Cheap airplane tickets have remained a constant over the last 10 years, as the availability of discount travel packages has grown. Little else about flying has remained unchanged.
After 9/11/01 air travel changes accelerated. The number of prohibited carry on items tripled. Passenger were no longer allowed to wear shoes through checkpoints after Richard Reid in December of 01 tried to ignite explosives in his shoe to destroy the plane he was flying on at the time. In August of 06 British security discovered a conspiracy to blow up airplanes using liquid explosives. Restrictions on liquids and gels quickly followed.
Flying is much more challenging than it was a decade ago. Fliers face more flight delays, lost baggage, overbooked flights, fewer cabin amenities and unpopular fees (for things like checked bags and exit aisle seating) that used to be free.
And yet dealing with all of these frustrations, more Americans fly now that they did at the beginning of the decade. Even though US air passenger travel peaked in 07 with 770 million travelers, and with the ongoing current recession, 26 million more people flew in the first eight months of 09 than the first nine months of 00.
There are three primary reasons so many people continue to fly so frequently: 1) Families are often spread across the country, 2) Air travel is a requirement of many jobs, and 3) Cheap fares are even cheaper on average than they were a decade ago.
According to the Bureau of Transportation domestic fares were 11% lower in the second quarter of 09 when compared to 00 ($301 vs. $339).
The odds are most of you will continue flying regardless of the obstacles.