Need help from all you wonderful Pilots

[Vik]

Try and get an exit row seat, so you are facing the flight attendant's jumpseat.

Look at his or her face for the entire flight. If they begin to worry, you can start to worry.

Basically, if flying were dangerous, you would be hearing of airliners going down daily.

Its not dangerous and even in the worst weather, its just not dangerous.

Consider taking drugs ... just dont mix with alcohol and drink plenty of fluids on the flight.

Hello all! I need help and this is the last place I'm searching for help.

I hope you can be very understanding as this is very overwhelming. I am a fearful flyer. Absolutely phobic! I have taken the FOF course, and have visited the forums for help.

Unfortunately, there are probably only a couple of pilots and the rest are just like me - fearful flyers seeking advice. So, my threads never really get answered the way I want. I am leaving in two weeks and I am a mess. Please I ask help me feel at ease by sharing some information.

This is what bothers me: at take off, the plane is going so fast and all of a sudden it banks either way. I feel like the plane will roll-over. This is overwhelming. Also at take-off, I feel that so many things can go wrong, loss of power, engine fires, engine loss, mid-air collision, etc. The feeling of no control at that point is sickening. Then, there's the question if the pilot and the ATC are both on the same page.

Once reaching what you all call at cruise, then its the turbulence thing. Ok I will have to admit that I have been focusing on this for at least two weeks now and I have a good feeling about this. In lay terms, only little bumps in the sky - sort of like bumps on an unpaved/poorly paved road. I think I have made some stride. I always felt that the wings, plane, engine would break off. I have experienced years ago some bumpy flights.

Final decending and landing - believe it or not, this is total phsycological - I feel good. Kind of the end to a bad bad thing!

My last trip was in June (not by choice) I was flying my 13 year old son to TX for 2 weeks. Why didn't I just send him alone, my fear is so bad that I thought if something were to happen, he's not alone. The trip back alone was on a couple of beers and Atavin. My son kept saying "Mom, you'll be fine". Wise guy for so young.

Anyway, I am flying on AA757 ORD to San Jan then on a ATR 72 (I think) connect to ST. Thomas. Can you guys help me thru this process. The "no big deals/worries" w/take offs, cruise and landing...The noises make me go bonkers. All the dings - thinking the pilots are sending stress signals to the FA's. I will have to say, the Pilots and FA's on my last trip were incredibly empathetic with me. I was very pleased. Although, I have had FA's in the past that would make a comment like "Girl, if it were dangerous you think I'd be up here..." kind of comment. Well, no duh! But, when you suffer this type of phobia, it doesn't register.

Thank you in advance - I know, I know - this is not the right place (I think) to go, but In lieu of some therapy that I can't afford and someone talking to me that has never flown a 'fricken plane before, I'd rather take it to the Pro's. I wish I knew a pilot that I could talk to. This would be a super help!

Thank you so much.
Sandy

 

[C425Driver]

jcrew10,


My dad used to be scared 5hitless of flying. To make things worse, his job required him to travel by air about every 6 weeks. After about four years of fearing for his life he asked himself, "what are the chances of something going wrong?". He started dwelling on that question instead of all of the improbable "what if's" and soon he had no fear of flying. Now he enjoys flying with me in single engine planes and he doesn't think twice about getting on an airliner. Focus on the reality of the situation, not the "what if's".

C425Driver

 

[bin LAAidoff]

"I wish I knew a pilot that I could talk to. This would be a super help!"

Your wish is my command. When you check in, politely ask to preboard, and if asked why, mention your fear/concerns to the gate agent, and that you would like to say hello to the captain. When you get onboard, ask if you can come up and say hello the captain. I imagine the flight attendants will do their best to accomodate, and next thing you know, you are talking to the pilots that are flying you! Whom can encourage you better than the folks flying you? It sounds like in the past our flight attendants have been great support. Take it one step further, include the pilots. We are approachable.

We fly airplanes, that's our job, we a trained to handle "it". There is an extra level of satisfaction, a "bonus" of sorts when we get the opportunity to meet face to face with a nervous customer, and help them feel secure obout our flight. Unfortunately, we dont get the time to go through the aisles these days, talking with everyone, and answering the many questions non flyers have. Dont be afraid to raise your hand, come say hello while the airplane is at the gate! I promise you it will be worth the trip.

Happy flying!

ps the 757 is one of the greatest airplanes ever built!

 

[minitour]

I feel for you.

Back in January, I was taking a vacation to golf in Florida and I "thought" that I wanted to try learning to fly.

Well, honestly, I was never a good flyer. I don't care for turbulence and the angle of bank on airliners was just a little bit more than I always felt was right.

Now that I've been doing this for 8 months, I love it. The takeoff thing will be the hardest for you to get over most likely. It does seem like the turnouts are pretty low, but the airline guys have specific rules they have to follow through their company I'm sure and they won't do anything dangerous.

You've got the right mind set about in flight turbulence. It is just a bumpy road. Think of yourself in a bus going down a bumpy road. I've been in some pretty decent turbulence on airliners and I know sometimes it can freak you out, but the planes are designed to fly and the pilots are trained to deal with it appropriately.

Another thing to keep in mind is that aerodynamically, airplanes want to fly. If you get them going fast enough, they will fly. The wings are going to produce enough lift to keep you up there so you won't just fall out of the sky. They're very aerodynamically stable.

I agree with talking to the pilots. That seemed to help my wife out a bunch. When we went on our honeymoon in August it was her first time on an airplane. So we got there plenty early and talked to the FO for about 10 minutes. She was a little scared and kept asking me "what is happening now" or "what was that"...to which I just kept feeding her B.S. like I knew what they were doing. But I did manage to get her on a plane (all by herself) a few weeks ago to visit me. She's a regular pro now.

Anyway...I hope everything goes well for you. The 75 is a pretty big plane and the bigger the plane, the less you feel the bumps.

Probably didn't help any but...have a good flight.

-mini

 

[350DRIVER]

The most dangerous part of flying is the drive to and from the airport, a positive mindset will go a long ways. Try not to think about worst case scenarios instead try and replace those thoughts with positive ones. When our time is up on this planet it is up regardless of the situation, whether on some airplane, in a car, on the operating table, while asleep, etc. Some variables in the equation are beyond one's control so just try to relax and all should go smoothly. You are one of many that "fear" flying and the only way to get over it is to tackle it straight on, change your mindset, and try to turn your negative thoughts into positive ones. Easier said than done sometimes.........

The odds are surely in your favor on this one.

Relax, sit back, and try to enjoy if at all possible. Just think about the end result of sitting back, soaking up that sun, and sippin on a few martinis in St. Thomas.... That should be enough there in itself to break the fear of flying.

3 5 0

 

[bobbysamd]

Alternative "fear of flying" idea

Take a couple of flying lessons. I am not kidding. For many people, fear of flying comes from fear of the unknown. However, for a lot of people, fear of flying dissipates after they've tried it and seen it themselves. Small airplanes fly using the same principles as big airplanes. You will actually fly the airplane during your lessons, you will experience the process, you will see how normal flight really is, and it will no longer be an unknown.

Look up "Aircraft Flight Training" in the yellow pages, call one of the schools or fixed-based operators at your local airport that offer flight training, and say you want an introductory flight. Good luck.

This is not an original idea. I recall an Oklahoma City TV news anchor from the 1980s (I am pretty sure it was Patti Suarez of Channel 9) who confessed a fear of flying. She took flying lessons and reported on her experiences.

 

[cforst513]

sandy, what is the last major crash you heard about?

can't think of any, can you? the last major one was in january 2003, and that was a small regional airliner that crashed, due to VERY poor maintenance (a rarity in the aviation field).

what you have to focus on, though, is the countless MILLIONS of people that arrive on a flight that experience no problems at all. my ex-g/f's family was like you. all of them REFUSED to fly unless they all were present on the plane in case something happened (yeah, b/c having all 5 die is better than just one...?!?!?! wtf?!? hence the "ex" in her description). there are THOUSANDS of daily flights that occur without a hitch. the chances of anything bad happening are minescule. and the old saying that you're more likely to die on the way to the airport than flying is so true. just last night my aunt, uncle, and cousin totalled their car avoiding a deer. unless it's December 25, i don't think an airliner has any deer to deal with!

good luck to you. flying is so magical, i hope that you can overcome your fears and can enjoy flying.

 

[Lead Sled]

Take a couple of flying lessons. I am not kidding. For many people, fear of flying comes from fear of the unknown. However, for a lot of people, fear of flying dissipates after they've tried it and seen it themselves. Small airplanes fly using the same principles as big airplanes. You will actually fly the airplane during your lessons, you will experience the process, you will see how normal flight really is, and it will no longer be an unknown.

Look up "Aircraft Flight Training" in the yellow pages, call one of the schools or fixed-based operators at your local airport that offer flight training, and say you want an introductory flight. Good luck.

This is not an original idea. I recall an Oklahoma City TV news anchor from the 1980s (I am pretty sure it was Patti Suarez of Channel 9) who confessed a fear of flying. She took flying lessons and reported on her experiences.

This is the best advise I could give as well. I've only had a couple of experiences with it. Both times, a couple of lessons cured the problem. One of the persons involved even went on and got her private license.

'Sled

 

[flyifrvfr]

I could offer you some advice. If your plane would crash, you most likely will die. There is a very small chance that you will survive and be a vegetable for the rest of your life. There is also a slight chance that you will survive, but will have serious burns, scars, and disfigurement. I would also say that there is a slight chance that you will suffer from dismemberment and paralisis.

After listing the things that could happen to you if you were to crash and survive, wouldn't it be better to not survive the crash. Instead of spending time hoping you don't crash, hope instead that you don't survive. This advice makes my trips on airplanes much easier.

 

[minitour]

I could offer you some advice. If your plane would crash, you most likely will die. There is a very small chance that you will survive and be a vegetable for the rest of your life. There is also a slight chance that you will survive, but will have serious burns, scars, and disfigurement. I would also say that there is a slight chance that you will suffer from dismemberment and paralisis.

After listing the things that could happen to you if you were to crash and survive, wouldn't it be better to not survive the crash. Instead of spending time hoping you don't crash, hope instead that you don't survive. This advice makes my trips on airplanes much easier.