Marisa Garcia

Here we have the secret of the Spirit ULCC formula for success: butts in seats. Butts in tight seats, even. You can build an entire industry around the 1%--and airline industry has--but the 99% are still going to want to fly.

Richard Branson made sure that his Virgin Atlantic oozed cool and shook the aviation industry out of a bland stupor. It's good to see that dynamic brand endure in an industry where many other iconic trailblazers have faded into memory.

Perhaps Baldanza spends a lot of time practicing his candor and approachability, but it's working.

Airlines would strongly disagree with all of this. In fairness, airlines have their own cost burdens to tackle. But an extra $4 each way is hardly the worst air travel fee we’ve come across. Especially since their ancillary fees are one giant tax dodge.

An emphasis on understated style allows for smart fares that will make these cabins really attractive to passengers in Northern Europe (and beyond).

What we should really be asking is: if these airlines can compete with suites, why doesn’t everybody else? The fault is in the dark shadows of cabin footprint strategies. That's a story for another day--very soon.

That passengers are willing to pay for some conveniences that would otherwise be free--such as flight updates, in-seat power, and better baggage tracking--tells you everything you need to know about the state of affairs in today's air passenger experience. There are projects underway to solve these issues, and no one has talked about charging for them. We hope this doesn't give anyone funny ideas.

As the use of beacons to connect with customers becomes commonplace in other areas of life, such as retail, aviation will have an easier time making passengers comfortable with these exchanges. The trick is data exchange with airports, and between airlines. The commercial and strategic value of the Big Data airlines gather about us at various stages of the journey makes them loathe to share too much.

Forty years sounds like a long time, but in aviation it’s barely long enough time to get your kit together.

The growth of connectivity and entertainment in-flight is both encouraging and impressive. We still feel the birds-eye view from the window is the most thrilling and entertaining thing about being on a plane, but it's great to have something to do when the lights are off.