Destined for failure.. or blame September 11th?

             Some people would argue that the airline industry was destined to fail even prior to feeling the effects of September 11^th. Looking at the economic trends of the industry prior to September 11^th, it’s obvious where these people got this idea. The airline industry in the United States was trending steadily downward all of the late 1990’s and even up to 2001. There is a group of economists who think that the airline industry would have just kept spiraling downward just as it did after September 11^th. The economists who follow the anti September 11^th train of thought also claim that the overall effects of September 11^th are entirely too exaggerated.

            However, most experts of the airline industry blame September 11^th for causing the industry’s ultimate downfall. They have an extremely strong case for this as well. September 11^th hurt the airlines in many more ways than experts who think the industry killed itself are willing to admit. Not only did the airlines lose revenue from not being able to fly for 3 entire days, but the event instilled fear in the flying public that has not been shaken to this day. The fact is that September 11^th scared people away from flying. The airlines would not have been able to recover from an event with the magnitude of September 11^th regardless of how well off the airlines were before the event.

            It’s obvious that September 11^th put a dagger in the airline industry. The industry had always recovered from financial dips in the years prior to 2001. The only factor that changed to cause the bankruptcies was September 11^th. The economists who try to minimize the effects of September 11^th are ignorant to the magnitude of the event.