irrational fear of flying

Here I sit in moderate to heavy chop in this crap can A320 with its European flight control software navigating us around thundercells 39000 feet above Maryland on my way to JFK.
In the good old days, pre 9/11, my family and I would probably have been on a nice Boeing 757 that would broadcast cockpit chatter so I could hear how mellow the pilots are. Instead I'm posting this and making sure on Flight aware that some other folks have flown through this and lived already.
Screw this goddamned means of conveyance that is against god's will. If I can give Terra firma a kiss this evening I swear tomorrow I'll do hill repeats.

Xanax is your friend. Just ask you family doctor for some to cover flying.

Yes, have tried with mixed results. I really should see a doctor again.

Would prefer non-freezing pitot tubes and more aluminum, less composite. But then I ride a Gaulzetti.

And descending now.
Jayzus this is misery

Dude!
using your phone on the flight could bring the whole thing down...turn it off!

What?

Not funny at the moment I'm guessing. Would drink a Clamato be a better response?

I strap the seatbelt down so freaking hard in those situations I can't feel my toes. Sometimes I close my eyes and ask if I'd be concerned were I in the back of a pickup with the same bumping.

Feel ya' bro. I have flown two times. And, I actually cried one of those times. Seems so fucking unnatural barreling thru the air. I know, I know. But, I used to not drink.

Totally "descent might be choppy"

This would be fucking terrifying in a pickup truck.
Crew now seated.

Theres nothing irrational about it, when I worked in aerospace, man you should have seen what they did to cover up mistakes, it was a real eyeopener a recent job was figuring out how to machine horizontal stabilizer skins to stop them cracking, terrifying

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Originally Posted by Badonkadonk

This would be fucking terrifying in a pickup truck.
Crew now seated.

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It's a good airplane. You'll be on the deck in one piece.

I flew with my wife to New Orleans last year. On the return flight I sat next to a pilot, he explained most all of the movements of the wings and processes. It was relaxing, as a half ass mechanic I like hearing about the mechanicality of it.

However, upon descent. He looked me square in the face and said, "we are going down...." I said, "what!!" "In a controlled fashion." Thanks, really thanks

Sometime watch them fly one of those things through a hurricane for weather purposes.
Holy mackerel those things can suffer a lot without breaking.

I take my shoes off when it takes off... 10 feet off the ground is the same as 39,000 really.

and here we are at jfk
that was, uh, really something
saving grace was being between my two boys the whole way down, one challenging me to serial thumb wrestling matches and the other looking for help with monkey lunchbox. ahhh, life before fear.
landing felt a little nose first. mug.

Go to your LAF (local air field), take a couple intro lessons,
then ask to go up in Citabria for some intro to acrobatics.

Go up in a sail plane, that you'll cure your fear of falling out of the sky.
Flying, when not involving bus driving, can be quite enjoyable.

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Originally Posted by Badonkadonk

Here I sit in moderate to heavy chop in this crap can A320 with its European flight control software navigating us around thundercells 39000 feet above Maryland on my way to JFK.
In the good old days, pre 9/11, my family and I would probably have been on a nice Boeing 757 that would broadcast cockpit chatter so I could hear how mellow the pilots are. Instead I'm posting this and making sure on Flight aware that some other folks have flown through this and lived already.
Screw this goddamned means of conveyance that is against god's will. If I can give Terra firma a kiss this evening I swear tomorrow I'll do hill repeats.

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Just like lawyers and firefighters, pilots are overpaid, except when they're wildly underpaid.

The Airbus is an excellent aircraft with an excellent safety record.

Most people don't like flying because they aren't in control and can't see what's going on out the front window. Yeah, today's a shitty day to fly. I'm glad I wasn't in the NE USA today, but we did some turning and banking around some pretty fancy cells today in the SE (all part of the same cold front and low pressure system) and dropped from 23000 feet to 4000 in one descent into Norfolk after clearing a building line of weather. Then I went home and played with my bike. :cool: My neighbors were none the wiser.

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Originally Posted by Scott G.

Go to your LAF (local air field), take a couple intro lessons,
then ask to go up in Citabria for some intro to acrobatics.

Go up in a sail plane, that you'll cure your fear of falling out of the sky.
Flying, when not involving bus driving, can be quite enjoyable.

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Do you still fly for 'fun'? I can't say that I ever have just gone out for fun and I haven't flown a piston powered airplane in over 11 years. Too expensive. When I retire from flying I think I'll frame my certificate and medical and be done with it. I'd way rather ride my bike than fly an airplane!

Saab, You are my hero, I hate flying.

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Originally Posted by progetto

Saab, You are my hero, I hate flying.

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I'm nobody's hero. There are other flyers here too and I hope they speak up. I got into it by answering an ad in a newspaper 20 years ago. Pretty anticlimactic really and when I'm done with it I'll just leave it all behind. I do it for money. That's not really heroic.

Teachers and firefighters and cops are far more heroic than a pilot ever will be.

Flying is super safe but people feel horrified when something bad happens. The lack of control is what bothers most people.

BTW, it's only safe because of the men and women who work in the industry. It's not automatic, but it feels that way because it's become so commonplace. But every flight is a bit of an adventure where something bad could happen, which is why pilots and flight attendants and air traffic controllers and dispatchers and mechanics always have to be on their toes. Pilots just fly the things but there's a whole crew of people who make safety happen.

the part of flying that I find terrifying is just trying to get on the airplane that will get me to where I'm going. Once on board, no problem. Been in my share of planes with serious problems, but when the pilots get all excited and shake the plane, I just sit back and relax because I know they are awake.

I fly a fair amount (about 130,000 last year). I have found that I need to have a book or video and just focus on that. If I let me mind wander, fear creeps in. As Saab mentioned, it is all about lack of control and understanding for me.

I also had a pilot sitting next to me years ago. We were going through very bad weather as we approached the airport. He described what is going on in cockpit ... "You will feel the plane move in a second, that is the pilot taking it off auto-pilot". Just as he said that you could feel the plane slightly shift. I found his calmness and play by play very helpful.
One other time I was flying between cities of Colorado's front range, extremely windy place, in one of the little propjets. You get tossed around pretty good in those in that area. Pilot sat next to me. We were about 500 feet off the ground starting to get tossed about when I look over and she was already asleep. Comforting sight as it told me that this is completely normal in this area.

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Originally Posted by Badonkadonk

Totally "descent might be choppy"

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Maybe get some glider time. It's real stick and rudder flying and you'll get acquainted with the airplane's movements; strong sink, strong lift, chop behind the tow plane, large control inputs during certain parts of flight, steeply banked turns, stalls, etc. The experience and knowledge might make you more comfortable in the big ones. You might find its a kick in the pants when you pull into a thermal, stand it on a wingtip and share the ride up with an eagle or some other soaring bird.

I got to sit right behind the pilot once in a Twin Otter flying into Lukla in Nepal. Totally exhilarating experience. Jets are pretty boring by comparison for me now.

When the air is a little rough, I just put on the noise canceling headphones and listen to a podcast or music. We were at a wedding in Virginia Beach today and the tornado alert came on the phone about 2:15pm. I thought well, I might be in this stuffy church wearing a suit and tie but at least I'm not in a plane trying to land in Norfolk right now.

First time training for power-on stalls I put the plane into a beautiful spin. Just like that we were nose toward the ground. Teachable moment, my instructor said.

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Originally Posted by rwsaunders

When the air is a little rough, I just put on the noise canceling headphones and listen to a podcast or music. We were at a wedding in Virginia Beach today and the tornado alert came on the phone about 2:15pm. I thought well, I might be in this stuffy church wearing a suit and tie but at least I'm not in a plane trying to land in Norfolk right now.

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You bring your bike? I landed at ORF about 1:45 yesterday, right before the tornado warnings. Riding today I hope.

The first time I flew, my brother was driving. A Cessna something, I was amazed how much it went up and down when we went over Vermont ridges and we were way above them. The first time I flew commercial I had to convince myself that the wing was supposed to flex like that. When I mentioned to my dad about how the first time I was in an airplane Victor was the pilot he said that the first time he was in an airplane they made him jump out of it.

Years of air travel for work cured me of any anxiety. When your number is up, it's up. And, I figure that in all likelihood the end is gonna be quick if the plane augers in. People should spend more time worrying about the odds that they'll die a long, painful, lonely death, (Cancer, Dementia) or die completely unexpectedly while doing something mundane, (car crash on the way to the store, heart attack while mowing the lawn) because the chances of all those scenarios happening are much higher.

Have to agree with Brian's post; Some of the scariest flights ever were in Colorado. Also of note have been the thunderstorm-y descents into Birmingham, Ala.

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I love flying in non-cattle chute conditions - I still get to go often with pilots & photographers around here, I know the ground & direction and don't puke no matter what.

In hotshots I was the load boss, I was in charge of all the equipment, loading it onto aircraft, trucks, boats, whatever, I had to know where everything was and have everyone's flight weight for helicopter flights, which we often got two a day of.

Because of this, I was often last with just the pilots, Man, I got some great tours of the West……….I have stepped out of a copter onto the skid & stepped off onto a mountain, and done turns using the haul bucket as a pendulum, and I was also calling in slurry bomb runs from the ground = "see me waving my hard hat - drop it RIGHT HERE!"

Now, I gett o go out with one of the most highly regarded geologic photographers in the world for flights GALLERY | Michael Collier

We do banked turns, stall out & start free falling sideways & he takes all his hands off the controls & opens the side window & starts shooting pics with a huge lens out of the open window - I get to fly too, it's fun!

The one that worried me bad was taking on ice on the props from PDX to Medford - it would ice up, and shake like it was going to disintegrate, and then the ice would come off - WHAM! WHAM! WHAM!!!! on the fuselage - then all over again…….people were praying……….

Then there is flying through the Andes!

I know my risks.

It's the cars that are out to kill you.
- Garro.

Last week flying to ORD, I noticed it was becoming difficult to type - too bumpy. Didn't think much about it, but eventually closed the macbook and opened the iPad for the rest of the flight. Landed on time. The next day everyone at my meeting was amazed I was on time - "how did you get here?" etc. Turns out there was a tornado warning, a ton cancelled or delayed flights, and apparently a really cool color in the sky after the Cubs game. I was oblivious.

I spend way too much time in the back of the bus. I haven't counted flights so far this year, but I typically clock in > 100k miles annually, mostly domestic. I know that's nothing to a pilot or a true road warrior, but it's still enough to fly at least once each week most months.

For June, I've done BOS > CDG > LHR > BOS > MSP > ORD > BOS > JFK > ORD > BOS. Tomorrow is BOS > SJC.

Saab, maybe you can explain the drill noise I often hear on an airbus pre-take off? Sounds like someone is torquing a bolt with an electric driver... That's about the only thing I wonder about from time to time...

The barking dog: those strange noises on Airbus planes

It's the PTU for when they operate on one engine. Sounds like an impact driver or an excited dog.

Couldn't is also be the jackscrews (not sure if this is the technically correct term) for flaps?

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Originally Posted by monadnocky

Couldn't is also be the jackscrews (not sure if this is the technically correct term) for flaps?

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No. The barking dog sound on an Airbus is, as mentioned, the PTU. I don't fly an Airbus (I wish I did) but I have flown on them so many times I'm familiar with this. My airplane has a different system for maintaining hydraulic pressure when taxiing with just one engine.

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Originally Posted by Saab2000

No. The barking dog sound on an Airbus is, as mentioned, the PTU. I don't fly an Airbus (I wish I did) but I have flown on them so many times I'm familiar with this. My airplane has a different system for maintaining hydraulic pressure when taxiing with just one engine.

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Gotcha. Interesting.

Just pretend you are at 6 Flags and you are riding El Toro.

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Originally Posted by Saab2000

No. The barking dog sound on an Airbus is, as mentioned, the PTU. I don't fly an Airbus (I wish I did) but I have flown on them so many times I'm familiar with this. My airplane has a different system for maintaining hydraulic pressure when taxiing with just one engine.

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saab, what have you flown commercially? rankings of craft for you?

2mg of Ativan an hour before takeoff, then a Makers mark or similar once at cruising altitude. That's the only way I can fly. Have to do this on Thursday and not looking forward to it.

Just be happy that they don't have to transfer as much power from one side of the aircraft to the other using something as complicated as what they use for this: (again, in case one engine goes out, they have to transfer power to the other prop to keep it running)

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...62f29e9a82.jpg

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Originally Posted by bcm119

2mg of Ativan an hour before takeoff, then a Makers mark or similar once at cruising altitude. That's the only way I can fly. Have to do this on Thursday and not looking forward to it.

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My old man, who was a "90-day Wonder" replacement fighter pilot during WWII, always wore his dog tags post-war when he flew on commercial airlines, and he always fortified with multiple VO-and-waters before/during every flight. He did not like flying on commercial airliners at all.

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Originally Posted by bcm119

2mg of Ativan an hour before takeoff, then a Makers mark or similar once at cruising altitude. That's the only way I can fly. Have to do this on Thursday and not looking forward to it.

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Consider taking the earliest flights possible. Smoother air, fewer delays and fewer amateurs in the air.

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Originally Posted by Badonkadonk

saab, what have you flown commercially? rankings of craft for you?

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Here's the first one. I had to find a name when I signed up for the Serotta forum like 14 years ago and on a tipsy whim I chose saab2000 as a name because it was my first commercial airplane. I may change it because I'm actually kind of thrown off by people calling me Saab when I meet them in person. It's what I do, but definitely not who I am.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/279/1...4a30515e8e.jpg

I have no ranking of airplanes as I'm not really qualified to rank very many. It will surprise people that I don't actually care for flying all that much. I got into the career based on a newspaper ad and went through the JAA school and passed all the Bundesamt für Zivilluftfahrt exams in Switzerland pretty well and got to fly for their national carrier for a couple years. I wanted a career as a professional aviator but I have zero family history in flying and frankly, not much interest in it beyond my job. It's a professional curiosity and I follow it and I wish to advance within my field, but the day I retire is the day I will quit following it and I actually doubt I'll miss it at all. The flying part is part of it and I want to be as good a pilot as I can be because I care very much about safety and professionalism but I really don't care much else about it. I don't fly in my spare time and I have zero desire to do so. But I do wish to be safe and promote a culture of safety within my field. It's important, obviously.

But this is a bike forum and I contribute here 100x more than I do at aviation forums, which are mostly full of meathead pilots who have a very high opinion of themselves and their place in the world. I'm good at my job, but it's just my job. it's not who I am. Not even close. Sorry I can't give a better answer than that....

I'm happy to answer questions offline. I care about it, but basically only professionally.