BDS writes:

I'm not so sure about that. Were one to do a analysis of what it costs
today versus where income levels are, compared to what it cost in the 80s
versus where income levels were, I wouldn't be surprised if it was actually
cheaper now than it was back then.

I would be interested in seeing such an analysis. I don't really know if it
is cheaper or not, but I rather suspect it is more expensive (possibly much
more expensive).

I don't think cost is the main problem. While there is no doubt that
participation in just about any type of flying activity is shrinking (and
has been for quite a long time, at least in the USA), I believe that there
are other factors at work that are responsible for this. Cost is certainly
a factor, but I don't think that it is the primary one.

What are the other factors, and what can be done to compensate for them?

Apart from cost, the things that come to my mind are the substantial amount of
time required to even begin to fly (hours of flying pale in comparison to
hours of instruction and training and exams, at least in the beginning), and
the many regulatory hurdles to flying, such as the need for a license, various
ratings, a strict medical exam, insurance, and so on.

Overall, flying is a lot more difficult than it should be. While this will
not discourage the most fanatic flyers, it considerably narrows the field of
potential pilots, and even the fanatically devoted pilots have a vested
interest in encouraging other people to fly, as it helps pay for and justify
the massive infrastructure upon which all pilots depend.

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