Full Upright and Locked Position: Not-So-Comfortable Truths about Air Travel Today
Aviation consultant Gerchick (former chief counsel of the FAA) has crafted a user-­friendly, nuts-and-bolts survey of contemporary commercial air travel. From the revelation of our new flight-related services purchasing ­experience—whereby airlines no longer sell customers a flight but a whole litany of separate items, such as seat assignments, drinks, snacks, legroom, etc.—Gerchick proceeds to safety topics (older jets, pilot training), costs (fares, fees, and other games), and in-flight illnesses (blood clots! SARS!). In discussing the unmitigated dread of being trapped on a runway-parked aircraft for hours, he covers high-profile and hair-raising events that resulted in regulatory action and a passenger bill of rights. One can quibble with some of Gerchick’s conclusions (anonymous quotes seem cherry-picked to confirm the author’s points) and wonder about the overt, as in circa 1970, sexism in the cockpit he describes, but it’s hard not to nod your head in agreement with his overall picture of the flailing industry. We all hate to fly these days; Gerchick shows us just how valid that negative reaction is. --Colleen Mondor