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Writer's pictureFlying Smarter

Why Flying is Miserable with Ganesh Sitaraman

Episode 49 ·
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Andrew starts this episode by talking about why we board and deplane from the left side of the aircraft. Afterwards, the main segment of this episode features law professor Ganesh Sitaraman, who joins Andrew to talk about why flying is miserable and what we can do about it from a regulatory perspective.

  • In the last episode, we talked a lot about boarding. One question that came up is why we always board and disembark on the left side. Learn more in this episode.

  • Did you know that there are some airlines that don’t fly on Christmas Day? The holiday season is one of the busiest times of the year for the air travel industry, but some airlines don’t fly on December 25th itself.

  • In the main segment of this episode, law professor Ganesh Sitaraman shares his insights about airline regulation and deregulation in the United States. From delays and cancellations to poor service, there’s no shortage of reasons why flying isn’t always fun. Ganesh brings a regulatory perspective to the podcast, looking at the impacts of deregulation on the travel experience today, what potential changes in the regulatory regime could look like, and much more.

Ganesh Sitaraman is a law professor at Vanderbilt University and the director of the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator for Political Economy and Regulation. He teaches and writes about constitutional law, the regulatory state, economic policy, democracy, and foreign affairs and is the author of numerous books. In addition, he is a member of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee. His latest book, Why Flying is Miserable and How to Fix It, offers insight into the state of air travel in the United States from a regulatory perspective. You can learn more about Ganesh and his work and books on his website and find him on X (Twitter) .


The next episode of Flying Smarter is Episode 50 and we have some things announcements planned, including a giveaway. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast and follow Flying Smarter on social media so that you don’t miss anything!


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Vanderbilt law professor Ganesh Sitaraman

Ganesh Sitaraman is a law professor and the director of the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator for Political Economy and Regulation. As a very accomplished lawyer and scholar, he has authored several books with a focus on constitutional law, state regulation, economic policy and foreign affairs. His latest book, Why Flying is Miserable and How to Fix It, is now available.

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