Inflation adjusted, I'd be seriously curious how much you paid for that flight. My general understanding is that a ton of the "flying used to be nice" anecdotes are because in the 90s and before, almost everyone was flying at a cost/service level that's essentially what first class is now.
So, yes, everything sucks more now, but it's also far more affordable, and part of how it became more affordable was that the mid to late 90s brought the first wave of budget airlines like Airtran that lowered service and legroom and the like but made it cheaper.
There's a common refrain about a lot of things - air travel and the internet most of all, that amount to "this thing was better when it was a luxury service for only the rich."
Thats a fair point. I just flew to Europe for <$600 on a direct flight. Pretty sure that wasn’t even possible in the 90s, adjusted for inflation. Prices are definitely lower and more competitive. The experience has gotten somewhat worse though, unless you go through all the annoying hoops of TSA Pre/Global Entry/credit cards with Airport lounges etc etc
Southwest Airlines has existed since the 1967. Maybe flying is cheaper now inflation adjusted, but I was able to buy airline tickets as a college student in the late 90s/2000s.
So, yes, everything sucks more now, but it's also far more affordable, and part of how it became more affordable was that the mid to late 90s brought the first wave of budget airlines like Airtran that lowered service and legroom and the like but made it cheaper.
There's a common refrain about a lot of things - air travel and the internet most of all, that amount to "this thing was better when it was a luxury service for only the rich."