The Economics of Sharing the Commons: The Case of Airplanes

An airplane is an interesting "Commons".    You pay for the right to enter the plane and if you pay more you enter earlier ("now boarding Business Class") and get a nicer seat.   But, once you are on the plane the fight begins for overhead space, armrests and toilets.  People start sneezing and eating stinky food and have strange conversations.  How do strangers share the commons when you can't "opt out" and are stuck together for hours in an uncomfortable setting?

More interesting is the fact that flight attendants are the "first responders" on the front lines dealing with all sorts of people and issues.   Given the number of miles people fly, it is surprising that there aren't more fights on planes. Now add in video taping of everything and we have the comical skies.

If everyone flew in their own "pod" none of these issues would arise.  

While scale economies obviously highlight the benefits of sharing a technology (such as a plane and a pilot), the "congestion effects" from flying with others may be rising over time.

There are counter-veiling effects. In the past, trains were highly annoying as everyone would be talking loud having a private conversation on their phone.  Now, few people make phone calls and instead text others what they are thinking and trains are now quiet due to technological change.

So, this has been a sociology post. Can we productively share common space with strangers? Or during a time of anxiety and fear of terrorism, we distrust all whom we are brought into close proximity to?   

An airline that could develop a "good culture" on the flight might be able to obtain market share.  I don't know how to achieve this but here is a case where psychology and sociology could be applied to improve quality of life during flight hours.   Business Class always offers a good time but coach is painful for all.  Must it be? Or as we age and grow fatter, there just isn't enough room or oxygen.