Flying, despite all its drawbacks, is still one of humanity's greatest achievements and has transformed our society to such an extent that most people today can't even imagine what it's like to travel long distances before the rise of commercial aviation. A trip across the ocean which once took weeks or months with a very high chance of a horrific death now takes at most 12 hours and is the safest mode of transport. If that doesn't warrant applause I don't know what does.