Throwback Thursday - 1972 ORD-PHX 747 UD
Jan 22, 2017, 11:35 am
#47
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: KHOU/KIAH
Programs: AA EXP | Marriott Bonvoy Titanium| Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 11,222
Love this thread. I'm a millennial myself, so seeing what it was like in the so-called "glory days" is fascinating.
My three biggest reasons for wishing I was born earlier was 1. flying a DC-10 when I was old enough to remember 2. Flying the concorde 3. Seeing Pink Floyd live.
My three biggest reasons for wishing I was born earlier was 1. flying a DC-10 when I was old enough to remember 2. Flying the concorde 3. Seeing Pink Floyd live.
Jan 22, 2017, 11:51 am
#48
Join Date: Oct 2015
Programs: BA Gold for Life
Posts: 1,389
Love this thread. I'm a millennial myself, so seeing what it was like in the so-called "glory days" is fascinating.
My three biggest reasons for wishing I was born earlier was 1. flying a DC-10 when I was old enough to remember 2. Flying the concorde 3. Seeing Pink Floyd live.
My three biggest reasons for wishing I was born earlier was 1. flying a DC-10 when I was old enough to remember 2. Flying the concorde 3. Seeing Pink Floyd live.
Jan 22, 2017, 12:26 pm
#49
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Syracuse, Boston, Athens
Posts: 995
Verba volant, scripta manent
On page 8 of the December 1, 1974 AA timetable (didn't find a 1972 one, but it shouldn't be too different), one can see that the one-way fare between Chicago and Phoenix was $161 for first class, $124 for economy, $124 for first "Nightcoach" and $99 for economy "Nightcoach".
Based on the inflation calculator of the BLR, $161 in 1974 corresponds to $784 in 2016 (and $99 to $482).
PS. Found a April 30, 1972 timetable for TWA. Their one-way fares for ORD-PHX were $130 for first class and $104 for economy. They also had a $180 roundtrip "Discover American Excursion" fare.
In 2016 dollars, those would be $746, $597, and $1,034 respectively.
Based on the inflation calculator of the BLR, $161 in 1974 corresponds to $784 in 2016 (and $99 to $482).
PS. Found a April 30, 1972 timetable for TWA. Their one-way fares for ORD-PHX were $130 for first class and $104 for economy. They also had a $180 roundtrip "Discover American Excursion" fare.
In 2016 dollars, those would be $746, $597, and $1,034 respectively.
Originally Posted by rjw242
Perhaps, but it didn't come cheap.
Jan 22, 2017, 1:31 pm
#50
Suspended
Join Date: Apr 2016
Programs: SkyMiles, AAdvantage, TrueBlue, Rapid Rewards, Global Entry
Posts: 204
On page 8 of the December 1, 1974 AA timetable (didn't find a 1972 one, but it shouldn't be too different), one can see that the one-way fare between Chicago and Phoenix was $161 for first class, $124 for economy, $124 for first "Nightcoach" and $99 for economy "Nightcoach".
Based on the inflation calculator of the BLR, $161 in 1974 corresponds to $784 in 2016 (and $99 to $482).
PS. Found a April 30, 1972 timetable for TWA. Their one-way fares for ORD-PHX were $130 for first class and $104 for economy. They also had a $180 roundtrip "Discover American Excursion" fare.
In 2016 dollars, those would be $746, $597, and $1,034 respectively.
Based on the inflation calculator of the BLR, $161 in 1974 corresponds to $784 in 2016 (and $99 to $482).
PS. Found a April 30, 1972 timetable for TWA. Their one-way fares for ORD-PHX were $130 for first class and $104 for economy. They also had a $180 roundtrip "Discover American Excursion" fare.
In 2016 dollars, those would be $746, $597, and $1,034 respectively.
Jan 22, 2017, 2:22 pm
#52
Suspended
Join Date: Sep 2006
Programs: AAdvantage PP
Posts: 13,913
No doubt in 1972 not only would there have been fewer leisure travelers but business travelers as well. I remember my first flight in 1970 with my father, IAD/TPA on EA. Both were new airports. We flew on a DC8 on the way down and a 707 on the way back, meals of course on both flights.
The biggest thing missed is the civility. People didn't rush the gate, they remained seated until their row was called. FAs were rarely surly and you weren't resting on some stranger's personage. If the flight was late the Captain announced that everyone (adult) in Y got a free drink.
Of course the IFE was a single movie screen with one movie. You could not choose your seat in advance and had to stand in a line to check in. You did not have the option of showing up 45 minutes before fly. So its a mix bag. I'd probably take a good IFE system over a piano any day.
The biggest thing missed is the civility. People didn't rush the gate, they remained seated until their row was called. FAs were rarely surly and you weren't resting on some stranger's personage. If the flight was late the Captain announced that everyone (adult) in Y got a free drink.
Of course the IFE was a single movie screen with one movie. You could not choose your seat in advance and had to stand in a line to check in. You did not have the option of showing up 45 minutes before fly. So its a mix bag. I'd probably take a good IFE system over a piano any day.
Jan 22, 2017, 2:50 pm
#53
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: SFO
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 5,270
On page 8 of the December 1, 1974 AA timetable (didn't find a 1972 one, but it shouldn't be too different), one can see that the one-way fare between Chicago and Phoenix was $161 for first class, $124 for economy, $124 for first "Nightcoach" and $99 for economy "Nightcoach".
Based on the inflation calculator of the BLR, $161 in 1974 corresponds to $784 in 2016 (and $99 to $482).
PS. Found a April 30, 1972 timetable for TWA. Their one-way fares for ORD-PHX were $130 for first class and $104 for economy. They also had a $180 roundtrip "Discover American Excursion" fare.
In 2016 dollars, those would be $746, $597, and $1,034 respectively.
Based on the inflation calculator of the BLR, $161 in 1974 corresponds to $784 in 2016 (and $99 to $482).
PS. Found a April 30, 1972 timetable for TWA. Their one-way fares for ORD-PHX were $130 for first class and $104 for economy. They also had a $180 roundtrip "Discover American Excursion" fare.
In 2016 dollars, those would be $746, $597, and $1,034 respectively.
Great find! ^
Pretty remarkable that ORD-PHX prices were comparable to some of the cheaper US-HKG tickets available now!
Jan 23, 2017, 3:24 am
#54
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: RDU
Programs: AA LTP, Bonvoy Titanium; AA CK before I retired
Posts: 1,597
In those days one of the easiest ways to circumvent a company's economy-only travel policy was to get a full-fare Y ticket and then exchange it for FN ("night first") at no difference in fare. Flights departing 0500-0630 were often tagged as night flights eligible for FN and YN fares.
Night fares had pretty much disappeared by the late 1980s.
Night fares had pretty much disappeared by the late 1980s.
Jan 23, 2017, 9:30 am
#55
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Programs: HH Gold, AA Gold
Posts: 10,458
In those days one of the easiest ways to circumvent a company's economy-only travel policy was to get a full-fare Y ticket and then exchange it for FN ("night first") at no difference in fare. Flights departing 0500-0630 were often tagged as night flights eligible for FN and YN fares.
Night fares had pretty much disappeared by the late 1980s.
Night fares had pretty much disappeared by the late 1980s.
The other phenomena in the 80's was the "hopscotch" fares offered by some of the smaller carriers like Piedmont and Republic. Basically, to use these fares, you had to stop at least twice and/or connect two or more times (i.e. I once flew SEA-MSP-MKE-BOS.
Jan 23, 2017, 10:15 am
#56
Suspended
Join Date: Sep 2006
Programs: AAdvantage PP
Posts: 13,913
Remember airlines have significantly reduced their cost structure over the past 20 years. Cheaper fares are in part a result of lower costs as well as competition from other carriers. In the 1970s and 1980s the legacy carriers were able to chase away and destroy most low fare competitors. In the 1990s start ups became much better financed and managed making it harder to dispense of them. Certainly B6 was the prime example.
Jan 23, 2017, 12:40 pm
#57
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: NYC
Posts: 27,222
Love this thread. I'm a millennial myself, so seeing what it was like in the so-called "glory days" is fascinating.
My three biggest reasons for wishing I was born earlier was 1. flying a DC-10 when I was old enough to remember 2. Flying the concorde 3. Seeing Pink Floyd live.
My three biggest reasons for wishing I was born earlier was 1. flying a DC-10 when I was old enough to remember 2. Flying the concorde 3. Seeing Pink Floyd live.
And the audio was literally piped in through the armrest. If you held your ear up to the jack, you could hear the sound.
You could not choose your seat in advance and had to stand in a line to check in. You did not have the option of showing up 45 minutes before fly.