2011年真题 Passage One-英语听力

[00:00.35]Few people expect luxury while flying, but these days, even the basics seem to be in bad shape. [00:07.08]It's not uncommon to find your tray table broken, the in-flight entertainment system not working and your seat cushion worn. [00:15.51]All of this can make you think: how old is this plane anyway? [00:19.90]The reality for many U.S.air travellers is that most of their journeys take place on planes [00:25.15]that have been in service for a decade or more. [00:28.28]The average age of the fleet of the seven large U.S.passenger airlines is about 14 years old,according to The Airline Monitor. [00:36.42]It found American and Delta/Northwest had the oldest fleets, at about 16 years on average. [00:43.25]As of the end of 2008,a small percentage of the merged Delta/Northwest's planes dated back to the late 1960s. [00:51.69]U.S. fleets are among the oldest in the world,said Richard Aboulafia, an aviation analyst. [00:58.47]"I'm not really sure that people should read that much into that," Aboulafia said. [01:03.41]"From a safety standpoint, a lot of the older planes were built tougher and with proper maintenance. [01:08.66]There's no reason why a plane can't stay safe for 25 to 30 years." [01:13.15]It's also important to remember that a plane may be 20 years old, [01:16.95]but its engines and other major systems could have been recently manufactured or upgraded,said Aboulafia. [01:23.84]There's less pressure on the airlines to upgrade the interior, unless it's a safety issue or a redesign that will save money.