Why your flight costs so much now
- Jul 31
- 1 min read
Great for price discrimination. Taylor reframes 'stupid' airline websites as clever machines for working out willingness to pay, walking through third-degree discrimination (child, off-peak, senior discounts) and then the self-selecting fare bundles (Basic, Regular, Plus, Flexi Plus) that get travellers to sort themselves by how much they will pay. The unbundling of bags, seats and breakfast, and the prospect of AI-driven individual pricing, extend it nicely towards evaluation. Directly relevant to price discrimination, willingness to pay and consumer surplus. Accessible to all students and detailed enough to build real analysis on, so a strong candidate for a full lesson or worksheet. Read here