air travel 2003

The Concorde made its final flight over 20 years ago and supersonic air travel has yet to return. Here's a look back at its incredible history.

• Co-developed by Britain and France, Concorde was the first and only supersonic commercial airliner.
• British Airways operated its final commercial Concorde flight in 2003, ending its 27-year career.
• The supersonic jet remains an icon of modern aviation and a technological marvel.

For a fleeting 30 years during the 20th century, supersonic commercial air travel was a reality. But on October 24, 2003, that era came to an abrupt end.

That day, British Airways operated its last commercial Concorde service from JFK International Airport to London Heathrow. Air France pulled its Concordes from service a few months earlier. Thus, it would be the Concorde's last ever commercial flight in a career that started in January 1976. 

The Anglo-French Concorde was co-developed by BAC, a forerunner of BAE Systems, and Aerospatiale, now a part of Airbus.

The supersonic jet has a storied history.

The Concorde was never the commercial success for which its creators had hoped. Environmental and operational limitations of the Concorde hampered its commercial appeal among airline customers. Only 20 of the planes were ever built, and just 14 of them were production aircraft. The Concorde saw service with only two airlines — Air France and British Airways — on just two routes. 

However, its lack of commercial success doesn't diminish its role as an icon of modern aviation and as a technological marvel, one which plane makers and aerospace startups still talk about replicating.

Over 20 years after its last flight for British Airways, the world is still without a viable form of supersonic passenger service. 

Here's a look back at the awesome history of the Aerospatiale-BAC Concorde supersonic airliner. 

This article was originally published by Benjamin Zhang in October 2018. It was updated by David Slotnick in March 2020 and Talia Lakritz in May 2024.

As soon as Chuck Yeager crossed the sound barrier in 1947, commercial aviation companies began planning to take passengers past Mach 1.

"Mach 1" is the speed of sound, or about 670 miles per hour at 30,000 feet, according to the US Air Force .

On November 29, 1962, the governments of France and Great Britain signed a concord agreement to build a supersonic jetliner, hence the name of the plane that resulted: Concorde.

France and Great Britain each agreed to spend between £75 million and £85 million for the development of the plane, the Associated Press reported.

Together, Aérospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation — predecessors of today's Airbus and BAE Systems — agreed to produce a four-engine, delta-wing supersonic airliner.

At the same time, engineers in the US and the Soviet Union were working on supersonic airliners of their own.

The American Boeing 2707 never made it past the drawing board, while the Soviets' Tupolev TU-144 made it into service but was quickly retired because of performance and safety problems.

As part of the agreement, the Concorde was built in the UK and France.

The above photo shows the Concorde being constructed at a British Aircraft Corporation factory in Bristol, UK, in 1967.

The engine selected to power the Concorde was the Olympus 593 turbojet.

The engine was developed by Rolls-Royce/Bristol Siddeley and Snecma.

The Olympus engine's afterburners gave the Concorde its signature smoky takeoffs.

Each engine produced 38,000 pounds of thrust.

The Concorde had features found on no other Western commercial airliner, such as the double delta wing.

Delta wings get their name from the Greek letter delta, which is shaped like a triangle.

Concorde planes also featured an adjustable drooping nose that gave pilots better visibility on takeoffs and landings.

In normal flight, the nose and visor were raised.

The Concorde was operated by a crew of three: two pilots and a flight engineer.

Flight engineers helped maintain the aircraft's center of gravity, cooling systems, fuel transfers, and other crucial tasks.

In 1967, the Concorde was presented to the public for the first time in Toulouse, France.

Members of the French Army band and Royal Air Force band played for the occasion.

The first Concorde prototype made its maiden flight on March 2, 1969.

The maiden flight lasted 27 minutes, the BBC reported. Its first supersonic flight followed on October 1, 1969.

More than a dozen airlines from around the world placed orders for the jet.

The sleek supersonic jet captivated the public immediately.

But the Concorde soon encountered opposition due to the loud sonic booms that resulted from breaking the sound barrier.

One of the byproducts of supersonic flight is the sonic boom, which can be unpleasant or distressing to those on the ground. As a result, the Concorde was limited to routes over water, with minimal time spent soaring over land.

In addition, residents near airports that were home to the Concorde fleet protested the amount of noise generated by the plane's four massive turbojet engines.

As a result, Concorde flights were further curbed.

Because of environmental and economic concerns stemming from the 1973 oil crisis, most of the Concorde's customers dropped their orders.

This left British Airways and Air France as the plane's only operators.

In total, 20 Concordes were produced, six of which were prototype test planes.

Of the 14 production Concordes, seven entered service with Air France and seven entered service with British Airways.

On January 21, 1976, two Concordes — one from each airline — took off simultaneously to mark the plane's first supersonic passenger flight.

The Air France flight flew to Rio de Janeiro by way of Senegal, while the British Airways plane flew to Bahrain in the Persian Gulf.

Later that year, British Airways started scheduling transatlantic flights between London and New York.

Cruising at more than twice the speed of sound and an altitude of up to 60,000 feet, the Concorde could cross the Atlantic in just three hours — a major improvement over the seven hours it took for a conventional jumbo jet to make the crossing.

In the beginning, the 100-passenger interior was simple and a bit austere.

A display on the jetliner's left bulkhead showed when the plane reached the speed of Mach 2, or twice the speed of sound.

As the clientele became more posh, so did the decor.

Soon, the Concorde became the preferred airborne choice of the rich and famous.

In the 1990s, the Concorde transported celebrities and royal family members.

Frank Sinatra took a Concorde flight to London in 1984 on his way to a charity concert in Monaco.

Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, explored Concorde's flight deck in 1987.

Ferguson earned her private pilot's license in 1987, and was the first woman in the royal family to do so, UPI reported.

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair flew to New York aboard a Concorde in 1997.

Blair flew to New York to attend a special session of the UN General Assembly.

Rock legend Sting served Champagne to Piers Morgan on a Concorde flight.

The two rubbed shoulders on a 2001 press flight.

The Concorde even served as the Queen Elizabeth II's royal transport.

Queen Elizabeth traveled on Concorde planes for trips to Kuwait, Barbados, Saudi Arabia, and the United States from the late 1970s until the Concorde was retired in 2003, according to the Royal Collection Trust .

Every day, the Concorde fleet was stocked with fine Champagne and Beluga caviar.

Concorde also had its own special sets of branded china.

The Concorde had a sparkling safety record until July 25, 2000, when an Air France Concorde burst into flames and crashed shortly after taking off.

The plane caught fire after a blown tire ruptured the Concorde's fuel tanks, and 113 people died in the crash.

All 12 remaining Concordes were immediately grounded.

The planes were retrofitted with stronger fuel tanks.

Though the Concorde fleet returned to service in late 2001, the business never recovered.

By spring of 2003, Air France and British Airways announced their intention to permanently retire the Concorde fleet.

British Airways executives blamed cuts to Wall Street's travel budgets post-9/11 and skyrocketing maintenance costs for its decision to ground the plane, The Guardian reported.

Air France operated its last commercial Concorde flight from New York to Paris on May 31, 2003.

Onlookers waved goodbye to the Concorde as it climbed out of JFK Airport.

British Airways operated its last commercial Concorde flight on October 24, 2003, after it completed a farewell tour of the US.

Over the skies of London, the flight out of New York joined up with two other Concordes. Together, the three supersonic jets celebrated the occasion by landing in succession at Heathrow Airport.

In 27 years of service, British Airways' fleet of Concordes made 50,000 flights and carried more than 2.5 million passengers, according to British Airways .

Now, the Concordes have become museum pieces.

There are three places to see a Concorde on display in the United States: the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum in New York City, the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, and The Museum of Flight in Seattle.

For many, the end of the Concorde represented not just the end of an era, but also a step backward for mankind.

Despite being a financial flop, the Concorde's status as a technological marvel remains unblemished.

We no longer cross the Atlantic at twice the speed of sound. And we may never again.

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TWO YEARS LATER: AIR TRAVEL

TWO YEARS LATER: AIR TRAVEL; In Heavily Secured Airports, Passengers Take Date in Stride

By Nick Madigan

• Sept. 12, 2003

Airports across the country appeared light on passengers and heavy on security today, even by the standards of a post-Sept. 11 world conscious that any airplane loaded with jet fuel is a potential terrorist weapon.

Although airline officials said passenger figures were not yet available, they said the number of flights was normal for the time of year. But to travelers checking in through short lines at ticket counters or feeling the presence of extra police and security officers, it was clear that the day was anything but normal.

''It's amazing how quiet this place is,'' Anya Leeuwen, a marketing executive who was traveling to Albany from Los Angeles with her husband, Jason, and their two children, said as they sat in the Southwest Airlines terminal here. ''My husband said it'll be the best day of the year to fly, and the safest. I mean, look at the security -- there are 10 cops over there, and 10 security guards.''

Michael P. Biagi, who oversees the parking and ground transportation divisions at Los Angeles International Airport, where police officers at an entrance checkpoint made random searches of car trunks this morning, said there was ''an enhanced police presence'' today. ''We're taking every precaution we think is necessary,'' he said.

For many people, the extra security procedures established since the attacks are a burden easily borne. ''It's a good thing they're rigid,'' said Susan Maiorano, who was headed to the University of California, at Berkeley, from Los Angeles for a meeting. ''It might have been a little too loose before.''

Passengers said they welcomed the apparently lighter traffic, finding parking spaces easier and stretching out on planes that normally fly with fuller loads.

''It felt like a private jet,'' said Phil Stamison, a car salesman who flew this morning from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Los Angeles. ''I've never been on a flight with so few people.''

Airline officials said they could not tally the number of passengers who flew today. At Continental Airlines, a spokesman, Rahshan Johnson, said the carrier was running its usual number of flights, while an American Airlines spokesman, Tim Wagner, said that, over all, September bookings were higher than they were at this time last year.

''I think a lot of folks were certainly reflective of the day, but as far as the operations were concerned it was business as usual,'' said Ed Stewart, a spokesman for Southwest Airlines, which operated about 2,800 flights today in the continental United States, normal for after Labor Day.

The reminders of 9/11 at Logan International Airport in Boston, the departure point for the two planes that hit the World Trade Center, were obvious today, underscored by the American flags hanging behind ticket counters to the red, white and blue pins worn by American Airlines employees. At 8:46 a.m., a minute of silence was announced over the airport's public address system. Security checkpoints and ticket counters froze. ''The place went ghost town,'' one American Airlines employee said.

In a room set aside today for employees of American and United Airlines, framed photos of employees who were killed in the attack sat on a table amid flowers and flickering candles.

Passengers said they were not worried about another attack. Charles Hamann, 32, an oboist from Ottawa who was waiting to take an Air Canada flight home from Boston, said he did not believe terrorists would strike airliners again. ''You don't rob a bank that has 10 police officers standing around it,'' he said.

Enda and Lisa Phipps, both 29 and from Dublin, were flying to Las Vegas from Boston for their wedding. ''I was so excited about booking a trip to Las Vegas that I didn't look at the dates, but once I did I was a little hesitant,'' said Ms. Phipps, who already uses her fiancé's last name.

''I think we're more nervous about getting married,'' Mr. Phipps said.

At Hartsfield International Airport in Atlanta, today's lunch hour rush was not as rushed as usual. Parking lots were not filled, and pickup and drop-off lanes were not congested. Few people awaited suitcases in the baggage-claim area, and no lines snaked toward check-in counters.

James Wang, 52, a Houston engineer for the Coca-Cola Company, said he was not nervous about traveling today. ''I'm still mad that they killed innocent people,'' Mr. Wang said, ''but it hasn't changed my life at all.''

At O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Manley Brudvig, 65, who was on his way to Green Bay, Wis., to see a Packers game, said he always felt safe. ''I'm not going to sit at home because somebody flew a plane into a building in New York two years ago,'' he said.

Katie Zezima, Paige Bowers and Jo Napolitano contributed to this article.

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Air Travel Consumer Reports for 2003

The Air Travel Consumer Report is a monthly product of the Department of Transportation's Office of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings. The report is designed to assist consumers with information on the quality of services provided by the airlines. This page links to Reports from 2003.

How the Report is Organized

The report is divided into four sections. These sections deal with flight delays, mishandled baggage, oversales and consumer complaints. Each section of the report is preceded by a brief explanation of how to read and understand the information provided.

Additional air travel data can be found on the  BTS website .

December 2003 Report Flight Delays: Oct 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Oct 2003 Oversales: 3rd Quarter 2003 / Jan-Sep 2003 Consumer Complaints: Oct 2003    November 2003 Report Flight Delays: Sep 2003 / 12 Months Ending Sep 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Sep 2003 / Jan-Sep 2003 Oversales: 3rd Quarter 2003 / Jan-Sep 2003 Consumer Complaints: Sep 2003 / Jan-Sep 2003    October 2003 Report Flight Delays: Aug 2003 / 12 Months Ending Aug 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Aug 2003 Oversales: 2nd Quarter 2003 / Jan-Jun 2003 Consumer Complaints: Aug 2003    September 2003 Report Flight Delays: Jul 2003 / 12 Months Ending Jul 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Jul 2003 Oversales: 2nd Quarter 2003 / Jan-Jun 2003 Consumer Complaints: July 2003    August 2003 Report Flight Delays: Jun 2003 / 12 Months Ending Jun 2002 Mishandled Baggage: Jun 2003 / Jan - Jun 2003 Oversales: 2nd Quarter 2003 / Jan - Jun 2003 Consumer Complaints: Jun 2002 / Jan - Jun 2003    July 2003 Report Flight Delays: May 2003 / 12 Months Ending May 2003 Mishandled Baggage: May 2003 Oversales: 1st Quarter 2003 Consumer Complaints: May 2003    June 2003 Report Flight Delays: Apr 2003 / 12 Months Ending Apr 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Apr 2003 Oversales: 1st Quarter 2003 Consumer Complaints: Apr 2003    May 2003 Report Flight Delays: Mar 2003 / 12 months ending Mar 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Mar 2003 / Jan - Mar 2003 Oversales: 1st Quarter 2003 Consumer Complaints: Mar 2003 / Jan - Mar 2003    April 2003 Report Flight Delays: Feb 2003 / 12 Months Ending Feb 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Feb 2003 Oversales: 4th Quarter 2002 / Jan - Dec 2002 Consumer Complaints: Feb 2003    March 2003 Report Flight Delays: Jan 2003 / 12 Months Ending Jan 2003 Mishandled Baggage: Jan 2003 Oversales: 4th Quarter 2002 / Jan - Dec 2002 Consumer Complaints: Jan 2003    February 2003 Report Flight Delays: Dec 2002 / 12 Months Ending Dec 2002 Mishandled Baggage: Dec 2002 / 12 months ending Dec 2002 Oversales: 4th Quarter 2002 / Jan - Dec 2002 Consumer Complaints: Dec 2002 / 12 months ending Dec 2002    January 2003 Report Flight Delays: Nov 2002 / 12 Months Ending Nov 2002 Mishandled Baggage: Nov 2002 Oversales: 3rd Quarter 2002 / Jan - Sep 2002 Consumer Complaints: Nov 2002

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Yes, stowed luggage is finally being inspected at U.S. airports, and the cockpit doors on commercial jets have been reinforced. But it's clear that the airlines and the newly created Transportation Security Administration (TSA) are still struggling to balance safety with convenience and for the most part delivering neither. Between the threat of another terrorist attack and the sudden spread of SARS, the danger in the air has never seemed greater.

And the white-knuckle experience travelers face in the skies is matched by economic grimness on the ground. It will take billions to get things right, and both the federal government and the airlines are deep in debt already. Collectively, U.S. carriers have lost nearly $25 billion since 2001, more than they made in the previous five years. "It's been a quadruple blow--Sept. 11, the war in Iraq, the recession, and now SARS," says Representative John Mica, a Florida Republican who chairs the House Transportation Committee's panel on aviation. "It's a pretty serious situation."

Truth be told, flying really hasn't been fun or easy since the heyday of the jet set, when Pan Am was an American icon and people still donned coats and ties for a flight. But the current panic isn't just one of those periodic bouts of frustration Americans have experienced since air travel was deregulated in the late 1970s. The industry is in its deepest crisis ever--an estimated 100,000 jobs have been lost, two major carriers have gone bankrupt and a third could be headed in that direction, and the hub-and-spoke system that drove profits in the industry for the past two decades has turned into a money pit. (For more on the airlines' economic outlook, see the following story.)

Some travelers have just given up flying for the time being--domestic air traffic this month is down 15% from year-ago levels. To make matters worse, long-distance flights, one of the last sources of profits for carriers like United and Northwest, have been devastated by the SARS outbreak. Bookings between North America and Hong Kong have fallen 86% since early March, and United has cut flights between its Chicago hub and Tokyo by 50% in recent weeks.

Unfortunately, many business travelers don't have the luxury of staying on the ground, regardless of how inconvenient or dangerous flying has become. Teleconferencing and Internet confabs have taken the place of some business travel--adding to the airlines' problems--but often there's no substitute for a face-to-face meeting. Businessmen are still sucking it up and flying to Asia if that's what it takes to close the big deal. So when it comes to air travel, executives might as well be stuck in the middle seat.

But that doesn't mean things have to be as bad as they are now. The experience of security-conscious airlines like El Al, innovations at European airports like London's Heathrow and Amsterdam's Schiphol, and observations of security experts around the world show that safety and convenience don't have to be mutually exclusive.

We've talked to some of the smartest people in the industry about how to make life better--and safer--for business travelers. We can't promise you as much fun in the air as Leonardo DiCaprio had as a poseur Pan Am pilot in Catch Me If You Can. But the seven ideas presented here could go a long way toward making air travel less of an ordeal than it's become.

Let's be straight--fixing the system won't be cheap or easy. It will require billions of dollars, along with considerable political capital, from Congress, the federal bureaucracy, the states, and the airline industry. Hard decisions will have to be made about privacy and civil liberties. The stakes for passengers, employees, and investors couldn't be higher. If air travel is made safe and sane again, a vital American industry can once more become an engine for economic and social mobility, as well as for shareholder profits. If it isn't, U.S. national security will be at risk, and business travelers might as well go Greyhound.

BEFORE BUYING FANCY TECHNOLOGY, JUST BUILD A FENCE. If there's one threat that has security experts alarmed these days, it's shoulder-launched missiles. When two of the rockets nearly brought down an Israeli airliner in Kenya last year, it became clear that these cheap, plentiful, and easily transportable weapons are in the hands of terrorists, and that the near miss wasn't just a lucky break but a taste of things to come. "Even as we speak," says Mica, "those things are being smuggled across borders by people who have one interest--disrupting the air system and the U.S. economy."

But the most talked-about solution--installing expensive missile-deflection technology aboard every big plane--isn't necessarily the only answer. A much cheaper and quicker approach would be immediately to secure airport perimeters. "Most airports don't even have a simple fence," says Rafi Ron, who directed security at Israel's Ben Gurion Airport before becoming a consultant to Logan and other U.S. airports. "It's something the TSA and airport authorities should take care of urgently." In fact, many airports consider bodies of water to be barriers to attack--as if terrorists couldn't use boats or even walk across shallow tidal marshes like the ones around New York City's airports.

What's needed are so-called smart fences, electronic barriers on land or under water that alert guards when breached. Ron estimates that it would cost about $10 million to $20 million for each smart fence, but even if they were installed at the top 200 airports, that's still less than the estimated $7 billion to $10 billion it would cost to equip the nation's jetliners with antimissile defenses. And fences would address a host of other threats, such as hijackers and saboteurs. In the long run, missile defenses on planes may prove necessary too. But let's get those fences built now.

SO WHAT IF HE PASSED THE BACKGROUND CHECK? It's one thing for the pretzel vendor and the airplane mechanic to get green lights on their personal histories, but who's watching them when they actually go to work? The TSA is beating its chest over the more than 800,000 background checks it has conducted on airport workers and concessionaires in the past year. The problem is, many of those workers don't go through the same security checkpoints and X-ray machines that passengers do. "We have so many airports in this country where people who work on the aircraft and have access to critical areas never go through any security procedures," says Dawn Deeks, a spokesperson for the Association of Flight Attendants. "Denver is doing it right, but Chicago and Dallas, for instance, are doing it wrong."

What's more, badges get lost and stolen all the time, and at most airports employees need only swipe a card or punch in a PIN number to access secure regions. The future is biometrics, a technology that requires a finger-or palm-print or a retina scan before an employee gains entry. "Everybody agrees that we need to move to biometrics, and some airports are already experimenting with those," says Charles Barclay, president of the American Association of Airport Executives. The holdup is that the TSA hasn't settled on a technology yet. While the TSA makes up its mind, biometric devices using palm geometry are already in operation at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport, speeding returning travelers through passport control.

GET BAGGAGE SCREENING OUT OF THE LOBBY. Logan's clam diggers--cum--terrorist spotters may not sound state-of-the-art. But the Boston airport has made dramatic improvements since Sept. 11, when it was the takeoff point for the two planes that struck the Twin Towers. In addition to systematically searching for fake passports and training officers to spot suspicious behavior (more on that later), Massachusetts authorities have developed one of the smartest baggage-screening systems in the country. While passengers at most U.S. airports must put luggage through scanners as soon as they enter the terminal--creating the kind of lines normally associated with Rolling Stones concerts--Logan scans luggage after it's been turned over to the airline at the check-in desk. Bags are X-rayed on the same behind-the-scenes conveyors that move them to the plane. That saves time and lets passengers quickly head to the departure gate.

It wasn't cheap or easy--Massport, the state agency that runs Logan, spent $146 million and had more than 700 people working 24/7 last year to install 40 baggage scanners and 2.8 miles of new baggage belts. "We wanted to improve security, but we also felt that you had to take customer service into account," says Massport CEO Craig Coy. "The answer was incorporating baggage screening into the existing system, not creating another headache for passengers."

You'd think that the powers that be would hand Coy a medal, but in fact he's still waiting for the TSA and the airlines to help pay for the new system--so far they've chipped in only $30 million of the $146 million tab. If Washington and the industry want people to start flying again, they should ante up for this kind of improvement at airports across the country.

LOOK FOR THE BOMBER, NOT JUST THE BOMB. Remember all those National Guardsmen who appeared in airports after Sept. 11, standing around the X-ray machines with machine guns? Most are gone now, but the instinct to plunk down policemen in airports remains. Their presence looks reassuring but really doesn't do much to improve safety. A better idea would be to train security officers to move around, talking to passengers and looking for behaviors that might signal trouble.

That's exactly what's going on in Boston. Behavior recognition has long been used at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport, and Rafi Ron introduced it in Boston last fall. The principle is that it's far easier to spot the bomber than pinpoint the bomb. Massachusetts state troopers are trained to look for certain clues, like passengers who avoid eye contact or seem jittery. Police don't automatically arrest someone who's nervous; they just ask a few questions. If everything checks out, the passenger continues on his way. If something seems amiss, the trooper can ask to perform a more thorough search of the passenger and his luggage. It's not rocket science--what Ron calls a "targeted conversation" can take less time than taking off your shoes at the security checkpoint--but it's a much smarter way to deploy security personnel.

PROFILING DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A DIRTY WORD. It has to be said: Searching little old ladies at security gates isn't a wise use of our thinly stretched resources. Still, one of the most controversial efforts by the TSA is the development of a background-checking system called Computer-Assisted Passenger Pre-Screening II, or CAPPS II. Under the previous system, CAPPS I, each airline kept its own travel data and assigned a risk level to passengers based on criteria such as whether they purchased a one-way ticket or used cash.

CAPPS II, currently being tested by Delta with dummy data, will take passenger screening to a whole new level. Besides linking together all airline reservation systems, CAPPS II will also begin sifting through financial and government databases as soon as you buy a ticket. It will then assign you a risk level--green, yellow, or red. People given a yellow level will probably have to take off their shoes and have their carry-on bags swabbed for detection of explosives. "Red" means you'd better look into renting a car. "Terrorists are not normal people," says Ron, ticking off the kind of irregularities that might trip up a terrorist under CAPS II--no long-term address, a series of new credit cards, or little credit history. The point about profiling is that it doesn't have to be ethnic--financial clues can be just as telling when it comes to detecting threats.

But of course CAPPS II is a hot button for civil-liberties activists who worry that the government would use it to discriminate against ethnic groups, and they want the program stopped immediately. They've even called for a boycott against Delta just for testing the system. Arnold Barnett, an MIT professor who uses mathematical models to study aviation security, wonders how accurate such a database can be. "What if I subscribe to The Free Palestinian or if I have a college loan I never paid back? I may be a high credit risk, but does that make me a terrorist threat?"

The critics raise good points, but there is a middle ground here. There are plenty of factors in a terrorist profile besides ethnicity or national origin. Indeed, the telltale financial signs CAPPS II looks for would have flagged the Sept. 11 hijackers. And even though it might have flaws, that's not a reason to kill CAPPS II before it's launched. In any case, Congress and the courts are going to have to decide--soon--how to balance civil liberties with the obvious terrorist threat to air travel. The bottom line is that some passengers pose more of a danger than others, as all those patted-down senior citizens can tell you. And CAPPS II is the best way for authorities to concentrate resources where they're needed most.

STOP PASSING THE BUCK ON SARS. Health authorities racing to figure out how SARS is transmitted have traced as many as 13 people with the disease back to an Air China flight they shared in March with an elderly man who had been infected. "Some passengers appear to have been affected during the flight, but we don't know the method of transmission," says Dick Thompson, the spokesperson on communicable diseases for the World Health Organization. "We don't know if it comes from having direct personal contact or from the environment." For instance, one of the first symptoms of SARS is diarrhea. If the bathroom on an airplane isn't kept clean, that could be a mode of transference, Thompson says.

Most Asian airlines are playing it safe by passing out gloves and masks to flight attendants and any passengers who request them. But other international carriers aren't following suit--despite pleas from flight attendants. "We're following the WHO's advice. At check-in, we're evaluating the passengers' symptoms before they board the plane," says Jo Devereux, a spokesperson for British Airways. "Unless the WHO requires airlines to provide face masks or gloves, we are not providing them." Health officials say they're not suggesting the use of gloves and masks largely because the probability of catching SARS on a flight is small, and there's no evidence--at least not yet--that the disease is spread by picking up a used drinking glass or sitting next to a coughing passenger. For the airlines, though, inaction could result in a far worse alternative--fresh cases of SARS and empty planes flying once-busy routes around Asia.

YOU KNOW US; LET US THROUGH. Credit reports and bank statements? No problem. Last five addresses and the names of three previous employers? You got it. To avoid standing in line, some passengers are happy to provide that kind of information and are even willing to cover the cost of a deep background check. These people are what the airline industry calls Trusted Travelers, and creating a special card to identify them and let them zip through security is an idea that's been bandied about for years.

Plans to proceed with the Trusted Traveler came to a screeching halt after Sept. 11. Now, however, the TSA is requesting $5 million from Congress to research such a system. "Persons carrying such cards would be screened separately, using a less time-consuming level of security scrutiny," Carol Hallett, then-president of the Air Transport Association, told the California Chamber of Commerce last year. "The choice is up to the traveler--use a card or stand in line."

The Trusted Traveler program is a winner and should be put into practice as quickly as possible. We bet most business travelers (and probably many vacationers too) would happily turn over the information, avoiding the civil liberties headaches associated with CAPPS II. Privacy fanatics would be free to stand in line if they're concerned about handing over too much data to the authorities. Airlines and the TSA could speed customers onto planes, easing delays and boosting profits.

Of course, there are no guarantees that implementing Trusted Traveler or CAPPS II or anything else will make flying 100% safe and hassle-free. That's not how the world works in the post--Sept. 11 era. But adopting even a few of the measures outlined above would make air travel a bit more sane, not to mention secure. It will take money and hard work, but Washington and the airlines need to do something. Otherwise we'll have to rely on dumb luck--and on those Boston clammers.

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What Flights Used to Cost in the 'Golden Age' of Air Travel

Flying is actually cheaper and better than it's ever been.

In spite of all our complaints about smaller seats, poor customer service, and the burn of basic economy, when put in the proper historical perspective, air travel is more accessible, affordable, and comfortable than ever.

Need proof?

Just picture yourself booking a roundtrip “tourist class” flight to Amsterdam for $4,168.55, or paying $12,089.55 for a 30-day flight around the world.

In the mood for a quick, cheap getaway? How about New York City to Chicago for $445.25? Or, go all the way to Los Angeles , with a quick stop in Chicago, on a 13-hour journey for upwards of $1,600.

If you value time as money, today’s air travel saves you a bundle. And in cash adjusted for inflation, the cost of flying has plummeted.

According to a study by Compass Lexecon, commissioned by Airlines for America, the average flight from L.A. to Boston in 1941 was worth $4,539.24 per person in today’s money, and it would have taken 15 hours and 15 minutes with 12 stops along the way. By comparison, a nonstop flight in 2015 would cost $480.89 and take only six hours. Thanks to intensifying low-cost competition, we can find airfares as cheap as $283 today.

But we don’t need to go all the way back to the 1940s to see how cheap airfare has become.

Part of the reason flying was so exclusive and relatively luxurious in the '40s, '50s, and '60s was that it was very expensive. Until the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 , airlines were considered a public utility and airfares were set by the federal government, which ensured airlines always made more than enough money.

Even after deregulation, a basic domestic round-trip airfare in 1979 averaged $615.82 in today's money. That average fare dropped to $344.22 by 2016. Fees have risen dramatically from the equivalent of $1.65 in 1979 to $22.70 by 2016, but even with those fees added back in, airfares are much cheaper.

The Compass Lexecon study showed that, between 1990 and 2016, the domestic price per mile to fly decreased by 40 percent (and by 36 percent when you factor in fees). At the same time, fuel costs have risen for airlines by 110 percent since 1998, and airlines faced sharp drops in demand during the Great Recession of 2008-2009. With no regulatory protections for the industry, these set-backs and high costs led to bankruptcies and mergers, as they have in the past. But low-cost competitors ensure consumers can still pick between two or more airlines in most U.S. markets, which keeps the pressure on other airlines to keep those airfares affordable.

Because flying is cheap, many more people fly today in larger planes with more seats onboard. Air travel has evolved from the privilege of a few into a service for many.

And it has grown in staggering numbers. In 2000, airlines carried 1.6 billion passengers, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). By 2005, that number had grown to 2.1 billion. By 2015, airlines had served 3.5 billion passengers and they are expected to serve 4 billion passengers this year.

Security risks are greater and security lines are longer. People don’t wear their best suits to fly anymore. Deregulated, democratized, affordable air travel is very different from the glamorous air travel of those far-gone days, but at least more of us get the pleasure of complaining about it.

Related Articles

Air Travel: A Hundred Years of Safety

By James L. Gattuso

One hundred years ago this December, Wilbur Wright placed himself at the controls of the airplane he and his brother had built, for what was to be the first self-propelled, controlled flight in history. Upon takeoff, the machine lifted up some 15 feet, stalled and crashed into the sand. It was to be another two days before the first successful flight took place, with Orville — not Wilbur — at the controls. Nearly forgotten to history, Wilbur’s aborted flight — one of the first airplane accidents in history — underscores the aviation industry’s century-long struggle for safety.

Despite the vast media coverage given to aviation accidents, the aviation industry has achieved breathtaking success in improving air safety. In the industry’s embryonic era, accidents were disturbingly numerous. Ironically, 1929, the year of “The Great Crash,” was also one of the most crash-ridden in aviation history, with 24 fatal accidents reported. In both 1928 and 1929, the overall accident rate was about one per every million miles flown. In today’s system, an accident rate of that magnitude would result in a nearly incomprehensible 7,000 fatal accidents each year.

The next 70 years saw a rapid reduction in accidents as technologies improved and operating practices were perfected. By the 1940s, the annual number of fatal accidents averaged between five and 10. By the 1970s, the average was less than five. Last year, there were no fatal aviation industry accidents at all.

Even more impressive has been the reduction in the accident rate, which has been falling exponentially. By the 1930s, the rate was about a tenth of its 1928-9 level. Within another 20 years, the rate was a tenth of that — around one accident per hundred million miles flown. Since 1997, the rate has been at or below one in 2 billion.

How did airline deregulation affect these trends? In 1978, when federal controls over the rates charged and routes served by airlines were lifted, opponents charged that the action would lead to ballooning accident rates. Faced with competition, they argued, airlines would cut corners on safety in order to cut costs.

Yet, almost a quarter-century since the Airline Deregulation Act was passed, the industry’s safety record shows no sign of degrading. In fact, air travel is today substantially safer than in 1978. In the 24 years since economic controls were eliminated, the average number of fatal accidents has been 3.2 per year. In the 24 years before deregulation, the industry averaged almost double that: 6.2 per year. The difference in the accident rate is even more dramatic, with airlines averaging 0.0007 fatal accidents per million miles post-deregulation, barely a seventh of the rate for the 24 previous years.

This doesn’t mean that deregulation itself necessarily enhanced air safety. The broad trend line of safety improvement, in fact, seems to have continued at more or less the same rate before and after deregulation. (Similarly, despite an initial drop, the long-term trend hardly varied before and after the introduction of controls in 1938). In fact, it may be impossible to say with precision what would have happened had there been no reform. What is clear, however, is that the grim predictions of disaster by market opponents did not come true.

Why were they wrong? One reason is that the gloomsayers misread the incentives facing businesses in a competitive market. Rather than scrimp on safety measures to gain short-term profits, airlines have found it even more in their interest to ensure the safety of their passengers. Simply put, no one makes money by putting passengers in danger. Airlines such as Air Florida and ValuJet learned that lesson the hard way. In short, markets provide what consumers demand — and air travelers demand safety most of all.

There is, of course, room for improvement in air travel safety: in preventing crashes, and in ensuring security in the post-Sept. 11 world. But, as we approach the 100th anniversary of flight, we can also stop to take pride in the safety achievements of the past century, and the inventors and entrepreneurs who made it possible.

( James L. Gattuso is research fellow in regulatory policy at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., and an adjunct scholar with the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a research and educational institute headquartered in Midland, Mich. More information is available at www.mackinac.org. Permission to reprint in whole or in part is hereby granted, provided the author and his affiliations are cited.)

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Volume 10, Number 11—November 2004

Policy Review

Public health interventions and sars spread, 2003 1.

Cite This Article

The 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was contained largely through traditional public health interventions, such as finding and isolating patients, quarantining close contacts, and enhanced infection control. The independent effectiveness of measures to “increase social distance” and wearing masks in public places requires further evaluation. Limited data exist on the effectiveness of providing health information to travelers. Entry screening of travelers through health declarations or thermal scanning at international borders had little documented effect on detecting SARS cases; exit screening appeared slightly more effective. The value of border screening in deterring travel by ill persons and in building public confidence remains unquantified. Interventions to control global epidemics should be based on expert advice from the World Health Organization and national authorities. In the case of SARS, interventions at a country’s borders should not detract from efforts to identify and isolate infected persons within the country, monitor or quarantine their contacts, and strengthen infection control in healthcare settings.

The 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a modern example of containing a global epidemic through traditional or nonmedical public health interventions. The interventions included finding and isolating patients; quarantining contacts; measures to “increase social distance,” such as canceling mass gatherings and closing schools; recommending that the public augment personal hygiene and wear masks; and limiting the spread of infection by domestic and international travelers, by issuing travel advisories and screening travelers at borders. Some measures were implemented pursuant to recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO); others were implemented by governments on their own initiative. A novel technology, infrared scanning, was used extensively in some countries to try to identify persons with fever at international borders and in public places. After the outbreaks, WHO sought information to help assess the effectiveness of interventions in preventing the transmission of SARS in the community and internationally. Of particular interest was information on the effectiveness of thermal scanning of travelers.

Information was obtained by reviewing scientific literature and surveying members of an informal WHO working group about preventing community and international transmission of SARS. Members were surveyed with standardized questionnaires regarding measures taken in their countries and evaluation studies known to them. Preventing transmission in healthcare settings was not addressed but had a major impact on preventing the transmission of SARS into the community and internationally ( 1 , 2 ).

Local and National Interventions

Identifying patients and quarantining contacts.

Figure . Severe acute respiratory syndrome cases in Singapore, February 25–May 5, 2003. Number of primary cases (green) by time from symptom onset to isolation, number of secondary cases infected by such cases...

Ascertaining and isolating patients, combined with rapid identification and management of contacts, were highly effective in interrupting transmission in several countries ( 1 – 6 ) 2 . For example, a study in Singapore demonstrated a correlation between rapidly isolating patients after onset of symptoms and a decreased number of secondary cases among their contacts ( 4 ) ( Figure ). Contacts in these countries were placed in various forms of quarantine or, less commonly, monitored for symptoms without confinement and isolated if and when symptoms emerged. The location of quarantine was usually at home but was sometimes at a designated residential facility (e.g., for travelers, persons who did not wish to remain at home for fear of exposing their families, homeless persons, and noncompliant persons). In some cases, quarantined persons were allowed to leave the quarantine site with the permission of local health authorities if they wore masks and did not use public transportation or visit crowded public places. In at least one area, these restrictions were applied to essential workers and termed “work quarantine.”

Several respondents emphasized that the modern concept of quarantine differs greatly from quarantine in past centuries. Quarantine is most acceptable and arguably most effective when protecting the health and rights of quarantined persons is emphasized. In previous centuries, sick and exposed persons were often locked up together in intolerable conditions and received limited medical care. Moreover, quarantine was sometimes applied in an arbitrary and discriminatory fashion, targeting lower socioeconomic classes and racial minorities. The modern concept emphasizes science-based interventions with attention to the medical, material, and mental health needs of quarantined persons and protecting fundamental human rights. Exposed persons who are not sick should be separated from symptomatic patients, monitored for the minimum time necessary (e.g., one maximum incubation period), and provided appropriate medical care at the first sign of illness during the monitoring period. Quarantine may be applied to individual persons, to small groups, or, in extreme cases, to entire neighborhoods or other geographic districts (“cordon sanitaire”) ( 7 , 8 ).

In the SARS epidemic, persons under quarantine were mostly confined at home and actively monitored for symptoms. In several countries, quarantine was legally mandated and monitored by neighborhood support groups, police and other workers, or video cameras in homes. In other areas, compliance was “requested,” but court orders were issued for a small percentage of noncompliant persons. Reports indicate that SARS was diagnosed in 0.22% of quarantined contacts in Taiwan, 2.7% in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), and 3.8%–6.3%% in Beijing. These different rates were partly due to different criteria for placing persons in quarantine. Contacts at highest risk (aside from healthcare workers with certain unprotected patient care exposures) had been exposed to ill family members ( 6 , 9 – 11 ).

Quarantine led to financial and psychosocial stresses, risk communication, compensation, and workforce staffing issues for persons, families, employers, and governments. Legal appeals and defiance of quarantine orders were rare ( 2 , 6 , 8 – 13 ).

The optimal management of contacts, stratified according to risk of becoming ill, remains under discussion in several countries, e.g., whether confinement is always needed or close monitoring of health status without confinement would suffice. Reports from Canada indicate that the insidious onset of symptoms sometimes posed challenges for clinicians and public health officials. “Timely diagnosis and isolation of cases were sometimes hindered by delays in patient recognition of symptoms, obtaining medical evaluation, and/or physician recognition of the significance of symptoms, which occasionally waxed and waned early in illness” (A. McGeer and D. Low, Mount Sinai Hospital Toronto, pers. comm.). “In Toronto, some healthcare workers continued to work without recognizing that they were ill, perhaps confusing their symptoms with fatigue, despite daily screening and repeated messages not to come to work if ill. This resulted in transmission to patients and staff” (B. Henry, Toronto Public Health, pers. comm.).

Measures To Decrease Time from Symptom Onset to Isolation of Patients

Public campaigns to accelerate reporting and evaluating symptomatic patients appeared to decrease the interval between onset of symptoms and isolation of ill patients in several areas ( 3 , 4 ). Novel interventions included urging the entire population of affected areas to measure their temperature at least once daily, fever telephone hotlines ( 14 ), and fever evaluation clinics with appropriate infection control measures. Thermal scanning in public places was implemented in several areas where community transmission was suspected. Data on the effectiveness of this practice are not available, but in Beijing thermal screening was not an efficient way to detect cases among intercity travelers ( 5 ).

Measures To Increase Social Distance

Measures to increase social distance, e.g., canceling mass gatherings; closing schools, theaters, and public facilities; and requiring masks for all persons using public transport, working in restaurants, or entering hospitals, were implemented in areas where extensive unlinked community transmission of SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) was suspected. Many persons in these areas also chose to wear masks outside their homes. These measures were often applied simultaneously with other measures, including enhanced contact tracing, which makes their independent effectiveness difficult to assess. However the simultaneous introduction of a variety of measures was temporally associated with dramatic declines in new SARS cases. A case-control study in Beijing found that wearing a mask more frequently in public places may have been associated with increasing protection ( 15 ). Another case-control study in Hong Kong found that using a mask “frequently” in public places, washing one’s hands >10 times per day, and “disinfecting living quarters thoroughly” appeared to be protective ( 16 ). The types of masks used were not specified. With the exception of the Amoy Gardens cluster in which SARS-CoV was apparently transmitted through accidentally produced aerosols of sewage ( 17 ), SARS transmission in the community from aerosols or in social settings appeared to be rare.

Disinfection

In some areas, disinfectants were applied inside the homes and vehicles of persons with SARS, ambulance tires, and pedestrian walking zones. Little information exists on the effectiveness of disinfectant use in reducing community or hospital transmission. In Hong Kong, disinfecting living quarters thoroughly (not otherwise defined and reported retrospectively by telephone) appeared to be protective ( 16 ).

Measures for International Travel

Travel advisories.

Travel advisories (e.g., advice to postpone nonessential travel) were issued by WHO and various governments. Air travel to areas affected by the advisories decreased dramatically during the epidemic (M.A. Hinayon and D. Gamper, Airports Council International, communication to WHO), although the impact of advisories compared with other sources of information to travelers, such as news media reports of SARS cases, is difficult to assess.

Measures for International Borders

Passive and active methods were used to provide information and screen entering and exiting travelers. These methods included signs, videos, public address announcements, distributing health alert notices, administering questionnaires to assess symptoms and possible exposure, visual inspection to detect symptoms, and thermal scanning.

Few data exist on the relative effectiveness of methods of providing information to travelers. Available data on the effectiveness of screening and other measures directed to travelers are sometimes difficult to interpret because they may not distinguish between entry and exit screening, specify how many entering travelers were from affected countries, distinguish the epidemic period from subsequent, or include the number of SARS cases detected.

Health Alert Notices to Entering Travelers

Combined data from Canada, China (mainland, Hong Kong SAR, and Taiwan), France, Singapore, Switzerland, Thailand, and the United States indicate that approximately 31 million travelers entering these countries received health alert notices. Of these, approximately 1.8 million were reported as arriving from affected areas; this estimate is likely low given the difficulties in tracking travelers and the fact that many airline passengers change planes en route. Inadequate data exist to evaluate the effect of distribution of most of these notices. Mainland China reported distributing 450,000 notices and detecting four SARS cases that may have been linked to the notices (M. Song, China Dept of Health and Quarantine Supervision and Management, communication to WHO). Thailand printed l million notices; as a result 113 cases of illness (108 at airports, l at a seaport, and 4 at land crossings) were detected. Twenty-four cases were suspected or probable SARS: all of which were detected at airports (S. Warintrawat, Ministry of Public Health, Thailand, communication to WHO).

Entry Screening

Preliminary data from a worldwide survey indicate that among 72 patients with imported probable or confirmed SARS cases, 30 (42%) had onset of symptoms before or on the same day as entry into the country and symptoms developed in 42 patients (58%) after entry (J. Jones, United Kingdom Health Protection Agency, communication to WHO). SARS was diagnosed in a small percentage of persons who completed entry health declaration questionnaires in affected areas during the SARS epidemic. ( Table 1 ).

Results combined from Canada, China (including the mainland and Hong Kong SAR), and Singapore indicate that no cases of SARS were detected by thermal scanning among >35 million international travelers scanned at entry during the SARS epidemic ( Table 2 ; data for Hong Kong SAR include travelers arriving from mainland China). Temperature screening of 13,839,500 travelers entering or leaving Beijing by air, train, or automobile identified 5,097 patients with fever, of whom 12 had probable SARS. These 12 included 10 of 952,200 domestic airline passengers and 2 of 5,246,100 train passengers. None of 275,600 international travelers who underwent temperature screening had SARS ( 5 ).

In Taiwan, incoming travelers from affected areas were quarantined; probable or suspected SARS was diagnosed in 21 (0.03%) of 80,813. None of these 21 was detected by thermal scanning when they entered Taiwan ( 9 ) (S.K. Lai, Taiwan Center for Disease Control, pers. comm.).

Exit Screening

After WHO recommended exit screening on March 27, 2003 ( 18 ), no additional cases of spread from airline travel were documented from countries with screening. Combined data from China (Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan) indicate that among 1.8 million people who completed health questionnaires at exit, 1 probable case of SARS was detected. Combined data from Canada, China (Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan), and Singapore indicate that no cases of SARS were detected among >7 million people who underwent thermal scanning at exit ( Table 3 ) (S. Courage, Health Canada, S.K. Lai, Taiwan Center for Disease Control; P.L. Ma, Hong Kong SAR China Dept of Health; and K.W.B. Koh, Singapore Ministry of Health, communications to WHO). In some areas, “stop lists” were used at borders to prevent persons on isolation or quarantine lists from exiting. Anecdotes suggest that exit screening may have helped dissuade ill persons from traveling by air but may have been more successful in dissuading local residents from traveling abroad than in dissuading ill travelers from attempting to return home.

Transmission on Commercial Aircraft

Five commercial international flights were associated with transmission of SARS from patients with symptomatic probable cases to passengers and crew ( 1 ). Notification of exposed passengers and studies of transmission risk were greatly hampered by difficulties in identifying and tracing passenger contacts ( 19 – 23 ). In the most comprehensive investigation, involving three flights with extensive passenger tracing and laboratory confirmation of index and secondary cases, a wide range of risk was noted ( Table 4 ). For flight 2, in which the secondary attack rate was 18.3%, the risk of infection was increased for persons seated close to the index patient, but most passengers who became infected were seated farther away, even though their individual risk was lower ( 19 ). In another study, one person with SARS, who had difficulty breathing but was not coughing, infected two other passengers. One of these sat in the row in front of the index patient but the other passenger sat four rows, plus a passageway, behind and on the opposite side of the plane ( 20 ). On nine flights arriving in Singapore, the incidence of transmission from passengers with SARS who had respiratory symptoms was estimated at 1 in 156 persons ( 21 ). A fourth study found no transmission to passengers seated near a patient who took multiple flights ( 22 ). In comparison, an influenzalike illness developed within 3 days in 72% of passengers in a plane containing a person with symptomatic influenza and grounded for 3 hours without ventilation ( 24 ). The risk for transmission of tuberculosis during a long flight was also increased among, but not limited to, passengers seated close to a highly infectious index patient ( 25 ).

SARS-CoV was contained in human populations in 2003 largely by aggressive use of traditional public health interventions (case finding and isolation, quarantine of close contacts, and enhanced infection control measures in settings where care was provided to persons with SARS, especially in healthcare facilities and homes). These measures also contained a smaller SARS outbreak in 2004 that originated from a laboratory-acquired infection ( 26 ). Measures to decrease the interval between onset of symptoms and isolation were effective in containing community transmission. The independent effectiveness of general community measures to increase social distance (in addition to contact tracing and quarantine) and improve hygiene and wearing masks in public places requires further evaluation.

Limited information exists on the relative effectiveness of methods of providing information on SARS (or other illnesses) to travelers. For inbound travelers who may have been exposed to SARS, such information should include what to do if symptoms develop and the need to inform healthcare workers who provide care for them in advance to take appropriate precautions. Entry screening of travelers by using health declarations or thermal scanning at international borders had little documented impact in detecting SARS cases. Exit screening appeared only slightly more effective; however, the possible value of these interventions in deterring travel by ill persons and building public and business confidence was not assessed. Preventing passengers with SARS from boarding aircraft would likely have reduced transmission of infection, but the most cost-effective ways to accomplish this are uncertain. The difficulties in identifying and tracing passengers exposed on aircraft highlight the need for public health authorities to have a mechanism for rapid access to passenger contact information. In the case of SARS, the data on border screening indicate that if resources are limited, interventions at a country’s international borders should not detract from efforts to identify and isolate infected persons within the country, monitor and quarantine their close contacts appropriately, and strengthen infection control in healthcare settings.

In retrospect, although SARS-CoV was transmitted primarily through the respiratory droplet route, certain public health interventions facilitated its containment. Presymptomatic transmission was not observed. Infectivity in most patients was low at onset of illness and seemed to peak during week 2 of illness in association with maximal respiratory symptoms, when patients were often in the hospital. Virus transmission was primarily by respiratory droplets, with little natural airborne dissemination but some environmental spread. With some important exceptions (Hotel M and Amoy Gardens in Hong Kong), transmission occurred primarily in healthcare or household settings, with close person-to-person contact. Cases among children were uncommon, and children did not seem to be involved in transmission. Although the reproductive number for SARS (R 0 , the average number of new cases resulting from a single infection in a susceptible community) was approximately 2–4, contact tracing was facilitated by its relatively long serial interval (time between onset of symptoms in successive patients in a chain of transmission: mean 8–10 days) and incubation period (median 4–5 days). Most infections did not lead to further transmission, although a small number of “super-spreading” events occurred in which single unrecognized cases transmitted to many people, usually in hospitals or households, before appropriate infection control precautions were in place ( 1 ).

Traditional public health interventions will likely be required again to combat an emerging or reemerging infection for which specific antimicrobial drug therapy and vaccines are nonexistent or in short supply. For infections that are relatively less transmissible (e. g., SARS or a strain of avian influenza not fully adapted to human-to-human transmission), early and bold use of such interventions may contain transmission. For more readily transmissible infections (e.g., an emerging pandemic strain of influenza), they would not completely halt transmission, but might increase the window of opportunity during which an effective vaccine could be produced and other preparations made. For countries lacking specific countermeasures, such as drugs and vaccines, nonmedical public health interventions may be the only measures available to combat epidemics ( 27 ). Decisions regarding implementation should be based on expert scientific advice from WHO and national authorities; the epidemiologic features of the disease and available resources should be taken into account. This article does not address political and economic factors that may lead to calls for adopting certain measures or the economic and social consequences that may ensue, but governments will also consider such factors in their decisions.

The WHO SARS Scientific Research Advisory Committee has identified further research needs for SARS ( 28 ). Priorities include evaluating the effectiveness of public health interventions in terms of cases detected, cases prevented, costs, and alleviating public concerns; identifying ways to make quarantines and other restrictions more focused and less burdensome for persons and societies; assessment of how “leaky” restrictions can be before they become ineffective; and developing rapid diagnostic tests. Limitations of the information include that it was collected retrospectively, and in some studies, laboratory testing to confirm SARS-CoV infection was not performed. In the event of future outbreaks, these issues will need to be studied prospectively so that decisions can be based on the best scientific information.

Dr. Bell is a senior medical officer in the Office of the Director, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He is a consultant to the World Health Organization on the control of SARS and influenza.

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• Figure .  Severe acute respiratory syndrome cases in Singapore, February 25–May 5, 2003. Number of primary cases (green) by time from symptom onset to isolation, number of secondary cases infected by such...
• Table 1 . Health declarations by entering travelers at international borders, March 1–July 15, 2003a
• Table 2 . Thermal scanning of entering travelers at international borders, March 1–July 15, 2003a
• Table 3 . Exit screening of travelers at international borders, March 1–July 15, 2003a
• Table 4 . Rates of severe acute respiratory syndrome transmission on commercial aircrafta

DOI: 10.3201/eid1011.040729

1 The members of the World Health Organization (WHO) Working Group are as follows: Ximena Aguilera, Ministerio de Salud, Republica de Chile; Roy Anderson, Imperial College London, United Kingdom; Dounia Bitar, Institut de Veille Sanitaire, Paris France; Martin Cetron (with Pattie Simone), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Chew Suok Kai (with Benjamin KW Koh), Ministry of Health, Singapore; Clete DiGiovanni, Jr., Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, USA; Arlene King, Health Canada, Ottawa, Canada; Cindy K-L Lai (with PL Ma), Department of Health, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China; Angus Nicoll (with Jane Leese), Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre, London, United Kingdom; Sonja Olsen, International Emerging Infections Program, Nonthaburi, Thailand; Alice Sarradet, Direction Generale de la Sante, Paris, France; Mingchang Song, General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, (AQSIQ), Beijing, China; Ron St. John (with Susan Courage), Health Canada, Ottawa, Canada; Robert Steffen (with Leonie Prasad), University of Zurich, Switzerland; Ih-Jen Su (with SK Lai), Taiwan Center for Disease Control, Taipei, Taiwan, China; WHO Staff in the Department of Communicable Diseases Surveillance and Response (CSR): Julie Hall, Beijing, China; Emmanuel Jesuthasan, Geneva, Switzerland; Angela Merianos, Cathy Roth, Max Hardiman, Geneva, Switzerland; Hitoshi Oshitani, Western Pacific Regional Office, Manila, Philippines; and group facilitator: David Bell, WHO (CSR) Geneva, Switzerland, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

2 The term “isolation” is applied to ill people; “quarantine” is applied to persons who have been exposed but are not ill.

Table of Contents – Volume 10, Number 11—November 2004

Please use the form below to submit correspondence to the authors or contact them at the following address:

David M. Bell, Office of the Director, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road, Mailstop C12, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA; fax: 404-639-4197

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50 ways air travel has changed over the last 100 years

When's the last time you got on a plane? If your last flight was before the pandemic, you're not alone. Industry statistics show worldwide air travel is down by more than 85% from 2019, according to the Associated Press in August 2020. Fears about catching COVID-19 in a crowded airport combined with regional lockdowns, border closures, and stay-at-home orders made many people think twice before hopping on a flight in 2020. Those who did travel by air during the pandemic were met with a significantly different experience. Airlines implemented mask requirements, swapped in-flight meals for prepackaged snacks, halted certain routes, and even blocked off middle seats to try to create a socially distanced experience at 35,000 feet.

The recent changes, while radical, are just the latest in a series of adjustments air travel has gone through since the first scheduled commercial flight in the U.S. took place in Florida in 1914. Early air travel was incredibly bumpy, somewhat dangerous, and had very few frills. But once Americans started jetting around the country in greater numbers, airlines upped the ante to compete for their business. Passengers would dress up for the occasion to enjoy bottomless cocktails, live entertainment, multicourse meals complete with fine china and white tablecloths, and other pleasures in the sky during the Golden Age of flying.

Since then, though, it's been a mostly downhill experience for air passengers. To squeeze every last dollar of profit from every flight, airlines have shrunk seat pitches, charged all sorts of new fees, and stopped offering free meals on many flights. The 9/11 terrorist attacks also prompted sweeping new security measures, requiring passengers to remove shoes, limit their liquids, and walk through full-body scanners before getting on a flight. Today's air travel feels like a world away from the glamour of yesteryear.

So how did air travel get to this point? To find out, Stacker looked at various news articles and websites to compile this timeline of some of the most significant changes in air travel over the last century, ranging from in-flight meals and entertainment to diversity in pilots, changes in fare categories, and frequent flier programs.

Keep reading to see how air travel has changed over the last 100 years.

1920s: Planes become available for passengers

The 1920s marked the first decade in which aircraft were designed with passengers in mind , Insider reports. However, the experience was far from glamorous. Flying was still slower than train travel, and the planes were loud, cold, and bumpy.

1921: Aeromarine Airways screens first in-flight film

Aeromarine Airways played the short film "Howdy Chicago" on a flight over the Windy City in 1921. It was the first in-flight film in history.

1927: Pan American Airways takes flight

Pan American Airways (also known as Pan Am) formed in 1927. Originally providing airmail service, the airline would eventually become the largest international air carrier in the world, and well-known among travelers.

1928: First in-flight hot meal served

Lufthansa offered the first hot-meal service aboard a plane in 1928, on a flight between Berlin and Paris. Airline workers used insulated bottles to keep the food warm, per Food Network.

1930: Air travel reserved for the wealthy

Air travel was largely reserved for the rich and famous in the late 1920s, with just 6,000 Americans flying commercially in 1930, according to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. However, it would quickly become more popular, and four years later, 75 times the number of passengers would travel by air, USA Today reports.

1936: United Airlines pioneers first airplane kitchen

United Airlines launched the airline industry's first airplane kitchen in 1936. The company gave passengers a choice between scrambled eggs and fried chicken, according to Food Network.

1939: First-ever airport lounge opens in LaGuardia Airport

New York's LaGuardia Airport became home to the first-ever airport lounge when the American Airlines Admirals Club opened in 1939. It was used exclusively for VIPs and extremely loyal passengers.

1940: Boeing flies passengers in pressurized planes

Boeing's 307 Stratoliner, the first plane with a pressurized cabin for passengers, hit the skies in 1940, reported Air & Space magazine. It kept passengers significantly more comfortable at 20,000 feet than earlier planes.

1941: In-flight entertainment goes live

Live in-flight entertainment became a new offering on airlines in 1941. Some would hire actors and singers to perform aboard the flights, per Imagik Corp.

1942: Casual air travel stops during World War II

The U.S. founded the Air Transport Command in 1942 to coordinate airlines' role in transporting cargo and personnel during World War II. The military took the use of 200 of the 360 total airlines in the country, along with their staff. As a result, casual air travel was nearly nonexistent in the U.S. during the war, according to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

1946: Pan American Airways offers frozen dinners

Advancements in flash-freezing technology allowed Pan American Airways to offer the first modern-style frozen dinners on airplanes in 1946. Flight attendants would warm up the meals in convection ovens before serving them to passengers, according to Food Network.

1948: Activists fight segregation at airports

Efforts to end racial segregation at airports began to take motion in 1948 when a Michigan politician supported a Congressional bill to integrate Washington National Airport. While the bill ultimately failed, the airport's restaurant was desegregated later that year.

1948: Passengers get first coach fares

Capital Airlines created the first coach fares for flights in 1948. The lower-cost tickets would help a much broader group of passengers experience air travel, according to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

1949: Passengers get first low-cost airline

Pacific Southwest Airlines launched in May 1949 as the world's first low-cost airline. The airline began by transporting passengers around California. It would become the inspiration for Southwest Airlines.

1950s: Airlines phase out sleeper service

Planes became faster and saw a rise in traffic throughout the 1950s. As a result, airlines spent the decade phasing out their plush sleeper service , per the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. The service had typically provided berth-style beds , like the ones found on trains, for transatlantic flights, says Air & Space magazine.

1952: More efficient, reliable planes increase tourism across the Atlantic

The Douglas DC-6B, a piston-engine airliner, offered a more efficient, reliable form of air travel. United Airlines was the first to bring them into commercial service in 1952, and Pan Am would use the aircraft to help boost tourism across the Atlantic Ocean, says the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

1953: Passengers get nonstop transcontinental service

American Airlines began using the DC-7 to fly from New York to Los Angeles in November 1953. It marked the first nonstop service between the east and west coasts of the U.S.

1958: Chicago O'Hare Airport tests modern jet bridge

Chicago O'Hare Airport began using the first modern jet bridge, or jetway , in 1958. It offered a sheltered path for passengers to travel between the terminal and the plane and ultimately sped up boarding times, according to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

1958: Pan Am offers in-flight fine dining

Pan Am took in-flight dining to the next level on its daily commercial route from the Big Apple to Europe in 1958. On those flights, the airline treated guests to a fine-dining experience , complete with fine china, white tablecloths, silver carafes, and extravagant dishes, reports Food Network.

1960: American Airlines develops booking automation system

American Airlines founded the Sabre Corporation in 1960. The business would develop a booking automation system for the airline, doing away with the tedious and time-consuming process of making manual reservations for customers.

1961: In-flight entertainment monitors advance

In-flight films started to become more regular on flights in 1961 when new in-flight entertainment monitors advanced to meet airline standards, per Imagik Corp. The noise of the plane engines made it difficult for passengers to hear film dialogue, though.

1965: U.S. completes network of overlapping radars

The U.S. finished developing a network of overlapping radars for planes in 1965. It would advance air traffic control and make flights safer.

1965: Marlon D. Green breaks color barrier on major airlines

After winning a Supreme Court battle against Continental Airlines, Marlon D. Green became a pilot in 1965. The African American pilot is credited with breaking the color barrier for crew on major airlines.

1973-74: Airlines react to oil crisis

The 1973 oil crisis caused the price of oil to skyrocket. Airlines responded in several ways to cut costs. Some switched to larger, more crowded planes and scrapped flights on unpopular routes. Some also cut the weight of their planes by reducing the number of in-flight magazines and ending paint jobs for their aircraft, The New York Times reported.

1975: Airlines offer in-flight gaming

Braniff Airlines added technology to its planes to allow passengers to play Pong while flying in 1975. It was the first time in-flight entertainment systems included video games , says Imagik Corp.

1976: Concorde ushers in supersonic era

The Concorde, a supersonic passenger airliner that could fly at double the speed of sound, entered commercial service in 1976. Tickets for flights on the legendary plane were extraordinarily expensive and would allow passengers to travel long distances in significantly less time.

1976: Emily Howell Warner becomes first female captain on a major airline

Frontier promoted Emily Howell Warner to the role of captain in 1976, making her the first woman to hold that position on a major U.S. airline. She had been required to jump through multiple hoops , including extra testing, that her male counterparts didn't have to endure, according to Plane & Pilot magazine.

1978: Federal government deregulates the airline industry

President Jimmy Carter put his signature on the Airline Deregulation Act in 1978. The act would drive up competition between airlines and help reduce fares, says the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.

1979: Airlines award passenger loyalty

Texas International Airlines developed the first frequent-flyer program based on miles flown in 1979, says The Points Guy. It's credited with launching the first modern program to award air passengers for loyalty.

1984: FAA approves pre-flight safety demonstration videos

The Federal Aviation Administration gave its approval for airlines to use video for pre-flight safety demonstrations in 1984. They would eventually replace live demonstrations on many flights.

1986: Airlines partner with credit card companies

The airline industry introduced its first branded credit cards in 1986, with the Continental TravelBank Gold Mastercard, says The Points Guy. These early credit cards would increase the ways in which frequent fliers could earn rewards for their loyalty to airlines.

1987: American Airlines cuts olives and saves big

American Airlines decided to remove one olive from the salad plates service to first-class passengers in 1987. The move would save the airline a whopping $40,000 per year and has now become a famous tale of cost-cutting in aviation.

1988: Airplanes get back-of-seat screens

Airplanes began installing individual screens on the back of passenger seats in 1988. It would quickly become a standard on flights, regardless of what class the passenger was sitting in, according to Imagik Corp.

1988: Air travel goes smoke-free

Nearly 80% of flights in the U.S. banned passengers from smoking in 1988. The ban applied to nearly all flights with durations of 2 hours or less, The New York Times reported.

1989: United slaps expiration date on frequent flyer miles

United Airlines slapped expiration dates on miles earned through its frequent flyer program in 1989. The move aimed to create a sense of urgency for customers to use the miles. Expiration dates are now standard in many frequent flier programs, per The Points Guy.

1994: Southwest offers first e-ticket

Southwest Airlines became the first major airline to offer electronic tickets, or e-tickets, in 1994. It would help eliminate the problem of replacing lost paper tickets.

1996: Travelocity offers online flight reservations

Travelocity went online in 1996. The online travel agency was the first to allow passengers to make flight reservations through its website.

1997: Five airlines form the Star Alliance

Five airlines from around the world—United Airlines, Thai Airways International, Air Canada, Scandinavian Airlines, and Lufthansa–teamed up to form the Star Alliance in 1997. The first alliance of its kind, the group would offer consistent code-sharing to give passengers flexibility for earning and redeeming miles within its member airlines.

2000s: High-profile airline mergers change industry landscape

The 2000s would bring about a series of high-profile airline mergers and acquisitions, starting with American Airlines buying Trans World Airlines in 2001. The consolidations would eventually establish American Airlines, United Airlines, and Delta Air Lines as the dominant carriers in the U.S.

2001: Government increases air travel security after 9/11

Congress approved the creation of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in 2001, around two months after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The agency rapidly ramped up staffing and deployed tens of thousands of agents to airports to screen passengers and their luggage, says PBS.

2003: Commercial airlines retire the Concorde

Air France and British Airways both stopped flying the Concorde in 2003. The costs of maintaining the supersonic passenger jet had become too high, and passengers felt the price of the ticket was not worth saving a few hours to cross the Atlantic Ocean, per Popular Mechanics.

2006: Air passengers must limit the liquids they pack

A plot to place liquid explosives onto a series of North America-bound flights from the U.K. was uncovered in 2006. As a result, passengers were faced with new security mandates that severely restricted the quantity of liquids they could bring in their carry-on luggage.

2008: TSA deploys full-body scanners at airports

The Transportation Security Administration began setting up advanced imaging technology , or full-body scanners, at airports across the U.S. in 2008. By 2014, nearly 160 airports across the country were using the technology to screen passengers.

2008: American Airlines starts charging for all checked bags

Throughout most air travel history, passengers could expect to have at least one checked bag included in their fare. That changed in 2008, when American Airlines became the first major carrier to charge a fee for every checked bag. Other airlines would quickly follow suit.

2011: TSA PreCheck becomes available

The Transportation Security Administration introduced a new Trusted Traveler program called TSA PreCheck in October 2011. After paying a fee and getting approved, participants could get expedited service through airport security.

2012: Government requires airlines to list the total cost of flights

In early 2012, the U.S. Transportation Department implemented a new rule that required airlines to provide transparent pricing information for tickets, including all taxes, fees, and surcharges. Before that, airlines could advertise the base fare, only to surprise customers with a significantly higher price once they were about to pay.

2012: Delta develops basic economy fares

Delta Air Lines introduced a new, lower-cost fare category known as basic economy in 2012. Now an industry standard, these bare-bones fares are typically nonrefundable, have no advance seat assignments, include little to no baggage, and have other restrictions.

2018: Flights get more packed

Air travel saw a huge surge in passengers throughout the 2010s. As a result, planes became increasingly crowded. A 2018 report from The Telegraph found that most planes were flying at about 80% occupancy that year, up from about 70% in 2000.

2020: Airlines struggle during the pandemic

Stay-at-home orders and fears of COVID-19 brought air travel to a near halt in 2020. The International Air Transport Association predicted in November 2020 that the global airline industry would suffer $160 billion in losses as a result of the pandemic. The few travelers who did continue to travel by air in 2020 were met with a series of new rules and changes on planes, including mandates to wear masks and socially distance on some airlines.

2021: Airlines consider vaccine passports

In an effort to jumpstart travel after a major slowdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, airlines are considering requiring that all passengers get vaccinated against the disease. Alan Joyce, CEO of the Australian airline Qantas, has already announced support for a COVID-19 vaccine passport , and other airlines are considering trying out the system in early 2021.

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HONG KONG, China -- Health officials in several Asian countries are taking unprecedented steps to try to stop the spread of a potentially deadly pneumonia virus amid fresh fears air travel is worsening the outbreak.

Officials in Hong Kong, the center of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) scare, said on Tuesday nine tourists caught the virus on a flight to Beijing from another passenger, a man from mainland China.

The man, now in a Beijing hospital, spread the disease on the March 15 Air China CA 112 flight from Hong Kong to the Chinese capital, said Dr. Leung Pak-yin, deputy director of health in Hong Kong.

The man is believed to have caught SARS from an infected relative he visited in the former British territory.

Authorities are tracking down other passengers on the flight. A plea has been made for passengers on board that flight -- as well as the infected tourists' return Air China flight CA 115 on March 19 -- to contact the territory's health department.

Leung said 26 more cases of SARS had been confirmed in Hong Kong, bringing the total number of patients there to 286.

The virus has spread swiftly across the world, killing 17 people -- 10 in Hong Kong -- and sickening more than 470 in 13 countries, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Symptoms include a fever above 38C (100.4 F), muscle aches, chills and sore throat, followed by shortness of breath, coughing and evidence of pneumonia in a chest X-ray.

SARS has an incubation period of two to seven days before symptoms appear.

Experts believe the disease is linked to an outbreak of atypical pneumonia in the neighboring Guangdong province on the Chinese mainland earlier this year which killed five and infected more than 300.

Quarantine order

The spread of the virus has scared many residents in Hong Kong into wearing surgical masks and avoiding crowded areas.

Railway officials have begun handing out free face masks at the territory's main cross-border railway station. They were hoping to distribute 20,000 masks on Tuesday, and up to a half a million more in the coming days.

Six schools have temporarily closed after several students, a teacher and a bus driver contracted the virus.

Fear of the virus has also prompted several nations to withdraw from the upcoming Hong Kong Sevens rugby tournament.

Argentina, Italy and France have all decided to pull out ahead of Friday's start of competition.

In Singapore, about 740 people who may have been exposed to the mystery virus have been ordered to stay home for 10 days in efforts to contain the disease as the number of reported cases there jumped to 65. ( Stay at home order )

Elsewhere, four people in Vietnam and three people in Canada have died, while France says it has a suspected case after a male health worker fell sick upon his return from Asia.

Little is still known about the illness, but on Monday U.S. health experts said they had evidence that a new strain of a virus that causes the common cold may be responsible.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said tissue samples taken from two patients infected by SARS had tested positive for a new form of coronavirus. ( Cold virus link )

A team of scientists at the University of Hong Kong also said they had isolated a virus that causes SARS and developed a test to identify it.

Officials in the former British territory said that about 100 health care workers were treated with a combination of anti-viral drugs and steroids. Eighty-five percent of the patients were showing signs of improvement.

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Vintage Air Travel Images Through The Years

Posted: March 13, 2024 | Last updated: May 15, 2024

Air travel milestones through the decades

From the early days of flight and the "golden age of travel," to contemporary budget airlines and COVID restrictions and regulations, air travel has transformed dramatically over the past century.

Click or scroll through this gallery and join us as we take a journey through time to bring you the biggest milestones in commercial aviation history, including plans for air travel to become net zero by 2050 recently announced.

1920s: passengers wait to board a plane in 1929

The story of commercial air travel begins before the 1920s, in 1914, when the world's first scheduled passenger service set off between Tampa and St Petersburg, piloted by Tony Jannus. Though commercial aviation did not take off quickly, more and more companies tried to build on this milestone through the 1920s, with varying degrees of success. Here, passengers wait at Croydon Airport, UK to board a Handley Page W.9 aircraft, a model used by early airlines Imperial Airways and Sabena.

1920s: a Western Air Express airliner in 1928

1920s: Lady Heath pilots a plane for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines

1920s: passengers are served drinks on a French Air Union plane in 1929

1920s: an early in-flight movie in 1925

In-flight entertainment systems looked rather different too. Today airplane entertainment is a solitary, hi-tech affair but, in the early days of flight, passengers would typically gather around a single screen if they wanted to catch a movie. One of the earliest films to be shown up high was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World in 1925 with Imperial Airways. Here, passengers on a German airliner also enjoy a movie in the year 1925.

1930s: a woman hands over an airmail parcel to Western Air Express staff circa 1930

The early 1930s continued in a similar fashion to the 1920s, with airlines offering airmail delivery services and also carrying passengers. Flying was still extremely expensive and fairly uncomfortable but, according to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum , the number of airline passengers grew from 6,000 in 1930 to 450,000 in 1934. Here, a woman passes on her mail to the crew of a Fokker F-10 monoplane operated by Western Air Express.

1930s: passengers listen to a broadcast aboard a flight in 1931

1930s: an early Anglo-Australian airliner in 1934

1930s: Eastern Air Lines stewards in the 1930s

In the 1920s and into the early 1930s, the role of flight attendant was one mostly reserved for men, who were usually referred to as "cabin boys." This was soon flipped on its head, though. The first female flight attendant, a nurse named Ellen Church, was employed in 1930 and by the middle of the decade most of these jobs went to women. The women were often trained nurses and there were also strict rules as to their age, height and weight. Before this change, this photo shows an all-male team of air stewards posing before an Eastern Air Lines plane in the early 1930s.

1930s: an Imperial Airways cabin in 1935

1930s: a Douglas DC-3 in flight

1930s: Pan American Airways flies across the Atlantic in 1939

1940s: Pan American World Airways' 'Flying Cloud' clipper

The onset of the Second World War meant developments in commercial aviation were put on the back burner, and all resources were plunged into the war effort. However, by the end of the decade, the industry was recovering, especially since the war had given rise to new runways and military aircraft were able to be converted and put to commercial use. This 1949 shot shows Pan Am's 'Flying Cloud' clipper, the first of a group of planes to begin a service between New York and London in the 1940s. 

1940s: passengers aboard a Pan Am Boeing 307 aircraft circa 1945

1940s: poster advertising TWA

As competition increased towards the end of this decade, the major airlines ramped up their advertising. This TWA poster advertises the Boeing 307 Stratoliner, and promises a smooth ride as the aircraft glides above the clouds. The 1940s was ultimately the decade that preceded the so-called "golden age of travel."

1950s: crowds wave off the world's first jet airliner service

1950s: a passenger enjoying lunch on the world's first commercial jet airliner service

1950s: a test flight for the Boeing 707 jet airliner with Pan Am

1950s: the Queen arrives in Bermuda on a BOAC flight in 1953

1950s: an air hostess attends to passengers on a National Airways Corporation flight in 1959

1950s: a movie projector on a United Airlines flight circa 1950

1960s: lunch service on a Lufthansa flight in 1967

The golden age of travel reigned on through the 1960s and, partly since there wasn't much else to do, dinner was a grand affair. Menus often included multiple courses, bread baskets and dishes such as steak or even lobster. In this 1967 snap, passengers are being served food onboard a Lufthansa flight. 

1960s: dinner aboard a SAS aircraft in 1969

1960s: The Beatles arrive in London on a Pan Am flight in 1964

1960s: flight attendants line up before a model of Concorde in the 1960s

1970s: the first Concorde flight from London Heathrow to Bahrain in 1976

1970s: the Queen on a Concorde aircraft in 1977

Concorde got the royal seal of approval (the Queen is pictured here onboard a Concorde aircraft in 1977), with its ability to cross the Atlantic in just 3.5 hours. But only a privileged few could afford to ride aboard the Concorde and it ultimately didn't shake up commercial air travel in the way it had been hoped. Cancelled routes, economic setbacks and a devastating crash meant the Concorde was out of service by 2003. 

1970s: Laker Airways founder Freddie Laker celebrates the airline's success

1970s: Laker and passengers aboard Laker Airways' Skytrain

Laker Airways' Skytrain offered a lower fare service between London Gatwick and New York's JFK, which began on 26 September 1977. Like many budget airlines today, the "no frills" service meant passengers had to purchase meals onboard and weren't subject to the usual luxuries of air travel in the era. Laker also came up with ways to reduce fuel consumption and engine wear to enable the lower costs. He's pictured here celebrating with passengers aboard the Skytrain in 1979. 

1970s: the first scheduled Pan Am Boeing 747 flight

1970s: passengers in the cabin of a Boeing 747

This was the first time that air travel was truly opening up to the masses. Since planes were larger, airlines were able to hold more passengers and therefore sell more tickets at a reduced price. Though flying still wasn't cheap, it was no longer only reserved for the super-rich. This 1970s shot shows the spacious cabin of a BOAC Boeing 747, filled with families, couples and other holidaymakers. 

1970s: passengers are served Champagne on a Pan Am 747 flight

1970s: lunch is served aboard a Boeing 747

1970s: a lounge on SAS's Boeing 747-B "Huge Viking"

1980s: Laker celebrates further fare cuts in 1980

1980s: passengers are stranded as Laker Airways collapses in 1982

Laker Airways collapsed in 1982, saddling debts amounting to $374 million. More than 6,000 passengers were left stranded in airports around the world. Here, exasperated travelers and dismayed Laker staff feel the brunt of the collapse on 5 February 1982. 

1980s: a Ryanair aircraft in 1988

1980s: Richard Branson celebrates the launch of his new airline, Virgin Atlantic Airways in 1984

1980s: a flight attendant serves dinner on a SAS flight circa 1980s

1980s: ashtrays on a commercial flight

1990s: easyJet boss Stelios Haji-Ioannou in 1995

1990s: Ryanair's chief executive promotes low-fare flights

The introduction of Ryanair and easyJet (and also Norwegian in 1993) meant pressure was put on traditional carriers, fares were pushed down and air travel became increasingly more accessible. As travelers also began booking holidays online, competitive pricing became more important than ever.

1990s: a Pan Am aircraft in 1991

2000s: security at Salt Lake City International Airport in 2001

2000s: the door to an aircraft cockpit in 2001

2000s: an easyJet aircraft flying in 2009

Travelers eschewed air travel in the years following 9/11 and, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics , it took until 2004 for air-passenger numbers to reach their pre-9/11 peak. Commercial air travel was recovering by the end of the decade, though, with US air passengers numbering 769.6 million in 2007 – a record high. During this time, it was low-cost carriers that saw the most growth. 

2000s: a traveler books flights online

Another significant change during this decade was the way travelers were choosing to book their flights. According to PhoCusWright , a tourism research company, 2009 was the first year that more than half of all travel-related bookings were made online. This placed even more pressure on airlines to be competitive and offer the best value for money.

2010s: a man works on his laptop during a flight

The internet hasn't just infiltrated the booking process. Nowadays it's commonplace for carriers to offer in-flight Wi-Fi, either as part of the package, or for an extra premium. In a major shift from the golden age of travel, this means that flying today is no longer just about pleasure and relaxation – it's also about catching up with work and keeping in touch with people on the ground. Online check-in and smartphone boarding passes have also revolutionized the airport experience over the years.

2010s: a sign for premium economy class in Hong Kong International Airport

2010s: an American Airlines flight in 2017

The main change in the last decade was the sheer volume of travelers: more and more people were flying than ever before, and the sky-high numbers had previously shown little sign of tailing off. In fact, in 2017, the International Air Transport Association had projected that there could be 7.2 billion air travel passengers by 2035 .

2020s: grounded planes at Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, Germany

The COVID-19 pandemic rocked the travel and aviation industry and both passengers and staff had to adjust to a new (and unpredictable) ‘normal’. Ever-changing international travel restrictions left airlines up in the air (figuratively, not literally), and major players including easyJet, American Airlines and British Airways suffered severe financial losses, resulting in job cuts. This photo from 1 June 2020 shows out-of-service planes at Berlin-Brandenburg Airport.

2020s: a passenger undergoes a temperature check at Heathrow Airport

Towards the end of 2020, civil aviation began to resume at a crawling pace, with the announcement of some 'air bridges' or 'travel corridors'. For passengers choosing to fly, airport experiences looked rather different around the world. Protocols and restrictions varied from airport to airport, and from airline to airline, but typically involved mandatory face coverings, contactless check-ins and fewer open airport facilities. A passenger is seen here in July 2020 receiving a temperature check at a BA desk at London’s Heathrow Airport.

2020s: a masked flight attendant on a Brussels Airlines plane

Passengers had to get used to new onboard experiences too. Depending on the airline – and in efforts to reduce touch points and contact between staff and passengers – changes were extended to a lack of inflight meals or trolley services, and the reduction of little luxuries like in-flight magazines, blankets and the like. Masks were mandatory on most flights too, while some carriers blocked the middle seats to allow passengers more space.

2020s: international air travel gets a slow lift off

The aviation industry continued to feel the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic into 2021, though the International Air Transport Association (IATA) predicted  a 50.4% uptick in demand for flights from 2020 . With vaccine programs being rolled out around the world, international borders finally opened. 

2020s: a passenger holds up an EU 'vaccine passport'

Around the world, testing and vaccines built bridges between destinations in staggered phases. For example, Canada’s borders first opened to double-jabbed Americans, before being unlocked for vaccinated travelers from around the world too. Double-jabbed UK travelers initially could fly to 'amber' European hotspots including France, Spain and Portugal without quarantining on return (though they had to take PCR tests). New Zealand and Australia also formed a 'quarantine-free travel bubble'. EU citizens could download  a vaccine 'passport'  (pictured) allowing them to cross EU borders with minimal restrictions.

2020s: world's first all-electric plane takes to the skies

In late September 2022, the world's first all-electric plane jetted off for an eight-minute flight above the skies of Washington, USA. Alice, the project name that stuck during planning in 2016, is the brainchild of American-based company Eviation , and will be fit for both passenger and cargo use by 2027. The successful maiden flight reached an altitude of 3,500 feet and the zero-emissions plane was powered by two 640-kilowatt electric motors. It is hoped Alice will operate flights ranging from 150 to 250 miles, and will come in three different configurations: a nine-passenger commuter, a six-seater executive cabin and an eCargo version.

2020s: relaxed uniform policies are welcomed

Cabin crew requirements have changed over the decades; as we've seen already, the 1930s followed strict rules regarding age, height and weight, and since then tailored uniforms and specific hairstyles became the norm. But the 2020s have welcomed a more relaxed approach and in September 2022 Virgin Atlantic ditched gender-specific uniforms allowing crew, pilots and ground staff to choose whichever they feel most comfortable in. Earlier in the year staff were also permitted to keep their tattoos visible, marking the first UK airline to do so.

2050: air travel industry set to become carbon neutral

We don't know for sure what the future holds for air travel. But the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO)  recently announced its support for a net zero goal for the aviation industry by 2050 . However, environmental campaigners say the plans don't go far enough, believing more measures were needed to ensure the 193 member countries of the ICAO meet the goal and hold airlines accountable. 

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Can AI find you the cheapest plane tickets? How Google and Skyscanner compared.

• Skyscanner’s Savvy Search and Google’s Gemini are AI-powered tools that can help you plan your trip.
• Both tools can also find you cheap flights, but Gemini was able to find the lowest price.
• Skyscanner’s tool is a good starting place if you don’t have a destination in mind.

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When booking a flight, chances are you want to score the best deal. (This is especially true now that flights from U.S. airports are more expensive than a few years ago.)

There are already a few tools out there to help you find affordable airfare , such as flight price trackers and low-fare calendars, but what about those new AI tools? Travel search engines like Booking.com, Expedia and Skyscanner have recently launched AI-powered features to help customers plan their vacations.

These AI trip planners – which act like chatbots – assist travelers in planning aspects of their trip, like finding accommodations and destinations, even building an itinerary for them. But some of them may even be able to help you find cheap flights. 

Launched in May, Skyscanner’s Savvy Search tool is powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT and “accesses a vast database of over 18 million flight routes and 80 billion daily price searches to offer the best travel recommendations,” Laura Lindsay, Global Travel Trends Expert at Skyscanner, told USA TODAY.

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Google’s own AI tool, Gemini, is a “creative and productivity tool” that can also assist travelers with trip planning, according to a Google spokesperson. Gemini can also connect to and access “relevant information from the Google tools you use every day,” from Google Flights, Google Hotels, Google Maps and Docs, according to a Google spokesperson. So you can check out flights, hotels and driving directions all in one conversation with Gemini. 

I tested Skyscanner’s AI Trip Planner and Google’s Gemini to see if they could find me the most affordable round-trip flights for a trip from Honolulu to New York for the week of August 18-25. For reference, a search on Google Flights on Thursday afternoon revealed the cheapest flight was a $761 round-trip ticket on United Airlines in its basic economy cabin. Here’s what I found.

What is it like using Skyscanner’s Savvy Search?

After making an account with Skyscanner, I easily found the Savvy Search on the mobile app's home screen. I had to input my departure city and answer the question, “What kind of trip is on your mind?” Getting straight to the point, I typed in, “What are the cheapest flights from Honolulu to New York for the week of August 18-25?” 

Savvy Search offered “three recommended places,” including New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Not really what I asked, but I suppose the answer was technically there. I clicked to see flights for New York and was taken to a list of flights to compare. I could sort by “best,” “cheapest,” “fastest” and “direct,” as well as choose my cabin class and add other travelers. 

The cheapest flight that came up cost $645 round-trip, and although inexpensive, it wasn’t looking easy. Both my departing and return flights would be self-transfers, requiring me to re-check any bags and go through security again, and also include an 11-hour layover on my return journey. 

I went ahead to book, and since Skyscanner is a flight comparison tool, the AI took me to an outside travel platform called DoHop , an Iceland-founded travel search engine that creates “unique connecting flights,” according to its website. I’ve never used DoHop before, and when I continued with my booking, I discovered I was also being charged a $32.64 DoHop booking fee and $12.50 if I wanted to bring a carry-on. (Only a personal item is free.)

The total was $664.83, around $97 cheaper than what Google Flights found. 

I also tested whether Savvy Search could find me cheap flights without a destination in mind (only my budget). It offered Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Tokyo. The cheapest option to Los Angeles was two direct flights on Alaska Airlines for $341. Once again, it sent me to book externally, but this time through Kiwi.com. 

Booking through third-party vendors like Kiwi or DoHop can be tricky for travelers, especially if things don’t go as planned, because airlines and hotels won’t typically claim responsibility if you didn’t book directly with them. Often, third-party support isn’t always reliable. 

Are Tuesdays still the best day to book? Here's what major travel platforms found about purchasing airfare.

What is it like to use Google’s Gemini to find cheap flights?

I accessed Gemini through its website – which required a Google account sign-in – and asked the same question I posed to Skyscanner's Trip Planner. Gemini warned me that it “doesn’t always get it right. Be sure to check the following flight details.” 

Gemini provided five flight options, with the lowest price one being a $615 round-trip flight on United Airlines –  $49 less than what Skyscanner told me and $146 cheaper than my own Google Flights search. 

Gemini told me how long the entire journey would take with each flight option, plus layovers. I clicked the flight I wanted and was taken right to Google Flights, where I could book through the airline or adjust my flights. 

I tested out other prompts, such as finding the cheapest flight from Honolulu for the same dates. (The answer was a flight to Maui for $160 round-trip.) Since that answer was a bit obvious, I tried again, asking for flights not within Hawaii. (That would be San Francisco starting at $354 round-trip.) I also asked if it was a cheap time to fly from Honolulu to New York in August. (No, because summer break is peak travel season.)  

The verdict

As far as finding the cheapest flight, Gemini takes the cake. I liked how seamless it was to move between Gemini and Google Flights. Although I wouldn’t want to book Skyscanner’s cheapest flight, I think it’s a helpful tool to compare prices and see the range of options. (Maybe you don’t mind a self-transfer.) 

I mainly like how Skyscanner’s tool recommended a variety of destinations when I asked for affordable flights from Honolulu, so it’s a good starting place if you don’t have a destination in mind. In fact, this is what half of Skyscanner’s users do, according to Lindsay. You can also ask Skyscanner for affordable destination alternatives and look for flights from there. 

Overall, both AI tools can fit into any passenger’s repertoire when searching for the best flight deals.

Kathleen Wong is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Hawaii. You can reach her at [email protected] .

The Key Points at the top of this article were created with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and reviewed by a journalist before publication. No other parts of the article were generated using AI. Learn more .

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Fire breaks out at the first-ever Buc-ee’s travel center

LULING, Texas (Gray News) – Fire crews in Texas are cleaning up the first-ever Buc-ee’s travel center after it caught fire on Monday morning.

The fire broke out at the old Buc-ee’s location in Luling, Texas, which was built in 2003.

In June , the world’s largest Buc-ee’s opened in Luling to replace the old location.

Firefighters confirmed on Facebook that the fire was not at the brand-new Buc-ee’s but was at the old Luling location.

The Southeast Caldwell County VFD said in a Facebook post that the fire was “controlled quickly with all the manpower on scene.”

It’s unclear how the fire started.

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Fourth of July weather: Who will have holiday travel headaches?

Fox weather highlights weather trouble spots day-by-day through to the weekend after the fourth so you can plan your holiday..

Check your holiday travel forecast, all week long

FOX Weather is tracking your Fourth of July holiday travel forecast day by day whether you are hitting the road, the air or just the backyard.

FOX Weather has your one-stop-shop for the Fourth of July holiday-week road travel, air travel and fireworks forecasts across America.

"Active weather is expected to continue impacting the U.S. leading up to the 4th of July. With several storm systems in play, travelers are facing major disruptions as they try to get to their holiday destination," warns the FOX Forecast Center. "And the ripple effect of airport delays and cancelations will take its toll as we approach the weekend. Mounting issues will cause a backup of flights, creating headaches for those trying to get out of town."

AAA forecasts a record 71 million people traveling 50 miles or more through the weekend after the holiday, beating pre-pandemic numbers. Over 60 million people will hit the road. More than 57 million will take to the air, and almost 5 million will be cruising or taking buses and trains.

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Hopefully, most of you will already be at your holiday destinations because airport travel could be challenging from Minneapolis and Chicago through to New Orleans . Unsettled weather creeps back into the Mid-Atlantic.

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Here is the fireworks forecast:

The fireworks forecast.

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