Transatlantic flights, economy class

International travel in economy class can be decent... or just terrible. Last year I took a few trips to Europe. One of them was on Lufthansa, between Denver and Frankfurt. It was rather comfortable and both the food and the service were excellent. That flight was co-shared between the German company and United. On the way back, I was on the same route and co-shared segment, but this time on a United 747-400 where the cabin was dirty and the service and food were terrible. A few months later, I took another round trip to France on Delta, another big disappointment that confirmed the dismal state of our “international American flying class.” In June we flew again to the old country, this time on Air France planes and enjoyed excellent service and decent food. At the same time, our US airlines are cutting back, hemorrhaging cash and on the brink on not making it. European airlines still seem to survive, even thought they must have pension costs and personnel expenses that are even higher than their American counterparts; I certainly realize that a barrel of oil over $100 makes for severe economic challenges, but overall, foreign airlines seem to cope much better with the situation and are able to maintain a minimum of comfort for those of us who have to travel in the “back of the bus.” So how can you explain this dire state of affairs? Are the CEO of these U.S. companies siphoning all the difference into their own pockets?