A fear of flying

A fearful flier recently contacted me with a high level of trepidation about an upcoming journey. The questions were all very valid, but still I was surprised that such a highly educated individual could hold such misconceptions. I soon realised that it was my blinkered perspective that was the issue as I discussed each item, one by one.

The fact that modern airliners possess radar and fly around bad weather rather than through it and that pilots continually assess the weather en route was a surprise to my friend.

That fuel is carried to permit options such as a go-around or diverting to another airport was similarly misunderstood. How long does that first ‘vertical’ climb last for, when reality is the body angle tops out at around 15 degrees on takeoff and galley carts could not be pushed up and down aisles if the angle was too steep in the subsequent climb? We discussed a range of topics and to their credit, they understood each rational explanation and each in turn seemed to erode the jagged edges of a fear of flying.

Undoubtedly the locked flightdeck has not helped the cause. Once passengers could visit the flightdeck in the cruise and while they would often enter in awe of the number of switches, it was likely that they left with a better understanding. That each panel represents a system, redundancies mean there is more than one of everything and that blue is sky and brown is the earth on flight instruments. Simple concepts, understandable concepts. And the pilots flying the aeroplane were real people – relaxed and professional, but definitely not rocket scientists. This led to a level of confidence in the hands of those who were taking them into the stratosphere. Now they may never see a pilot and hear only a few words about how long to go and whether it is raining at their destination.

Sensationalising media does not help the cause either. Hurried, inaccurate headlines desperate to grab attention can only eat at the public’s confidence.

Often these headlines milk the drama like a bad soap opera, only to drop the story to three lines on page 50 when the facts begin to surface. However, that first ill-informed report can spread like wildfire across the internet until fiction becomes fact and perception becomes reality. The commendable early decision by the crew to divert and the safe and successful outcome is entirely overlooked. Meanwhile, the fearful flier has tuned in their TV to hear such tales of ‘near tragedy’ and their anxiety grows. There are ‘fear of flying’ courses, but often these do not come cheaply. There are forms of therapy to address the fear as well. However, it would be wrong to dispel these as irrational fears and we must be mindful of our biased perspective. Since evolution, man only climbed into the trees to escape predators and couldn’t wait to get back down to the ground. Our foray into the skies can be measured in a couple of hundred years, as opposed to our fears and instincts that date back to before the Leaky Man walked the earth. And he walked the earth – he didn’t fly.

Generations of dreamers cast their eyes to the stars and eventually man took to the skies, but it is not a natural environment for us. As pilots we relish the skies, but it is a place of dread for others and a necessary evil at best. Each of us who knows enough about aviation needs to pause for a minute and consider that not everyone in the conversation has the same perspective. They may not simply be bored by the jargon – and who can blame those that are? – they may actually be fearful of flying.

One wonders what percentage of passengers that fly do so with some level of fear. And from a commercial aspect, how many potential customers avoid flying due to their phobia? A number of air rage incidents over the years have actually been fearful fliers lashing out in a way that they would never do on the ground. It would appear to be in the airlines’ interests to foster education and offer more affordable courses. Already a good number of volunteer organisations do magnificent work, but demand seems to outstrip supply in this area.

Still, the numbers are difficult to gauge. People aren’t prone to raise their fears in public or admit to some perceived weakness and once again that is not so much their fault as those around them. Perhaps we all need to listen a little more attentively and survey the faces a little more closely the next time aviation enters the conversation. As those with the knowledge, we have the ability to alleviate or exacerbate the anxiety in another. In so many cases this knowledge can dispel fear, or at the very least, lessen it.

We have closed the flightdeck door on those who fear our world of flight and the headlines don’t help their cause either. It is disappointing to think that a visit to see family or a wedding celebration can cause such dread among our friends. It need not be so and I for one will endeavour to take my blinkers off and take the time to answer their questions. I aided my friend with a fear of flying, but I think that I may well be the one who learned the lesson.