Ganesh Sitaraman

Thanks so much for having me.

Thanks so much for having me.

Thanks so much for having me.

Well, like a lot of people, I fly a lot. And I've had my fair share of miserable flying experiences. But the other side of it for me is that I am a law professor and I study regulation and public policy. And so a few years ago, when we were in the midst of the COVID pandemic, And the airlines went to Congress and they asked for taxpayer support and they got it.

Well, like a lot of people, I fly a lot. And I've had my fair share of miserable flying experiences. But the other side of it for me is that I am a law professor and I study regulation and public policy. And so a few years ago, when we were in the midst of the COVID pandemic, And the airlines went to Congress and they asked for taxpayer support and they got it.

Well, like a lot of people, I fly a lot. And I've had my fair share of miserable flying experiences. But the other side of it for me is that I am a law professor and I study regulation and public policy. And so a few years ago, when we were in the midst of the COVID pandemic, And the airlines went to Congress and they asked for taxpayer support and they got it.

The year after that, we still had tens of thousands of flight cancellations and there was loss of service to cities. And what struck me was that there was a real policy story to be told here about why flying had gotten so miserable and why it's been miserable in this moment of crisis.

The year after that, we still had tens of thousands of flight cancellations and there was loss of service to cities. And what struck me was that there was a real policy story to be told here about why flying had gotten so miserable and why it's been miserable in this moment of crisis.

The year after that, we still had tens of thousands of flight cancellations and there was loss of service to cities. And what struck me was that there was a real policy story to be told here about why flying had gotten so miserable and why it's been miserable in this moment of crisis.

You know, to me, the worst experience is when you're in some giant hub connecting between two different cities and you run what seems like, you know, a half marathon to get from one side of the airport to the other side of the airport.

You know, to me, the worst experience is when you're in some giant hub connecting between two different cities and you run what seems like, you know, a half marathon to get from one side of the airport to the other side of the airport.

You know, to me, the worst experience is when you're in some giant hub connecting between two different cities and you run what seems like, you know, a half marathon to get from one side of the airport to the other side of the airport.

Carrying your stuff. And then you get there and at the end, you are just a few feet away when you see them close that door and you know they can't open the door once they've closed it and you've just missed your flight by seconds. To me, that's the most frustrating experience.

Carrying your stuff. And then you get there and at the end, you are just a few feet away when you see them close that door and you know they can't open the door once they've closed it and you've just missed your flight by seconds. To me, that's the most frustrating experience.

Carrying your stuff. And then you get there and at the end, you are just a few feet away when you see them close that door and you know they can't open the door once they've closed it and you've just missed your flight by seconds. To me, that's the most frustrating experience.

Everything that we think about in the country with flying is really a function of public policy choices. We decide as a country whether children's toys are safe, whether we want rural places to have electricity. These are all policy choices, and airlines are not so different.

Everything that we think about in the country with flying is really a function of public policy choices. We decide as a country whether children's toys are safe, whether we want rural places to have electricity. These are all policy choices, and airlines are not so different.

Everything that we think about in the country with flying is really a function of public policy choices. We decide as a country whether children's toys are safe, whether we want rural places to have electricity. These are all policy choices, and airlines are not so different.

So after the Wright brothers first had their flight at the beginning of the 20th century, the early years of airline flying was really subsidized by the government through the form of the post office. And there were subsidies for airmail. And the purpose of this was to build this industry up.

So after the Wright brothers first had their flight at the beginning of the 20th century, the early years of airline flying was really subsidized by the government through the form of the post office. And there were subsidies for airmail. And the purpose of this was to build this industry up.