Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: loser on December 14, 2001, 08:19:00 AM
-
hello gents and flossy and dyana
my girlfriend is now enrolled at the university of waterloo in Ontario Canada. I live 2000 miles away in the middle of Saskatchewan.
she is a great girl and i would love to visit her.
My problem is i have a deathly fear of flying.
This fear is totally unrelated to the 9/11 atrocity (sp)
I know that as far as stats go i am much safer in plane than i am in my car, but flying still freaks me out. Especially at this time of year and the "ice on the wing syndrome" and even more so because the last time my girlfriend visited me her plane almost augered on final due to a sudden wind gust. ( i saw it happen from the airport, the plane's right wing tip was inches from skipping the rwy)
how did you guys get over your fear of flying?
-
which is bigger ..
your love of this girl
or your girlie fear
time to grab them up...before she realizes what a wuzzie you are :)
-
oh she knows of the fear
-
Dude...I was scared to death of flying for a number of years as well.
I overcame it by actually talking to an Air Canada pilot who rented an apartment from my parents years ago. He was their second most senior pilot and had logged a riduclous number of hours during his career...
I told him about how scared I was and he then asked me to explain all of my concerns...he then addressed each one, giving me an idea of how they deal with problems and how the saftey features worked, as well as explaining the various back-up systems that were on-board.
My biggest concern was losing all engines while in-flight (at 32,000 feet)and that the plane would simply fall from the sky...he then pulled out the HUGE specs binder he had and showed me the glide capabilty of the various jets....I had no idea they could glide at all....obviously you need to find somewhere to land..FAST, but at least there isn't a massive death spiral from 32k up!
Dunno if this will help you or whether you know any airline pilots...but it sure did wonders for me! I am still a bit jitery on takeoff now, but other than that I am pretty confident. Try calling an airline...they might be very open to at least an e-mail to one of their pilots...?
And by the way....I HAD to fly for work despite my fear even when I was petrified! My sweat glands would be so active I would be soaked at the end of every flight!
-
now that i think about it, and regarding my previous post.
the wind that hit my g/f's plane was an 50 mph sudden crosswind....the pilot managed to keep her under control in an crazy situation....what do i have to fear...
btw i have 2 cousins and a grandfather who flew a wellington in WW2, what do i have to fear?
i just wish i could be in the "pit" watching what they are doing
-
hehehe loser, don't know if it will help..
Bascially, don't worry about things you cannot control. What's meant to be, will be, and your worring ain't good change it.
If you are religious it should come even easier to you.
:D
-
Or, you can do what a friend of mine does and just get smashed! It works for her :)
Charon
-
My first planeride was in a Cessna 182. I was 16 and we were going skydiving.
There was one seat for the pilot and 5 others sitting on the floor. I was the lightest and therefore the last to go. The first guy was 250lbs. or so and he got out there and hung on the strut. When he let go....I thought we were going to crash!
That plane was flopping from side to side and then the pilot stood it on its right wing and there I am looking out the open door at nothing but air and scared toejamless.
I'm telling you jumping out of that airplane was the easiest decision I've ever made in my life!
I've since learned to enjoy flying. My brother is a pilot and we have taken some small planes up and he's "educated" me some. I actually enjoy flying now.
-
Originally posted by loser:
how did you guys get over your fear of flying?
152 parachute jumps and obtaining my pilot's license worked just fine for me. ;)
Seriously, I'm still acrophobic (afraid of heights) and I'm not sure phobia's of any sort ever go away. It's about controlling them as opposed to letting them control you. :D
BTW, ....Waterloo is a fabulous University..... Just up the road from me.
Regards,
Badger
-
Originally posted by loser:
oh she knows of the fear
think about what it would mean to her if you did overcome that fear, just to see her.
she will be floored.
-
Hey Badger...where did you do your jumps? In the army? Or did you go to the "Toronto Parachute School (TPS)" in Arthur, Ontario?
I did my "one" static line jump from the latter..
I was totally tricked into going by my college roomate at York University...he said we were going "somewhere for my birthday". When we pulled in to the school I was cursing him, because I found out he had already paid for it and that I had no way out.
(I am scared of heights too...it was his attempt to cure me so that I would get up a ladder when we had painting contacts).
As it turned out the TPS had their first accident the day before, which explained the presence of all the cops...some goof tried to land on the target set up for the experts (with a big chute) and over-shot...landed in the power lines apparently and managed to ground himself!!! This did not help my fears at ALL!
But, I was really glad to do it...my buddy and I were "high-fiving" each other about every 30 seconds on the drive back into the city.
-
First flight was on a 747 from Boston to London. If that doesn't do it for you, nothing will. Since then, came to the Air Force Academy, got to do 5 solo jumps out of a UV-18, flew gliders (great place to start getting over your fear), then on to Cessnas to get my ppl. Flying isn't nearly as scary when you're at the controls of the plane. Especially once you start learning about all the checklists and backups that planes have for pretty much every situation imaginable, it's not bad at all.
-
The more you know the more you worry.
I tend to be smiling, happy, pleasant to the stews; all whilst calmly maintaining a white knuckle grip on the armrest. I can watch two in-flight movies and not remember even ONE scene. Even once read in flight an entire paperback and instantly forgot it.
Like Badger sez.. it's about controlling the anxiety. All my energy goes there.. it's do-able. I regard flying as a test of my own resolve.
Just do it. :D
-
Originally posted by loser:
My problem is i have a deathly fear of flying.
Why do you think God put Pubs in airports? :)
-
Jump from one... or two... or three... it just wont friggen matter anymore.
xBAT
-
If you can imagine that you are flying WW2 planes on a computer then you can get on that bigger REAL PLANE! :D
Now get your butt on that plane and have some cocktails in flight!
-
Fuggit. Everybody gotta die of sumptin.
Wab
-
Originally posted by Raubvogel:
Why do you think God put Pubs in airports? :)
To make the stewardess's look more attractive.
Past 4 years ive yet to see a good looking one. Seems I get the Hag Flights ;)
-
The similarity between a cow-pie and a British Airways stewie...the older they get the easier they are to pick up!
-
Just do it man. Get on the plane and think about something else and once she starts moving its too late :)
I have a fear of the water. I can swim but just barely. On vacation there was a coral reef that I wanted to check out. But the water between there and where I was was over my head and I couldnt muster up the courage to go snorkeling over. After surveying it in the canoe the day before I just said to hell with it, and started swimming. And well, im still here typing this so I guess it went ok :) though i was a bit tired and sore the rest of the day. It wasnt that it was that far, its just I swam that slow :D
Just get the ticket and walk on the plane. Sit your butt down close your eyes and go for it. Once you in the air its pretty much like being on the ground, pretty smooth but with a bit of turbulence every once and a while. And dont to like my buddy "who was also nervous about flying" and stare at the wings as you take off and climb to altitude. I wish I had a camera to snap a shot of the look of terror on his face as the wing tips creeped higher and higher :D He would look out the window and then turn his head survey the rest of the passengers as if to see if anyone else shared his concern, then look out the window for another few mins. It was priceless.
-
Loser just get drunk. It's really hard to be anxious when you are drunk.
-
Hmmm....wonder why she picked a school so far away?
-
cc on getting drunk.
it WILL work.
And dont worry, I wont think you are a popsicle because of your dumb fear of flying, and your fear to see your girlfriend.
-
If you're afraid to fly, try it yourselfe!
Seriously, go to the next local airfield and take a few lessons.
Best cure i know (i know a few people who did it actually...)
Cheers
DW6
-
In the past year, I have taken probably at least 40 airline rides, including about 12 or more international trips. Flown to China with Air China, Malaysia with Air Malaysia, and a bunch of other airlines.
If you wanted to die in an airline crash, it would be impossible to do. Its just too safe. I work for an airline, have worked for one for 16 years. Worked in Tech Ops, worked in Flight Ops. I have audited many other airlines. It is unbelievable safe, so much goes on you never see to make sure of it, you would be amazed.
I get on planes now, dont even think about any bad stuff, cause I know its not gonna happen. I just enjoy the view. I have flown over the pyramids in Egypt, flown over Iceland as the sun rose, flown over the Alps at sunset. There has never been a crash where a commercial airline pilot just blew a landing by himself.
To quote as close as I can remember what Helen Keller said:
"Life is a great adventure, or it is nothing at all"
Who would want to miss all the great adventures in life because of irrational fear? Conquer the fear, challenge yourself, make your time and your life count. Better to die with great memories than live a life of regrets.
This last year among other things, I have walked the streets and back alleys of Bejing, and rode in a glider in the Alps peforming aerobatics, toured the Red Light district of Amsterdam, visited the Petronas towers in Kuala Lumpur. If I let a fear of flying stop me I would have missed all these things.
Go fly, live and enjoy yourself.
Dago
-
Originally posted by loser:
how did you guys get over your fear of flying?
...by doing power-on stalls in a plane older than me, somewhere over yolo county ;)
ps - ditto what wab said as well!
-
I agree with what some of the others have said. The best way to overcome a fear of something is by doing it. Everybody has things they are afraid of. I personally have never been afraid to fly but I was always afraid of the water when I was younger. Part of it was because I didnt learn to swim until I was in college. Even after I learned to swim I was still afraid to swim in the ocean though. The way I conquered that was simply by swimming in the ocean. The more you do something, the less frightening it becomes. Remember that most fears are irrational anyway. Sharks almost never kill anybody in the ocean and people rarely die in airline crashes. Things that you should really be afraid of like driving, (highway accidents kill something like 50,000 each year in US I think it is) hardly even bother us. Again, this is because we do it so much we dont even think about it. I logged about 9 hours last week in four flights and the only nervousness I felt was over grades.
-
You would be better off if you realized that it's not a fear of flying... it's a fear of crashing.
As long as you're flying, there's no problem.
It's mind over matter, Loser.
I wish I could relate to your fears better (but I'm glad that I don't) :)
-
i think my problem is the lack of control
i cant stand being in the passenger's seat in a car. I cant stand being in seat 12 A in a plane.
perhaps i would just have to pretend i can hit 4 at anytime and blow the bellybutton off of the con on my 6
but anyhoo thx alot guys for the tips, some of them (especially the get ripped one) have helped.
:p
-
btw it is not a fear of heights. a buddy and me got drunk once and climbed a 806 foot radio tower. It took us two hours and we both puked at the top (from exhaustion) but the height didnt bother me.
i have the red plane light globes to prove the climb, just dont tell the FAA
-
Just the opposite here. Never had a problem in a plane (flying it or otherwise). Canyon rims and glass elevators are another thing. :eek:
-
Wabbit is right; we all gonna die sooner or later.
Dust to dust, ashes to ashes... It's only life :)
-
Originally posted by loser:
btw it is not a fear of heights. a buddy and me got drunk once and climbed a 806 foot radio tower...
Bingo!
Have a fun trip
:)
-
love you hun!
-
It's great(from a certain point of view) for me to read that so many people have the same problem I do. I've always loved planes but I've never liked travelling on them. I dont know why. Like hangtime, I get on, smile at the cabain crew and maybe have a beer. But im tensed up and i generally shut the window. I cant explain it. I love to travel, my whole family lives interstate, so it makes every trip or holiday an exercise in control and stress management. I know that the first and last days i'm going to be stressing about the plane trip.
I agree with losers possible explaination. I hate to be in the passenger seat of a car as well, so i generally drive everywhere. It costs me more in fuel but saves on my nerves. I agree that its probably a fear of not being in control. And also a fear of falling out of the sky and watching the ground get bigger and more detailed, knowing you're about to be killed. Very dead. In little pieces. I always take a book , it helps.
Just to finish off, im not petrified of flying, i dont shake and throw up or not go places if there is a plane trip involved. I just dont like it, its one of the few things(car passenger being another) that really shakes my nerves up. Cheers for letting me know i'm not alone.
G
-
Originally posted by loser:
how did you guys get over your fear of flying?
60 oz. of Sam Adam's Boston Lager.
-
I can understand the "not in control" feeling and the discomfort it creates. I hate riding on the back of a motorcycle, but love driving them.
For a long time, I could not relax on an airliner, and wasn't sure why. It came alot from the not knowing what was happening up front. I have been lucky to ride jumpseat on a pretty fair number of airline flights. Sometimes I did it on short flights for the fun of it, sometimes because it was the only way I could get on the aircraft. I can tell you this, it helped me relax alot to see how smooth and under control things are in the cockpit.
I wish everyone could have this chance once or twice, its a good view and a good learning experience. I only get to do it because of I work at an airline in a position authorized to jumpseat. Its not really a comfortable seat, and given a choice I would rather ride first class, or even an aisle seat in coach, but it is a good chance to see what goes on.
I know doing it helped me relax anyway.
Dago
-
Well, best way is to get into a SE-2 Islander that has been repaired using duct tape, then have some idiot tell you to jump out of the plane - and actually do it.
The flying bit will seem quite easy when you realise you don't have to face the fear of jumping out of the plane :D.