This is a well-intentioned piece, but it's worth noting a few things here (disclosure: I have worked in aviation for over 25 years):
1. The US aviation market was fully previously regulated. Prior to 1978, the Civil Aeronautics Board essentially controlled the industry. What routes a company could fly, whether or not they could drop them, etc. If you look at, say, United's network from back then, it is completely foreign to what they fly today. There are a few vestiges of that left (see: The Essential Air Service program for small towns), but by and large, the public (ie us) have decided what routes stay and which ones go.
2. "Americans should be able to traverse their country as easily, frugally, and comfortably as possible. (Even the staunchest capitalist can’t defend private air travel as “easy, frugal, and comfortable” with a straight face."
I am saying this with a straight face. In real terms, air travel is cheaper than it used to be. Flights are more accessible, the internet has made fare transparency a thing, and it's relatively easy to get on a plane and go from Point A to Point B. Is it comfortable? I suppose that's subjective, but compared to other modes of long-haul travel, I would say yes.
3. Bailouts: The entire CARES Act can be debated, but I think it's important to note that at the time, the thought was that COVID would be relatively brief, and that travel would ramp back up. Hindsight's 20/20. It's also worth noting that the industry is a large economic driver, both at the local and national levels. There are a lot of jobs tied to aviation, and shutting it down would've had a lot of 2nd order effects (actually, it was largely shut down for some time, but the few planes that were running in early 2020 were getting healthcare workers to early hotspots, and transporting medical equipment. And, sadly, getting people to loved ones before the clock ran out.
3A. Regarding Delta's Omicron #'s; For the entire pandemic, DL has had an infection rate at/lower than the general population. Workers also share equipment and work in close quarters. With the high Rnot this variant has, it only stands to reason that those numbers would be high- and that doesn't even count those isolating due to an ill family member (or taking care of one). FWIW, it's 8000 out of roughly 75000 employees.
4. Most of the industry is already owned/run by the people. Airports are generally self-funded through passenger fees, as opposed to taxes shouldered by locals.
5. High-speed rail: It's viable in some markets, but not all. Acela began the end of air shuttles between NY, Boston, and DC. COVID has almost finished them off. You could make a good case for one running up/down California, and maybe Chicago-Milwaukee. After that, it gets tougher. If I want to go Milwaukee to Phoenix, that's not happening via rail. The distance is too great. People don't want to spend 10-20 hours getting to their destination if it doesn't involve crossing an ocean.
6. The environment. There has been a push in the industry for carbon offsets. that was met with a resounding "meh." More importantly, are advances in Sustainable Aviation Fuels(SAFS). There's certainly a long way to go, but a LOT of progress has been made in the last few years.
Just some thoughts from the other side. I'm eager to hear what others have to say.
"As the economist and Chilean Fascist Enabler Milton Friedman" This seems incredibly antagonistic for no reason Other than an easy dunk. If you're trying to make the best case for your ideas I would rather see you steel-man the person (ie take them at face value, and present their argument THEN defeat it rather then going for low hanging fruit), then straw man them. This is no different than when people say "Venezuela diet Enthusiast Bernie Sanders." It's funny and will probably get a laugh in your circle but it's not doing much to change anyone's mind, and if I'm not mistaken is that not the point of all of this?
I think what is needed in the US is a high speed rail network that is powered by renewable energy, rather than a state airline. The mess that is the aviation industry have been 70 years in the making and there is no simple way to untangle it today. Introducing a new airline will not solve it.
Instead of nationalising all private airlines, if they just let the poorly run airlines that payout huge dividends in profitable years, to perish when the times are tough, things will be just fine.
This is a well-intentioned piece, but it's worth noting a few things here (disclosure: I have worked in aviation for over 25 years):
1. The US aviation market was fully previously regulated. Prior to 1978, the Civil Aeronautics Board essentially controlled the industry. What routes a company could fly, whether or not they could drop them, etc. If you look at, say, United's network from back then, it is completely foreign to what they fly today. There are a few vestiges of that left (see: The Essential Air Service program for small towns), but by and large, the public (ie us) have decided what routes stay and which ones go.
2. "Americans should be able to traverse their country as easily, frugally, and comfortably as possible. (Even the staunchest capitalist can’t defend private air travel as “easy, frugal, and comfortable” with a straight face."
I am saying this with a straight face. In real terms, air travel is cheaper than it used to be. Flights are more accessible, the internet has made fare transparency a thing, and it's relatively easy to get on a plane and go from Point A to Point B. Is it comfortable? I suppose that's subjective, but compared to other modes of long-haul travel, I would say yes.
3. Bailouts: The entire CARES Act can be debated, but I think it's important to note that at the time, the thought was that COVID would be relatively brief, and that travel would ramp back up. Hindsight's 20/20. It's also worth noting that the industry is a large economic driver, both at the local and national levels. There are a lot of jobs tied to aviation, and shutting it down would've had a lot of 2nd order effects (actually, it was largely shut down for some time, but the few planes that were running in early 2020 were getting healthcare workers to early hotspots, and transporting medical equipment. And, sadly, getting people to loved ones before the clock ran out.
3A. Regarding Delta's Omicron #'s; For the entire pandemic, DL has had an infection rate at/lower than the general population. Workers also share equipment and work in close quarters. With the high Rnot this variant has, it only stands to reason that those numbers would be high- and that doesn't even count those isolating due to an ill family member (or taking care of one). FWIW, it's 8000 out of roughly 75000 employees.
4. Most of the industry is already owned/run by the people. Airports are generally self-funded through passenger fees, as opposed to taxes shouldered by locals.
5. High-speed rail: It's viable in some markets, but not all. Acela began the end of air shuttles between NY, Boston, and DC. COVID has almost finished them off. You could make a good case for one running up/down California, and maybe Chicago-Milwaukee. After that, it gets tougher. If I want to go Milwaukee to Phoenix, that's not happening via rail. The distance is too great. People don't want to spend 10-20 hours getting to their destination if it doesn't involve crossing an ocean.
6. The environment. There has been a push in the industry for carbon offsets. that was met with a resounding "meh." More importantly, are advances in Sustainable Aviation Fuels(SAFS). There's certainly a long way to go, but a LOT of progress has been made in the last few years.
Just some thoughts from the other side. I'm eager to hear what others have to say.
"As the economist and Chilean Fascist Enabler Milton Friedman" This seems incredibly antagonistic for no reason Other than an easy dunk. If you're trying to make the best case for your ideas I would rather see you steel-man the person (ie take them at face value, and present their argument THEN defeat it rather then going for low hanging fruit), then straw man them. This is no different than when people say "Venezuela diet Enthusiast Bernie Sanders." It's funny and will probably get a laugh in your circle but it's not doing much to change anyone's mind, and if I'm not mistaken is that not the point of all of this?
I think what is needed in the US is a high speed rail network that is powered by renewable energy, rather than a state airline. The mess that is the aviation industry have been 70 years in the making and there is no simple way to untangle it today. Introducing a new airline will not solve it.
Instead of nationalising all private airlines, if they just let the poorly run airlines that payout huge dividends in profitable years, to perish when the times are tough, things will be just fine.