The government could have prevented the mergers that led to this state of affairs. The result was easy to predict: higher prices, worse service, and frankly abusive practices. The only weapon that consumers have left in their arsenal is the camera on their iPhones, leading to random US senators calling for investigations.Libertarian666 wrote:The airline industry is mostly a coercive monopoly (oligopoly) because the US government prohibits foreign competitors from carrying passengers from one point to another in the US unless the route in question includes a foreign country. Thus, British Airways (for example) cannot carry passengers originating from New York to terminate in Los Angeles; only US-based airlines can do this. Obviously allowing such competition would be very likely to improve service and reduce costs, but this is up to the government to change.
It would be useful if a true journalist, if any even exist anymore, could have investigated the reasons behind these mergers. Perhaps it was creeping or post-9/11 over-regulation, for example. But I couldn't find any article even venturing to speculate.
