Airline CEOs Forecast The Next 100 Years of Air Travel

Above, a PSA jet about to take off.

My first flight was in 2074 aboard a Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) Boeing 727 when I left San Jose, California to Los Angeles following a Republican State Convention. The cost of that one-way flight was around $35.00.

Today, one-way flights from San Jose to Los Angeles have gone up a bit to around $58.00 (not counting taxes and fees) and PSA is no longer around (it operated from 1949 to 1988). Airlines now are charging for conveniences that were once free (or part of the airfare). Those and other fees plus taxes have gone through the roof.

Japan Today has posted an article on what is in store for commercial aviation in the next 100 years according to airline CEOs.

Here's a snippet from the article:

Wednesday marked the 100th anniversary of the first commercial flight: a 23-minute hop across Florida’s Tampa Bay. The St Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line was subsidized by St Petersburg officials who wanted more winter tourists in their city. The alternative: an 11-hour train ride from Tampa. 

Pilot Tony Jannus had room for just one passenger, who sat next to him in the open cockpit. Three months later — when tourism season ended — so did the subsidy. The airline had carried 1,204 passengers but would never fly again. 

With the anniversary in mind, The Associated Press reached out to today’s aviation leaders to see what they are predicting for the future of flying. Answers have been edited for length and clarity.

To see what airline CEOs are saying what's in store for the next 100 years, go here.