Booking a commercial flight in the 1970s and 1980s meant calling a travel agent, waiting for paper tickets to arrive, and accepting whatever seat the agent assigned you. Today, a flight from New York to Los Angeles takes 90 seconds and costs less than dinner. Here's how air travel transformed from a complicated milestone into something we barely think about.
Mar 13, 2026
Before GPS turned every drive into a narrated experience, Americans navigated with paper maps, gas station guesswork, and a stubborn refusal to admit they were lost. It was frustrating, sometimes beautiful, and nothing like driving today.
Mar 13, 2026