WW questions why people really fly... BBC News Article
 

With apologies if this has been posted elsewhere, I did look...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8313363.stm

i was reading that as well ! however i would suggest that he pays a visit to FT before questioning why people fly!!

not once in the article did he mention TP runs !

CS

Seems they are trying to make something out of nothing if you ask me.

Obviously normal people fly because they want to get from A-B quickly. Any person who flies just for the sake of flying is rather...........anoraky.

I fall into the fly because it's quicker category. ;)

Because I get seasick on transatlantic liner crossings.

Shhh!
Its spin for the environmentalists isnt it.

I fly because it's convenient and it saves me driving.

I've never done a TP run because I don't need to, but I would consider doing it if I ever needed to do so.

When I was 17, just a few years ago ;) and still living in Australia, instead of taking a direct Melbourne - Brisbane flight home, or even a Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane flight, I found one that went Melbourne, Sydney, Coolongatta (Gold Coast) Brisbane just so I could stay on board longer. The last leg we weren't served anything, nor were we able to move about the cabin as it went up and then went down again! It is after all, just around a two hour drive between the airports!

Would I do the same today? If there was more milage involved and time wasn't an issue I would! Don't think QF still do the routing however, with JQ doing the route instead.

As for the envrionment, I'm not having children and it's conviniently ignored that people create the problems for global warming. Control population growth and you'll solve a lot of issues. Lets see the environmentalists bring that one up!

That is, increasingly, how I feel. It is just bloody hard work sometimes.

I'd agree with that wholeheartedly.

Like many, I fly too much for business , mainly because I don't have the choice.

However, there are a few around on FT who do fly just for the hell of it, (there's a thread somewhere about someone doing 4 transpacs in 6 days) and BA, like other airelines do sometimes incentivise us to choose to fly more for leisure. For example, I'm using the current ex CAI fare sale to do a weekend in CAI, plus one in New York. There must also be many people who have made trips just because they could get a Lyinair 1p special fare as well.

Bit of a strange article though. Thee BBC seems to think that people fly because the "The airline industry usually stresses the luxury of its service rather than saying that people only fly because they have to. ". Most people do not fly business or first class, and for them it's not a particularly luxurious experience. To suggest the people would board aeroplanes for the sheer pleasure is ludicrous (except of course for those few anoraks). And even in CW - if I have £5,300 to spend, I would probably not choose 14 hours on an A318. There are many other experiences out there that provide a lot more luxury or fun.

I don't want to fly if there is a quicker means of transportation but I do love to travel even if it's just for business.

I only wish I could travel to more places rather than spend so long in one place at a time. I'm in a fortunate position to not have any personal commitments yet but the job markets are not so fortunate!

I've been tempted to do a mileage/TP run but I would invariably make a wee holiday out of it rather than turning back on the same plane!

I absolutely could not agree more. My greatest fear is that, one day, a politician will bring it up. Except that he or she might suggest dividing populations up and doing it in 'stages'. It'd be 'green' this time, of course, but it's not like it hasn't happened before, and democratically too :(.

For GBP 5,300 spent in 18 hours you could enjoy the greatest luxuries imaginable anywhere on land or sea.

WW has obviously never read my trip reports if he says that he doesn't believe people fly for fun. Perhaps I should send him the links? ;)