The Jet Age: The Advent of Jet Aircraft and Its Impact on International Travel (Spoiler: It Ruined Pants)
How a screaming metal tube turned globe-trotting from a luxury for legends into a nightmare for your sweatpants.) Let’s take a trip back in time. The year is 1952. You’re a fancy person. You’ve saved for years, you’re wearing your best suit or a dress with gloves, and you’re about to board a BOAC flight from London to Johannesburg. The aircraft? A propeller-driven de Havilland Comet. The travel time? A breezy 21 hours, not including stops to refuel and, presumably, for the pilot to consult a sextant. You sipped champagne, you slept in a real bed, you wrote long, thoughtful letters on monogrammed stationery. Travel was an event. It was glamorous. Your pants were pressed, and your dignity was intact. Then, the jet engine happened. And it ruined everything. The "Holy @#$%, We’re Going How Fast?!" Moment The advent of the jet engine didn’t just make planes faster; it fundamentally altered the human experience of geography, time, and the structural integrity of our eardrums. Befor...