I more "bypassed" it that missed it.
Or even possible addressed it tangentally.
Let me go head on.
Southwest has built the low fare model. You get a bus. No assigned seat, cramped planes, zoo at checkin, etc. BUT, you get a cheap fare.
The stup/** (err...other) guys have decided that they want to be able to match that PRICE...but want to pretend that they can do it and offer other amenities, such as 3 inches more seat pitch (taking 3 rows of seats out to do it), maintaining a first class (at the cost of 1 to 2 more rows of available seats per plane) and at the cost of maintaining the galley for another row of seats gone. Plus, all the infrastructure to support these things cost money...computer system to maintain seat inventory, procurement of galley services, coffee, blah blah.
So, Soutwest can charge lower, all other things equal, because they have more seats on the plane to sell and less overhead to operate.
But you go on travelocity and assume that $148 is a fair price to pay to go to Dayton (for whatever freakin reason:-). It may very well be you consider it fair, but you probably would pay that in gas for your own car. It is very likely that the airline cannot operate that flight for less that $200 per passenger. In my mind, the minimum price they should charge would then be that $200...but they don't. They charge you and 5 friends 143, the 2 business guys 400, 2 others 500 and hope the average comes out over cost.
Yes the airlines have to figure out how to make the service better. But the passengers have to figure out that those things come at a cost they will eventually have to pay...and $143 round trip to Dayton is probably not enough.
