www.CostaRicaTicas.com

In those days airline travel was not a very common experience. People dressed as if they were going to church, stewardesses were attractive, young (mandatory height, weight restrictions, forced to take ground ops positions at age 28), flights long (jets just breaking onto the scene) frightening (airplanes fell from the sky much more often than today) in short a totally different experience than the airline industry of today.

Financially the airlines were riding high thanks to the iron fisted control of the CAB. The golden days of aviation were not necessarily golden for the working class and while not exclusively for the upper class it certainly was not for "Joe lunch bucket"

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

Wit,
If you believe that their costs have increased (in real terms, of course), why do you think that fares have not increased along the lines of inflation? That $500 CR fare should be $2000, if what you say is true.

The airlines would not keep fares at $500 if all their costs were much higher now. I mean, they're not in the business of taking losses (well, some appearantly are ), so how do you explain the fares not increasing if their costs did?

Damn, Irish Drifter. You've got a fantastic memory. I had to step back and think for a minute. But you're absolutely correct. It was not Continental. It was (Witling, you ready for this?) Peoples Express Airlines. If memory serves, I think their hub was in Newark, and they were bought out by Continental ?!?? Not sure, but damn..! You're good!

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You ALWAYS have an option ....... "NEXT" !!!

Mucho Gusto wrote:



I remember Continental so well because most likely the very best US domestic flight I ever had was from ORD to LAX on them. It was late 70's and the equipment was a DC-10. I was in first class and dinner was prime rib your serving being sliced off the whole rib at your seat. On the return flight a few days later after boarding at LAX, in the morning, they offered Irish coffee while they boarded the coach section. Those were the days of passenger service. A far cry from the cattle car experience of today which was marginally acceptable when prices were reasonable but now we have outrageous fares and steerage class service.



Let see where the hell did I put my car keys

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

MG,
I remember Peoples Express.

When I worked at the Tallahasse airport for Sun Airlines '74 to '76 we also had:
Eastern Airlines
National Airlines
Southern Airways
Air Florida
and
Florida Airlines.

None of the 6 exist today.

Orange,
As to why the fares aren't higher, that I can't answer. My point was that they are still a bargain.
Wit

Witling wrote



If you want a bit of airline nostalgia the next time you are in San Jose go over to the Holiday Inn. As you enter, glance over to the left where there is a travel agency. On the window they have various airline logos. Among them are Pan Am, TWA & Eastern. All gone but not forgotten

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

What ever happened to Pan Am? Werent they like the U.S airways of the 70's-80's?

Hardly any comparison. Volumes could and have been written about Pan American World Airways.

They were one of the original airlines of the world. They were famous for their "Clipper Ships" which were amphibious aircraft that flew from their base on Dinner Key in Miami. There former terminal is now the city of Miami City Hall.

Originally they were the exclusive US carrier with right to fly to foreign destinations but were prohibited from flying domestically. They felt that this stifled their growth and earning so they lobbied hard to have that restriction removed and eventually bought National Airlines as the way to accomplish their goal.

Many industry analysts feel that their inability to successfully merge the operation of the two airlines is what eventually led to their demise.

There are volumes of history about the early days of commercial aviation and Pan Am's role in it. This forum is not the place to discuss it in depth but should you do a little research you will find a fascinating story and meet one of the giants of early aviation Juan Trippe.

Enjoy it.

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

I;, coming down april 6 on Delta because AA was like $650 a month ago when I booked. But now AA is running a sale, if you fly only monday thru thursaday, avoiding fri/sat/sun, the price from BWI is $415.

I went on yahoo/travel and selected the "date flexible" option and a grid popped up showing AA available dates through June 16. Then the sale ends.... I'd bet the same will apply later for people who can fly during the week.

Witling writes:



How well I remember Air Florida. $26 from Orlando to Tampa and on to Miami. And those cute little stewardai in their micromini Orange outfits. They must have been trained at the Playboy Club because when they served a drink on the other side of the aisle you could see the day of the week on their scanties.

Can't recall what the planes were ( DC-1's , but when you were seated it felt like you were in the reclined postion in a recliner. Everytime I flew I keep thinking, "Ten thousand nuts and bolts flying in a very loose formation"

Thanks for bringing back those memories Wit.

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69 isn't just a number, it's a way of life

El Lamero,
Air Florida flew Electras. I don't know the actual model but it might have been the L-188A like the one in this photo:
http://www.braniffinternational.org/air ... lectra.htm

You could tell when their aircraft were arriving or departing from the gate because the entire airport shook from those four huge props.

When I worked for Sun Airlines we flew a Beechcraft Queen Air. It only held 9 passengers and the pilot.

I would arrive at the counter at noon, call Tampa to get the reservation list, wait at the counter to write tickets (by hand) then take out the luggage on a little cart and escort the passengers to the aircraft.

I did all of this in 1 hour for $3. The fare from Tallahassee to Tampa was $21. Then I had 1 hour off until I went to work washing cars for Hertz.

I shared a trailer with a guy who worked for Florida Airlines. The $60 a month I got for working for Sun Airlines paid my rent.
Ah, the good old days.

Low fare out of San Francisco for $255 plus tax....

http://search.travel.yahoo.com/bin/sear ... dc=SJO&s=p

_________________
The difference between a Sea Story and a Fairy Tale is that a Fairy Tale starts out 'Once Upon a Time..' and a Sea Story starts out 'This is no Shit...'

(export version only, some restrictions may apply, some assembly required, not valid where the sun don't shine...

if you live in the states of Poverty, Darkness or anywhere outside of The Blessings of Civilization Trust, Inc...other rules may apply)

Don't wait too long. I was checking prices daily for my upcoming apr 24th trip and the cheap seats are all gone Looks like May for my next attempt...

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GO Winnipeg JETS!

Last years fare from LAX was $343 w/ tax. I'm a waitin. So far the fares are $420 +tax. Hopefully it will drop soon.

They aren't making more seats.

Go to travelocity.com or expedia.com and select the dates you're interested in. Then click on "VIEW SEATS" to get an idea of which flights have seats available. You can do the same thing on the airline's websites but on Delta.com you have to pretend to book a trip before you can view the available seats.

If there is less than 30% availablility I doubt that the prices will be coming down. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the best days to find seats and better fares.

You can sometimes put a "HOLD" on a reservation for up to 2 weeks before you have to confirm it. That might buy you some time to see if they come down in price.

Don't get caught in a case of "snooze you lose".