Test 1 Few people expect luxury while flying, but these days, even the basics seem to be in bad shape. It's not uncommon to find your tray table broken, the in-flight entertainment system not working and your seat 1_____ worn——all of this can make you think: how old is this plane anyway? The reality for many U.S. air travellers is that most of their journeys take place on planes that have been in service for a 2_______ or more. The average age of the fleet of the seven large U.S. passenger airlines is about 14 years old, according to The Airline Monitor. It found American Delta / Northwest had the oldest fleets, at about 16 years on average. As of the end of 2008, a small percentage of the 3______ Delta / Northwest's planes dated back to the late 1960s. U.S. fleets are among the oldest in the world, said Richard Aboulafia, an 4________ analyst." I'm not really sure that people should read that much into that, Aboulafia said. "From a safety 5______, a lot of the older planes were built tougher and with proper 6______." There's no reason why a plane can not stay safe for 25 to 30 years. "It's also important to remember that a plane may be 20 years old, but its engines and other major systems could have been recently 7______ or upgraded," said Aboulafia. There's less pressure on the airlines to 8______ the 9______, unless it's a safety 10______ or a redesign that will save money.