Originally Posted by
Bobster
Mid 1940s, New York to London round trip around $600 or $7000 in today's dollars.
There was almost no coach class before 1948. You went first class or not at all.
Airfares were relatively constant from 1931 to 1970 in terms of cost per mile which was the way they used to determine ticket prices.
Fares doubled during the 1970s. Since then they have again remained relatively constant, reaching a peak around the year 2000 and dropping after 9/11.
Of course, when I say "constant" that doesn't take inflation into account.
It's funny because that $600 figure seems pretty similar to what you'd pay now (well, maybe cheaper from New York). But was that mid-1940's flight jet? I didn't think they had them yet then, at least not for commercial use. And I didn't know normal non-jet planes had enough range to make it that far. I wonder how long it took.