afraid to fly?

[rumblefish]

can do without the other people though

Especially the slob who got sick on their vacation who always finds the seat next to me.

 

[Edward]

As far as being scared to me once you are in the air why bother?
Not a thing you can do about any of it so may as well relax. [huh]

Heh, I'm the same..... totally fatalist about it. I'm the cynic that doesn't even bother to listen to the saftey demo, believing that if we're gonig to fall out of the sky, the chances of us lasting long enoug to heed that advice are so slim.... lol

I cannot sleep on a plane for anything (even long flights) but honey conks out immediately. Not fair.

I could sleep on a rope, myself - I'm very feline in that respect - but wen flying long haul I'm the one that stays aways to watch the films.... hey, I've paid for it, might as well take full advantage!

 

[Yeps]

I could sleep on a rope, myself - I'm very feline in that respect - but wen flying long haul I'm the one that stays aways to watch the films.... hey, I've paid for it, might as well take full advantage!

Same. I am always the only one awake when the flight attendants come by for the last time on overnight flights.

 

[Foofoogal]

hey, I've paid for it, might as well take full advantage!

I think we may be afraid we will miss something. lol
or we are on guard.
Last time I flew I was trying to figure out who the sky marshal was or were. I think one was watching me watch them the whole time.

 

[Bourbon Guy]

It's all an elaborate hoax. Nothing that big can possibly fly. They put you in your seat, play movies of clouds and cityscapes outside your "window," and hook your "airplane" onto a high speed train and shoot you to your destination.

Oh, and all those gates numbered 1-20? Not real. There are no gates before 21. They hire out of work actors to hang around those phony gates 1-20 to look like they are going somewhere so you will not complain about walking a half mile to board your train. Not real. All a hoax.

 

[Yeps]

It's all an elaborate hoax. Nothing that big can possibly fly. They put you in your seat, play movies of clouds and cityscapes outside your "window," and hook your "airplane" onto a high speed train and shoot you to your destination.

Oh, and all those gates numbered 1-20? Not real. There are no gates before 21. They hire out of work actors to hang around those phony gates 1-20 to look like they are going somewhere so you will not complain about walking a half mile to board your train. Not real. All a hoax.

I have never really been convinced that I actually travel. I might be living my life in a hollywood back-lot.

 

[Burton]

I have flown quite a bit both commercially and military (including combat zones) and dont like it. I must admit to looking around the aircraft prior to takeoff and asking God to please spare all these nice people (cant say the same for myself). As I feel that I am lacking in the aptitude to actually fly an aircraft the whole experience of flight seems quite unnatural to me.

Getting back to the OP's question I fly because I have no real choice with the lifestyle I have. Flying commercially I have found a couple of Bloody Marys prior to takeoff doesnt hurt.

 

[John in Covina]

For myself, I am a bit fearful when flying. Mostly it is the takeoffs and landings where i get the most tension going. Once up and underway I am fine unless there is weather disturbances or air pockets. However, I find it nearly impossinle to sleep on a plane, bus, or train. In a car maybe but only if a well trusted person is driving and I am totally exhausted.

 

[Diamondback]

More comfortable up there than stuck down here--then again, if it's in commercial service I've probably flown it in the simulator, and where normal babies have parents/grandparents rocking them to sleep I had 707s and 727s on transcons.

Now the BS at the airport, on the other hand, ranks right up there with somebody slapping a Preparation H label on the Icy Hot...

Private or Charter are the way to go, when you can afford it--anything but the Part 121 "scheduled carriers".

 

[Chas]

Afraid? Hell, no. I love airplanes. Given a choice, I'd rather die in a plane crash than in a long term care facility drooling and excreting.

Maybe I'll do that. Take up ultralight flying and when I feel like I'm losing it I'll go up to 5000' and take out my hacksaw....

When I'm not wishing I could play like Lester Young I'm wishing I was George William Barker. Better to live a short life as a bird than a long life as a worm.

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[BillyCigars]

Not terrified of flying per se, but terribly uncomfortable. I'd much rather be on the ground. That said, Zanax is a miracle drug for me when flying. I remember I took one while taxi'ing and without waiting for it to take effect, within 10 minutes taking another one (turbulence! lol). I thought it would be much better to OD on Zanax that fall out of the sky and be completely aware of what was happening.

To the OP's question of how to deal with fear of flying: This may sound really strange, but one of the things that REALLY helped me was Microsoft Flight Sim. The reason being was that (as posters above have mentioned) there is a lot to be said about the perception of control. The perception of control (in this case, the LACK of it) and the LACK of predictability (you can't see "down the road") makes it difficult to swallow.

The reason Fligh Sim helped me was that by learning the ins and outs (as much as a computer game can provide anyway), and understanding what certain sounds are and why they occur at certain times (wing flaps, gears extending/retracting, etc) and why the feeling of falling at certain times occurs helped tremendously. Now, when flying, I actually imagine myself flying the plane in my mind (therefore giving me a sense of "control" and "predictability") which tends to ease me more. I know it sounds really odd, but it worked for me (for the most part)!

 

[Edward]

Afraid? Hell, no. I love airplanes. Given a choice, I'd rather die in a plane crash than in a long term care facility drooling and excreting.

Maybe I'll do that. Take up ultralight flying and when I feel like I'm losing it I'll go up to 5000' and take out my hacksaw....

This reminds me, I'd love a go at Wing Walking....

Private or Charter are the way to go, when you can afford it--

I'd never be able to relax and enjoy it - the environmental irresponsibility would bother me too much. lol

 

[Talbot]

--------------------
I would much rather fly than be in Houston traffic at any hour on any day.
QUOTE]

Heck, I visited there recently. I know exectly what you mean.

I love flying, but hate sitting in cramped aluminium tubes being shaken around by turbulence.

Put me in an old plane any day. I have been on a number of sailplane flights. They are a truly serene experience.

 

[carebear]

You can add another reason to fear flights over water...

(one brief s-word)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I16_8l0yS-g&feature=related

 

[Diamondback]

I'd never be able to relax and enjoy it - the environmental irresponsibility would bother me too much. lol

Actually, if you're worried about carbon-footprint the direct-flight probably would add up to less than your slice of the Flying Greyhound Bus, when you add in the various things like power burned at the checkpoint, transportation between gates (since you KNOW they'll never put your inbound and outbound flights within reasonable walking distance of each other), having to fly all the way across a continent and then halfway back to reach your destination... (Seriously, when you're trying to get to Indianapolis and they route you through Newark, there's something bigtime wrong there.)

This is just me, but even if the math is wrong, I'll burn a little extra fuel to know that I and those traveling with me are secure. Besides, I plan on getting my multiengine-jet rating eventually, so I'd be in the pilot's seat myself whenever possible, thus making the flight "multipurpose" (travel, recreational, and logging hours to keep my rating) and thus boosting its efficiency...

 

[HadleyH]

I am not afraid to fly. I fly all the time.

But i do tend to get a little nervous when there is turbulence on the plane...: particulary after they have served food... Some people scream, but i don't.

 

[Mikey P]

I used to love to fly, but after 300,000 some odd miles, security check points, overbooked flights, paying for peanuts, etc. I hate it now. One big pain in the butt, for me at least.