All that innovation for what?

Seriously, why? Are we any better off? What effe did perfecting the plane have on the planet? Even now we build greater sen greater drones.. It's telling that one of the planes is flown by radio alone in the film,a precursor to the drone and automation in general.
Why do I find Conquest distasteful? Because of it's pandering to the lower classes, glazing over the destruction of WWI bombing raids by showing a propaganda drop raid, and making air travel seem like a good thing for the masses.
In reality, air travel made war worse than ever, created lifestyles which forced families apart and isolated individuals more,caused America to destroy invaluable rail infrastructure,and freed CEOs,bankers, and the elite from having to share any of the infrastructure the middle/lower classes use(Rio w/ it's helicopter elite with their gated and armed communities only accessible through helicopter pads which take off and land on rarified ground,either new Alphavilles or their workpaces,the modern skyscraper,more impervious to the lower class than the castles before them).
When we allowed our tools to dominate ourselves and subjugate ourselves to progress,we went from a potential world of plenty to a world teetering on the abyss of self destruction.

"Trees cause more pollution than automobiles." Ronald Reagan