Steve Chapman Asks: Are the Airlines Colluding—or Just Careful?
(kevin dooley / photo on flickr)
In recent decades, there have been many ways to make money and one virtually infallible formula for losing it: running an airline. At times, it might have made more sense for the major carriers to set up bonfires of cash on tarmacs rather than actually transport people.
Lately, though, they have figured out how to avoid squandering huge sums. Hint: It involves charging more for their services than it costs to provide them. This strange development has set off alarms among people in Congress who think aviation should be a charitable activity. Steve Chapman analyzes the calls for Department of Justice intervention.