Why does the airline industry always need bailouts and government subsidies and operates very inefficiently?
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I would argue that is because it is too efficient and competitive and doesn’t generate enough profits to stay afloat. There are many articles about this for example.
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/02/how-airline-ticket-prices-fell-50-in-30-years-and-why-nobody-noticed/273506/
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/02/how-airline-ticket-prices-fell-50-in-30-years-and-why-nobody-noticed/273506/
https://www.businessinsider.com/cost-of-flying-has-decreased-2015-10
There has been no major technological breakthrough that would make it fundamentally cheaper since the introduction of wide bodied aircraft in the early 70s.
Deregulation was the biggest driver of price dropping since then but I would argue that the industry suffers from a lack of investment. It really should be somewhat more expensive to generate the investment to make it better.
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