meals!
The tray tables are dirty, and horrible. They are often some of the dirtiest places on the entire aircraft– even more so than the toilets! It is generally recommended that you don’t eat from the tables if you can! This is rather odd, as during the original golden age of aviation, meals were served on proper tables- that were actually cleaned!
The service is getting worse and worse. During the original golden age of aviation, service on an aircraft was some of the best you could ever receive. However now, due to a number of external problems such as lay-offs, the service you receive, no matter the class, is worse than it was 50 years ago.
Why we are in a new golden age of aviation
It’s far safer. In 1969, there were 17 aviation accidents and incidents. In 2019, there were 12 aviation incidents, most of which, were due to older aircraft that had not been maintained properly. In the new golden age of aviation, new jets go through rigorous testing to ensure that aviation accidents never happen.
It’s far cheaper. During the original golden age of aviation, ticket prices were insane! The luxury wasn’t in the seats or the meals, but the flying itself! But now, airlines like EasyJet and Ryanair, offer insanely low prices to travelers. Sometimes, these prices are as low as $14.99 one way!
It’s actually more luxurious- as long as you have the money to pay for it! If you fly on airlines such as Emirates, in first class, you get far more amenities than you could ever have gotten, even in the 1950’s/60’s. If you have the money to pay for it, business or first class on any airline is usually a great idea!
It’s much, much faster! Whilst we still aren’t able to fly as fast as Concorde (not yet anyway). We are still flying faster than we were in the 50’s/60’s. Thanks to advancements in jet engines, we are able to fly at the very peak of supersonic travel, without breaking the speed barrier! This is something that just wasn’t capable in the 50’s/60’s.
We fly much, much further! During the first golden age of aviation, you couldn’t get across the US, or get from the UK to Spain, without at least one stopover! Now, we can fly from New York to Sydney, non-stop! That’s 19 hours of pure flying, no stops whatsoever! In the 50’s/60’s, people would’ve thought that you were mad for thinking that we’d be able to do that!
So are we actually in a new golden age of aviation or not?
We are indeed in a new golden age of aviation. More people are flying than ever before. We have more airlines than every before. We have even more luxurious flying, you just need the money to pay for it!
We are miles ahead of where we were 50 years ago in terms of aviation.
We are almost certainly in a new golden age of aviation, we never know that we are in a golden age until it has already passed…
The definition of a golden age is literally “The period when a specified art or activity is at its peak.”
An increase in the number of fliers, safety, distance and speed are all allowing aviation to once again be at its peak!
It’s uncertain how long we will allow this new golden age of aviation to last for. Or if we will even let it end. But we do know that once we increase speed yet again, there may even be a far better new golden age of aviation.
Whilst we are crammed into a budget airline’s economy seats, that certainly take the ‘golden’ out of ‘golden age’. The ecomony service and amenities are far better now than they were 50 years ago!