I am curious if fear of flying is an issue for folks around here and if you've found anything to get over it?

I am absolutely terrified to get on an airplane. Not sure why. It didn't develop until my mid 20s. When I was in law school, I would fly every week for job interviews and think nothing of it. Many of the trips were in one day, out the next morning. I would bring my books and study. These days, I can't concentrate well enough to read a book, and sleep is definitely out of the question.

It takes a lot to get me to travel by plane now. I've missed weddings, funerals, vacations, etc. because I didn't want to fly.

I have learned more about flying and plane maintenance than most non-pilots, and I know logically that flying works and is generally safe. Doesn't matter, it still scares the bejesus out of me. I've read books and done a few FoF courses but it hasn't helped.

Any other scaredy cats out there?

Xanax after the plane hits cruising altitude?

My wife was on a Southwest flight that blew an engine on take off, most of the housing came off and did a little wing damage. They did a slow circle and landed back in less than 10 minutes.
She was scared for years to fly.

What broke her of that, essentially nothing. We made plans to travel and driving was out of the option so we flew. She was able to do it, but didn't enjoy it for sure.

I think she would fly again but there would need to be a good reason.


Also, my mom had a panick attack once and thought she would never fly again. Her Dr. made her get on a flight tour of sorts, PVD to NY, to BOS, to NY to PVD all in about 2 days. I think this would flag TSA now but for her it worked. She just did the immersion thing.

Best of luck there is a lot of world out there to see.

That's painful ChicagoSigMan - Not missing weddings and funerals, but missing vacations. Find a cure.

No suggestions for a cure, but I know it happens. Long ago I worked with an Army MP master sergeant who had been recruited when the very first Air Marshal program was initiated. Before the program could get going properly with its own people, LEOs from many different agencies were brought in to serve. He was obviously flying all the time, and he said that it got to the point that every time the aircraft took off he would tense up with an almost panicky feeling.

Flying has never bothered me, and I actually enjoyed the more truly dangerous flights I’ve been on, but I didn’t think about the bad things that could have happened.

I used to be a nervous flier. I took a private pilot training course to learn the dynamic of how planes fly and airport operations, etc. I think a large part of the fear is the not knowing and the fact that you are giving up complete control to someone else while on a plane. Substitute the thought of flying on a plane with that of being on this planet and “flying” through this universe, and all of the stuff that *could* happen to you day to day just walking around this cabin we call Earth.

I'm sorry you feel that way. Flying is an important part of my life and i feel best when i'm in the air enjoying the flying. Granted, i do not like flying the airlines but can tolerate it.

My suggestion. Find a local airport, find a crusty old flight instructor and tell him you'd like to learn about flying. Explain that you have this fear and you want to overcome it. Sometimes our fear is overcome when we understand all that is going on and have some control. Take a few discovery flights, perhaps get to the solo. Will it cost money, sure will, but you will feel better about having some knowledge about what is going on in the front of the plane.

Be upfront about your desires. You won't want to some young hotshot that wants to show you he's a topgun. Slow and easy, learn the aerodynamics, a pre flight walk around, get a lesson or three.

Shoot, i wish you were in north alabama, I'd take you with me. I'm not an instructor but i can explain a lot and would hopefully set your mind at ease.

Let me know how i can help!

I fly frequently but not a lot of long haul. There are moments of worry but I take comfort in the fact that I don't fly budget airlines and that pilots are well trained and the equipment has redundancy (no 737Max jokes).

My mother is an awful flier. Xanax has enabled her to get on planes again, the problem is making sure she doesn't take too much of it and sleep for a day and a half.

For me it was always the thought of flying that was the worst. I would stress out leading up to a planned flight. I arrive to the airport insanely early and just get acclimated. Usually I'll have a few beverages which always calms the nerves. Occasionally I'll have a Xanax, but for me all the fear subsided once I got on the plane and took my seat. I dislike the take off the most, but for me once we get to cruising its like riding in a car. I was in your same shoes for about 5 years, then my job needed me to go to Europe so I reluctantly said yes. Since then I've been to Italy twice, Germany, and numerous US cities I would have never seen. It's more of a mental block than anything. Do what you have to do to get past that mental block just one time and you'll be set after that.

You have to make fists with your toes....

trust me I've been doing this for 20 years...

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
You have to make fists with your toes....

trust me I've been doing this for 20 years...

" welcome to da parrrty paaal"

I've had a friend or two that were afraid to fly. I asked them if they'd be willing to fly with me, on a small plane, so they could see exactly what goes on. First of all, I picked a CAVU day (Ceiling And Visibility Unlimited) with calm winds to avoid the bumps to conduct their "therapy" flight. And I also picked a short flight to a destination that had a restaurant on the field so we could take a break and have a nice, greazy burger and fries. So I sat them down and...
1. Went over weather and flight planning on a REALLY elementary level,
2. Briefed the entire flight from the moment we would get in the airplane until we shut it down,
3. Explained to them what I was doing and looking for on the pre-flight inspection,
4. Got them comfortably seated and buckled in; make it a nice day so you can wear shorts and a t-shirt/polo...no bulky clothing,
5. Made sure their headset was in good, working order,
6. Got them involved in the flight by having them read the checklist while I checked what they read,
7. Had them listen to ATIS and try to write it down,
8. Had them make simple radio calls like, "Cessna 1234X ready for taxi with Bravo",
.
.
.
.

After we took off, I explained EVERYTHING I did and why I was doing it; no idiotic stalls, steep turns, spins, and other stunts I've heard other moronic pilots do with scared passengers.

To shorten the story, and like tanner and pbramlett stated, I believe the fear for most is giving up control. After doing this with a few friends, they could see out of the front of the plane, they seemed to understand what happens, and were able to conquer their fear. I had one student who was DEATHLY afraid of slow flight and stalls because of his fear of the spin factor. He trusted me implicitly and after I showed him a controlled stall with nothing more than the nose bobbing up and down, he was just fine from then on out, even to the point of conducting stall/spin demonstrations for his CFI training.

I hope you can find a trusted individual that will help you through your flying discomfort (notice I didn't say "fear" ).

So I have never really been afraid to fly per say and tend to actually love the sensation of flying.

A couple years back however I pick up a bunch of fears etc. (mid life/stress/lack of sleep/etc.) whatever the case I suddenly saw/see the world as a more threatening place. Having a kid doesn’t help either. . One side effect of this was a sudden onset of claustrophobia which I never had at all. So flying was more fear of being confined with 150 of my closest friends with no way out.

What I found worked for me was a good set of headphones and simple loud white noise. Close my eyes and just sort fall into the black and sort of sensory deprive.

Now my main reason for hating flying these days is all the PITA I have to endure before and after the actual flying part.

The worst thing about most fears, especially if you are a fairly rational and educated person, is knowing how irrational your fear likely is. It’s almost embarrassing knowing your particular brand of fear is stupid and 90% of everyone else never pays it any mind yet to you/that person it’s real and a huge mental battle at times. Everybody has their own personal brand of crazy and fear and most of it is stupid.......except to YOU. Good luck.

Also I suggest driving in middle TN. You will want to jump on a plane so fast you will reach take off speed.

I developed a fear of flying when I traveled with the University of Illinois football team for a few years. Every seat was taken, mostly by gigantic people. It would be claustrophobic on a bus.

The airport at Champaign was minimal length for a stretch 727 IIRC. On landing the plane would get over the end of the runway and throw itself down to use every available foot. Every time there would be an audible gasp from the majority of the passengers even though we all knew what was coming.

Throw in plenty of bad weather at that time of year in that part of the country, I developed the fear after never having it before. Once past takeoff, I'd be better. I'd force myself to breath as shallow as possible, don't hyperventilate, until the smoking light came on. I'd have a cig in one hand, a lighter in the other waiting. Landings sucked too, I learned to pound a few down by then in later years.

I haven't flown since before 9/11 and have no plans to break the string.

Phobias are treatable. Find a clinical psychologist in your area. There are a variety of treatments that are effective and do not involve the use of benzos such as Xanax which are addictive.

I don't like flying, at all. It's a fairly recent thing, maybe in the past 7 years or so, and oddly enough, limited to civil aviation. I flew to Iowa in a C-130 and while not great, it wasn't bad. On the other hand, I also had to fly commercial to Orlando and back a couple of years ago and spent the entire 4 legs (most of which was nice conditions) white knuckling the armrest.

Yeah, I know the facts, statistics, etc. of how flying is such a non-issue in the US. But I get the heebie jeebies with every little bump. LOL

I am getting ready (or just did) reach 3 or 4 million miles on Delta alone. I fall asleep within 15 minutes of sitting in my seat. Board the plane tired.

Buddy missed all sorts of events and cost himself jobs and fun so he undertook a few years of therapy followed by a few aborted attempts followed by a few short flights. He had to get out of his head.

Good luck.

I've been doing it a long time (flying). I'm afraid of heights. Go figure.

There's nothing rational about fear of flying, but it's a legitimate fear. Like most fears, it can't be explained away, or reasoned away. The dangers are very real. When it comes to going aloft, if you are afraid, it's simply something you do despite your concerns. I do not recommend drugging up for a trip. Get a window seat, watch the horizon, sit near an exit, bring a book. Use the air vent. Accept that once you board, your fate and outcome is no longer in your hands. Trust. It won't change your fear, but you'll get there, where ever there is.

I absolutely have a fear of flying, and I fly anywhere from 5-10 times a year. About a week out from my flight I start getting the butterflies in my gut. People have been telling me for years it will get better, it never does. The best I can do is pull a hat down over my face like I'm sleeping and try like hell to take my mind to another place, especially during takeoff which seems to be most stressful for me.