Geniune Fear Of Flying

albert said:
In 2001 i went on my honeymoon to Gran Canaria and on the flight back i thought i was going to die and I've never flown since.

Just as the plane was taxiing the Captain came onto the mic and told us all to put on our seat belts. 3 minutes later we flew into the thunderstorm. The engines kept revving up and then dying then revving up again. We were sitting 3/4's up on the plane but the people sitting at the front were going above and below us. A stewardess trolley shot down the aisle by itself due to the momentum. The worst thing was looking out onto the wing of the aircraft and all i could see was flashes of lightning hitting it. People on the plane were screaming. Add to that the plane was shaking really really bad. Sounds daft , but my feet and legs went cold and clammy and i really thought i was going to die.

Since that flight all our holidays have since involved me driving to France or Holland.

My problem is that the missus wants to go somewhere hot next year which will involve flying.
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It's not daft - perfectly understandable! You were just very unlucky. I've flown maybe 25-30 times and never had anything that severe. I landed in a blizzard once - but that was just cool. Had some moderate turbulence over Canada (engines revving up and down, pretty stomach churning drops) and once had to turn back to the airport due to a hydraulics problem - captain said "there will be fire trucks and emergency vehicles waiting for us....but don't worry, that's just a precaution" :eek: But flying through a storm is pretty nasty I imagine. Pilots probably had big grins plastered over their faces though - gits like a bit of rough weather :)

I agree with a poster above. Don't let it stop you going places - the doc will give you some Valium no problem and you'll be flying higher than the plane :D
 
Lightning strikes aircarft all of the time. They are designed to be struck by lightning too so don't worry yourself too much. They use materials in certain areas to attract the lightning so that it will only hit at specific points and then materials within the panels / parts to dissipate the electricity, or allow the lightning to flow through the aircraft and continue on its journey down to earth.

The turbulance would be the more scary thing. Statistically what happened to you on that flight is highly unlikely to ever happen again so think of it as you've been there, had the scare and it wont happen again (fingers crossed).

Definitiely see your doc though if you feel that strongly about not flying so that you can get something to reduce the amount of anxiety you're getting. Last thing you want to have is an anxiety attack mid flight.
 
16 years in the RAF as an aircraft engineer and I hate flying especially civvy trips. I avoid flying as much as possible and will not fly for holidays only when I had too for work.

An aircraft getting struck by lightning is an engineering nightmare, it plays havoc with compass and navigation systems and most aircraft require alignment checks after a strike, as well as structural checks it can mean hours of tests and the aircraft being grounded for some time...

Military Aircraft are fitted with cloud collision radars as well as other systems to aid detection and will always try and avoid thunderstorms and areas with high electrical charges.
 
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Energize said:
Deaths per billion passenger-journeys

Bus: 4.3
Rail: 20
Van: 20
Car: 40
Foot: 40
Water: 90
Air: 117

:eek:
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Or look at deaths per hours travelled/deaths per km travelled and it looks very different. But then I'm sure you know that, it's a fair point that statistics can be made to present information very differently.

I used to really enjoy flying and get quite excited the first few times I flew, now I've done it a bit more and it's almost a bit boring, I just want to be there. I don't worry about flying in any way though, I don't know if it helps to be somewhat fatalistic but there's very little to worry about I think, if the worst happens then it's probably a near instant death which is something that might not be true for almost any other method of transport.
 
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semi-pro waster said:
Or look at deaths per hours travelled/deaths per km travelled and it looks very different. But then I'm sure you know that, it's a fair point that statistics can be made to present information very differently.

I used to really enjoy flying and get quite excited the first few times I flew, now I've done it a bit more and it's almost a bit boring, I just want to be there. I don't worry about flying in any way though, I don't know if it helps to be somewhat fatalistic but there's very little to worry about I think, if the worst happens then it's probably a near instant death which is something that might not be true for almost any other method of transport.
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Ignoring the couple of minutes it takes to plough into the ground tho :eek:
 
I remember taking off and landing at Lukla airport. That was err...interesting..

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I know it sounds harsh and unreasonable but as a semi-frequent flier, I find it bothersome how panicky and irrational people can become during air travel. Flying though storms (the engines rev up and down via computer control to compensate for changes in air pressure, I believe), turbulence and wind-shear during landing are all completely unremarkable and rehearsed for events. With all the screaming, crying and general hysteria I've witnessed, anyone would think that planes simply fall out of the sky on a regular basis. They don’t!

All I know is this; when I was a teenager, one of my best friends was killed on the road by a drunk driver. There are no drunk drivers in the air. I feel much safer as a result.
 
Believe it or not my Mrs got over her fear by watching Aircraft investigations. After every crash the authorities have changed something or implemented a change so whatever went wrong doesn't happen again.

Plus I believe if its my time...Its my time.
 
OP, are you me? I posted a similar thing last year and a very helpful pilot on this forum responded to the queries I had. I can't remember the chap's name but he was great and it really helped me.

I'd also recommend diazepam from the doc's if you want some medical aid during the flight.
 
Think of it this way, if you don't get on a plane, you're going to miss out on seeing the world, you're going to die eventually anyway, so you might as well make the most of it, i think you'll find the worst part is what you're going through now, just thinking about flying. I guarantee, once you get on that plane, you'll feel fine, the chances of that thunderstorm happening again will be very slim. I used to be scared stiff of flying, infact, i first flew when i was 21 and the anticipation of getting on the plane was far worse than being on the plane, infact, i really enjoyed it, especially taking off and landing.
 
Man up.

You only need to endure take off and landing. When the plane is at 25,000 ft or whatever, you're above the weather and there can be no turbulence like that.
 
Spit said:
Ignoring the couple of minutes it takes to plough into the ground tho :eek:
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Well yes, if you ignore the bit just before the death it's all quite quick or as Isaac Asminov said "Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It's the transition that's troublesome.".

[FnG]magnolia;19826850 said:
OP, are you me? I posted a similar thing last year and a very helpful pilot on this forum responded to the queries I had. I can't remember the chap's name but he was great and it really helped me.
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Blinkz by any chance? He's a commercial pilot now. Charlie Bravo is also a pilot I think.
 
I too hate flying. Maybe with me it's a control thing. The Doc wouldn't give me anything, but "self medicating" on alcohol helped lots :)
 
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