Lesson8 Air Rage
Forty years ago, Americans planning a long trip overwhelmingly chose to travel by car or train, or if going overseas, by ship. Air travel was still a relatively expensive means of transportation favoured by wealthy Americans.
These days air travel is an integral part of the lives of the large majority of travellers in the United States. The cost of an air ticket has not changed much since 1960, while the average American's buying power has increased ten times. Even in the past ten years, air travel by Americans has increased by 37 percent.Unfortunately the construction of new airports and the training of personnel have not kept pace with the demand for more flights. These shortfalls, along with the usual, frequent occurrences of bad weather, have resulted in a large number of delays in both departures and arrivals of airplanes across the country. In fact, delays affected 40 percent of all domestic flights during the past year. These delays have contributed to increased frustration among travellers and outbreaks of violent behaviour during flights, a new phenomenon known as "air rage."
overwhelmingly 压倒性地
shortfall 不足
outbreak 爆发
飞机旅行暴怒症
四十年前，美国人计划长途旅行的话，绝大多数选择汽车或火车出行，如果出国，则选择船。飞机旅行只是富裕的美国人青睐的一种相对昂贵的交通方式。
现在飞机旅行成了美国绝大多数出游者生活的不可缺少的一部分。自1960年以来，飞机票的价格没怎么变化，而普通美国人的购买力已经增长了十倍。即使在过去的十年中，坐飞机旅行的美国人增长了百分之三十七。
不幸的是，新机场的建设和机组人员的培训赶不上对航空旅行的需求。这些不足和经常出现的恶劣天气，导致国内飞行中经常发生推迟起飞和延误到达。事实上，去年有百分之四十的国内飞行受到延误的影响。这些延误给旅行者带来越来越多的愤怒和痛苦，导致航空旅行中的暴力行为，这是一种被称之为“飞机旅行暴怒症”的新现象。 |