what has become of the man himself, Sir Freddie Laker?
September 1977 Freddie Laker began flying his Laker Skytrain planes from London to New York. With tickets costing 118, it was the first low cost operation of its type, and attracted huge public support. Other airlines lowered their fares in response, and by 1982 Skytrain had gone bust. A court later ruled that the other established airlines had been using illegal price pressure to put Laker out of business. Laker, who was knighted in 1978, had already become an icon of free enterprise. Embraced as an underdog, ordinary members of the public donated more than a million pounds to help keep his business afloat. September 2002 Sir Freddie is now 80, and living in the Bahamas. He opted out of the low fares boom which has seen EasyJet and Ryanair become big players in the market, and instead runs a small airline – Laker Airways – in the Caribbean. He says the anniversary makes him feel proud, sad and nostalgic – but he still has strong feelings about how the established airlines behave. Sir
