>I just got four one-way tickets from Newport News, VA to Portland,
>ME for $400 in August to close the third leg of our vacation.
>Couldn't have done that before deregulation.
Yup. And try to fly to Chicago tomorrow, and you'll discover it'll cost you $1,200.
Here's what the CPI says for airfares. In the pre-dereg era, fares rose more slowly then overall inflation. In the post-dereg era, they rose more quickly - mainly because of purchase restrictions, more stops/connections, etc., reducing quality, and therefore boosting the real price.
CPI - AVERAGE ANNUAL INCREASE
all airfares
1964-1979 5.4% 4.4% 1979-2001 4.2% 7.3%