Exactly what I was thinking! If all the passengers rode motorcycles for 3000 miles, they would collectively use a lot more fuel than that airliner does.

Fuel economy = profit for airlines so there is no need for government intervention. I foresee a continuing set of incremental improvements, not some radical design change. More efficient engines, lighter composite materials, etc. Compare a modern car to the old clunkers we drove in the 1960's. They are radically better in every way, but, it came about from the cumulative effect of a series of incremental improvements, not from some revolutionary discovery.

In spite of all the hyperbole about the advantages of canards, flying wings, and lifting bodies, the fact that most all competition RC sailplanes are conventional wing, fusilage, and rear stabilizer designs tells a lot about just how terrible the conventional airplane is not.