The Thought Of Flying - Bricking My Pants.
Discussion
I love flying but for me it's the claustrophobic aspect.
I'm the same in the car and the train. Infact a few years back I was supposed to get on a train for a course for 25 mins and I wouldn't do it.
I flew last year on holiday and once up it was fine. The worst was the panic attack on the journey from the terminal on the bus to the plane. That feeling of being trapped wasn't pleasant
I'm the same in the car and the train. Infact a few years back I was supposed to get on a train for a course for 25 mins and I wouldn't do it.
I flew last year on holiday and once up it was fine. The worst was the panic attack on the journey from the terminal on the bus to the plane. That feeling of being trapped wasn't pleasant
I'm really enjoying the responses to this thread. I'm also an extremely nervous flyer. Very odd, as it's manifested itself in the last year or so. As a kid I used to travel long-haul once a year on holiday with my parents, and when I started work I travelled short- and long-haul pretty regularly. I remember a flight from LHR-BOS in 2013 and running laps around the empty business class cabin just because I could.
Nowadays I'm terrified of the height more than anything. I work directly with airlines so I know all about the issues planes have and reliability is of no concern to me. However as soon as the door closes, I'm gripping the armrests, breaking out in a cold sweat, short of breath and feeling parched. I'm at the stage now where I'd decline overseas trips purely because of the fear of flying. Yet I have no idea what's brought it on.
I flew from WAW-LHR two months ago and the entire trip was as described above. I had a lovely Polish seatmate who kept me in conversation and took my mind off hurtling through the sky 12km above the ground. He declined all compensation but found it interesting that as soon as we broke through the clouds on descent (2 and a half hours after takeoff), I completely relaxed and was able to stretch out and ignore the scene outside.
I'll probably enrol in a fear-of-flying course but I hope my sudden fear of heights is something that's curable. I remember visiting a customer airline in Germany and getting the jitters just from climbing up the steps to get to the doors while the 787 was on the ground. If that's enough to get me scared now, I'm not surprised 38,000 feet gets me an inch away from a panic attack.
Nowadays I'm terrified of the height more than anything. I work directly with airlines so I know all about the issues planes have and reliability is of no concern to me. However as soon as the door closes, I'm gripping the armrests, breaking out in a cold sweat, short of breath and feeling parched. I'm at the stage now where I'd decline overseas trips purely because of the fear of flying. Yet I have no idea what's brought it on.
I flew from WAW-LHR two months ago and the entire trip was as described above. I had a lovely Polish seatmate who kept me in conversation and took my mind off hurtling through the sky 12km above the ground. He declined all compensation but found it interesting that as soon as we broke through the clouds on descent (2 and a half hours after takeoff), I completely relaxed and was able to stretch out and ignore the scene outside.
I'll probably enrol in a fear-of-flying course but I hope my sudden fear of heights is something that's curable. I remember visiting a customer airline in Germany and getting the jitters just from climbing up the steps to get to the doors while the 787 was on the ground. If that's enough to get me scared now, I'm not surprised 38,000 feet gets me an inch away from a panic attack.
Flew home first thing this morning and I wasn't bricking it for the return flight & I found myself actually enjoying it & managed to watch another passenger plane fly along side us for about 15mins. In general a very pleasant flight home. Even the driving back home was fine apart from having to drive 30miles on very little fuel until next services appeared.... I think my main reason for hating flying is not the flying itself, but the other passenger's onboard & not knowing if somebody has different motives for being on there compared to everyone else! That is my fear I absolutely know this now so private jet next time me thinks! 
I also feel completely relaxed once the pilot announces to prepare cabin crew for landing (even though it's still 15 mins or so before landing) I just feel completely relaxed at that point & start to enjoy the flight! Strange as landing is the one thing that could go wrong.....
I also feel completely relaxed once the pilot announces to prepare cabin crew for landing (even though it's still 15 mins or so before landing) I just feel completely relaxed at that point & start to enjoy the flight! Strange as landing is the one thing that could go wrong.....
Edited by boobles on Sunday 22 January 19:59
Have to agree with those that say its not the in the air bit with me its the leading up to it fannying about. If I could just turn up and get on plane and go that would be great but its the check in chaos, always some fat git in front whose not organised or overweight luggage causes a problem. Went to New Zealand a couple of years ago and this time we paid to go premium economy and well worth the extra cost having been before as economy or as I call it cattle class.
I'm a commercial helicopter pilot for a living but I have to confess, sometimes hate being a passenger on an airliner as I don't know what's going on upfront! However, if I get tense on a passenger flight then I remind myself that:
A) The pilots have families too
B) They have paid a huge amount of money for training just to be sat in those seats
C) They get thoroughly examined in the simulator every 6 months
D) They love their job and are professionals, taking a pride in the safety of their passengers
E) The engineers do a great job and many aircraft systems are monitored remotely
F) The aircraft get thoroughly examined and monitoring data downloaded after every flight
Then I relax.....I love flying when I'm at the controls and never get tense when it's me in the cockpit, but I find being a passenger uncomfortable.....but I chill out when I remember the above. Good luck with overcoming it, flying is one of the most amazing things we do
A) The pilots have families too
B) They have paid a huge amount of money for training just to be sat in those seats
C) They get thoroughly examined in the simulator every 6 months
D) They love their job and are professionals, taking a pride in the safety of their passengers
E) The engineers do a great job and many aircraft systems are monitored remotely
F) The aircraft get thoroughly examined and monitoring data downloaded after every flight
Then I relax.....I love flying when I'm at the controls and never get tense when it's me in the cockpit, but I find being a passenger uncomfortable.....but I chill out when I remember the above. Good luck with overcoming it, flying is one of the most amazing things we do
Siko said:
I'm a commercial helicopter pilot for a living but I have to confess, sometimes hate being a passenger on an airliner as I don't know what's going on upfront! However, if I get tense on a passenger flight then I remind myself that:
A) The pilots have families too
B) They have paid a huge amount of money for training just to be sat in those seats
C) They get thoroughly examined in the simulator every 6 months
D) They love their job and are professionals, taking a pride in the safety of their passengers
E) The engineers do a great job and many aircraft systems are monitored remotely
F) The aircraft get thoroughly examined and monitoring data downloaded after every flight
Then I relax.....I love flying when I'm at the controls and never get tense when it's me in the cockpit, but I find being a passenger uncomfortable.....but I chill out when I remember the above. Good luck with overcoming it, flying is one of the most amazing things we do
Absolutely, but it's the passengers on board who I don't trust..... Maybe you could fly me across to N Ireland next time please?A) The pilots have families too
B) They have paid a huge amount of money for training just to be sat in those seats
C) They get thoroughly examined in the simulator every 6 months
D) They love their job and are professionals, taking a pride in the safety of their passengers
E) The engineers do a great job and many aircraft systems are monitored remotely
F) The aircraft get thoroughly examined and monitoring data downloaded after every flight
Then I relax.....I love flying when I'm at the controls and never get tense when it's me in the cockpit, but I find being a passenger uncomfortable.....but I chill out when I remember the above. Good luck with overcoming it, flying is one of the most amazing things we do
sebhaque said:
I'm at the stage now where I'd decline overseas trips purely because of the fear of flying.
Strangely enough I was in a similar position some years ago when such things were available to me. Not through abject terror of flying, I think for me it was more the anticipation of how bad it was going to be than the actuality. Maybe that was made worse because I wasn't a regular flyer, and the trips I had made were quite bad - turbulence on the first one that I'm sure seasoned flyers would liken to driving over a cats eye, for example. And the general let-down of the experience, perhaps down to the budget airline I was on due to cost constraints.The one thing I do remember is that, if you feel that way about flying, no amount of logical talk about how rarely these things plummet from the sky, how much training and experience everyone involved has, none of it makes it any better.
Ayahuasca said:
BoRED S2upid said:
Ayahuasca said:
Crashing is one thing, and quick. A fire, asphyxiation, struggling to reach an exit, is something else...
You're welcome.
Surely not. Most plane crashes are instant death for the vast majority. You're welcome.
confuddled.
The vast majority of plane crashes are NOT totally fatal.
In fact it's possibly the case that the majority of them are not fatal at all.
I crash test things for a living & aircraft seats was one of them we use to test a lot off (Virgin)
& people always ask me why we crash test aircraft seats & the answer is simple.... Most accidents happen on the ground like over shooting the runway etc & the seats are tested to make sure in this situation that they don't come of the mountings & crush you to death. Obviously if the plane falls out of the sky, there isn't much that can help you apart from luck.
& people always ask me why we crash test aircraft seats & the answer is simple.... Most accidents happen on the ground like over shooting the runway etc & the seats are tested to make sure in this situation that they don't come of the mountings & crush you to death. Obviously if the plane falls out of the sky, there isn't much that can help you apart from luck.
Taking off and the reverse thrust of landing are the best aspects of flying.
That said I always pick a window seat and pretty much gawp out in wonder when above the clouds and turn massively lefty at just how staggeringly beautiful the planet is.
Amazing how quickly your at an altitude where a plane failure (going back down to the earth and hitting it) would be insta-death I counted around 5 seconds from lift to too high to survive lol.
That said I always pick a window seat and pretty much gawp out in wonder when above the clouds and turn massively lefty at just how staggeringly beautiful the planet is.
Amazing how quickly your at an altitude where a plane failure (going back down to the earth and hitting it) would be insta-death I counted around 5 seconds from lift to too high to survive lol.
V8A*ndy said:
boobles said:
The thing is, I know it's safe & I know I am panicking over nothing especially as the flight is only across the pond (N Ireland) 
Northern Ireland you say?You will be fine as long as the pilot doesn't request a visual landing.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/485796...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-2877...
Gassing Station | Boats, Planes & Trains | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff