How many of you are scared of flying?

[darkangel218]

In the wake of the AA turbulence emergency.

26 votes, 0 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	I am definitely scared of flying
	11 (42%)
	I am scared, but only in turbulance
	0 (0%)
	I am not scared of flying
	13 (50%)
	I never fly, I'm a wuss
	2 (8%)
	0 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[Union Scribe]

1. For me, it's the height and the hassle

I don't so much fear turbulence or crashing. I just hate swallowing my own anxiety at being up that high, and I find the whole experience around flying overall really unpleasant.

[darkangel218]

6. After 9/11 i developed phobia

I used to LOVE flying, even in small Russian planes , but after 9/11 I was all fuct up.

:/

[closeupready]

9. +1. I've been to South America, Africa, all over Europe ...

Canada plenty of times ... and then 9/11 sort of dampened my enthusiasm.

[BillZBubb]

2. Not fear, just stress.

I hate the whole process. I'm not good at waiting around for things. It used to be a lot more convenient.

[darkangel218]

12. I dont mind the wait

Here in Orlando they only have a few restaurants. In Miami you had plenty to chose from , but here is either between Outback Steakhouse or some other hard to remember place. I always go to Outback , eat lots of shrimp and take my anxiolityc med.

I hate being scared of something I once used to love

[Shrike47]

3. Scared but fly anyway.

[darkangel218]

7. Same here. I have to

[Jamastiene]

17. Look at the bright side, there are less wrecks in the sky than with automobiles

on the ground. Maybe that will help? Hopefully?

I'm the biggest wimp in the world, but other than the unwanted TSA groping, the forced nudie shots they'd take of me and the annoyance of being anally probed, I think I would enjoy flying.

[wildbilln864]

40. you may walk away from a car wreck...

but not from a plane wreck.

[11 Bravo]

41. As the immortal Satchel Paige noted regarding air travel ...

"Airplanes may kill you, but they ain't likely to hurt you."

[Hoyt]

4. Like flying, it's the lines, packing, crowds, searches, etc., that make me avoid it.

[CTyankee]

61. I don't blame you. But I love going to Europe so I put up with it all...

I've got packing down to a science. My airline reservation is confirmed. I got thru security with barely a problem.

My payoff is what I find on my trip. The art! My big thing. But lately I have been interested in just the culture of another European country, food and wine. Art I've explored already. This is different. It is wonderful...

[Hoyt]

65. I get it. But I'd need heavy anti-anxiety meds for that. Hope the trip lives

up to your expectations. Bet it will.

[CTyankee]

87. My aim is to go and go before I get too old to travel abroad.

What kills me is the jet lag when I get back.

[rock]

5. Only a little

But that's not the reason I don't fly. It sucks.

[Agnosticsherbet]

8. I have no fear of flying, either in aircraft or in reading the book.

[Laffy Kat]

57. I remember the book well.

My mom read it then put it in a brown paper bag to throw away. I fished it out and read it myself and didn't tell mom until I was an adult.

[NYC_SKP]

10. I won't even try to fly. A jump from a diving board is as close as I'll get to flying.

I just don't have the body for it.

Flying should be left to skinny dudes, preferably with wings.

I did skydive over the north coast of Oahu two years ago, however, but that was more like falling than flying.

[sarisataka]

11. No problem

as long as there is an airplane wrapped around me without that it's a little touch and go.

[JaneyVee]

13. I fly often for my job and am always somewhat scared.

No matter how many flights I've taken, it's always a bit nerve racking.

[BlueJazz]

50. Ever Fly from LA to Australia ?? The plane (747) (at First) feels like the dog-gone..

,,,thing is never going to get off the ground...it being loaded with people, fuel and baggage to the max.

[Jamastiene]

14. I'm not scared of flying, but I rarely fly anyhow.

It just doesn't come up as any kind of opportunity for me in daily life. I wish it did. I would love to be able to fly somewhere else and leave the zealot right wing homophobic rednecks in my area behind for a vacation or something, maybe go to Oregon. That would be nice for a couple weeks or something.

But, alas, I never get to fly off into the wild blue yonder and enjoy another nicer place.

[darkangel218]

16. I have to fly ti see my family

Heavily medicated.

[Jamastiene]

22. I'm sorry it bothers you to fly.

I wish I knew what to say other than there seem to be less wrecks in the sky than on the ground. They say flying is safer and I tend to believe them. If you fly over NC anytime, just remember I'm down here wishing you peace, safety, and tranquility on your flight.

[darkangel218]

25. Thanks Jamastiene

I really can't afford not to fly, since I have family abroad. The stats don't really help me. It's something unconscious that happened after 9/11. I used to really love flying, no matter how bumpy the flight was.

I trully believe 9/11 screwd up everything.

[CreekDog]

64. Yes, sometimes relatives can be difficult

[tammywammy]

15. Not at all.

The turbulence on the Seoul-DFW flight was very rare, that's why it was on the news.

[darkangel218]

18. Its not that rare.

It happened to me too, it just didn't make the news.

[tammywammy]

21. Considering the thousands of flights per day, even if it happened once a day it's rare.

Turbulence happens. Turbulence that lasts over an hour and diverts a plane - rare.

[morningfog]

84. A daily event would be considered common.

If one commercial flight a day crashed, no one would say it is rare.

[bettyellen]

19. Love it, because it's totally worth it to go far away!

[Nye Bevan]

20. I understand probability and statistics, so no.

I am much more afraid when a crazy taxi driver is driving me to or from the airport.

[darkangel218]

36. Try crazy cab drivers in Belgrade

They drive like they're trying to kill you

[hifiguy]

43. Try ANY traffic in China

where the traffic flows. Driving down the wrong side of the street for a while to scout parking spaces is considered perfectly normal. All signaling is done with the horn. Unlike Paris there aren't malicious drivers but the "Look out everybody, I coming through now! Good luck!" attitude rules the day. It is fucking TERRIFYING.

[DawgHouse]

23. I'm not scared but I try not to think about it too much.

I just focus on other things, put on my headphones and listen to something.

[HipChick]

24. Just turbulence...try being in a near crash..

Our plane came down on a small plane, our pilot literally took our plane back up at what felt like a 90 degree angle..and circled in the air for the next 30mins....he finally told us what happened
has not bothered me in the slightest, I average about 100K miles per year flying..

[GliderGuider]

26. I actually enjoy turbulence - the more the better.

But I'm a glider pilot, and we're weird that way.

[darkangel218]

28. Holy shit..

Good for you
Without meds I would probably have a heart attack and die.

[darkangel218]

32. You need to fly next to me, to keep me calm

If I ever win the lottery I will contact you

[GliderGuider]

35. As long as I won't need to have your fingernails surgically removed from my arm!

[darkangel218]

38. I could always wear gloves

Seriously, terrified.

[Nevada Blue]

55. I get that

I've never had any turbulence like this recent event, but I like an 'e' ticket ride. It makes me feel like I'm flying; a totally calm flight is too much like sitting still, which is more disconcerting for me. Didn't fly at all until I was in my 30s, but I love it and every time I see a plane in the sky I wish I was on it.

[a la izquierda]

27. I used to be.

Not anymore. I don't love turbulence, but my brother-in-law is a pilot and has assured me as long as I keep my seatbelt on when I'm sitting, I'll be okay. That knowledge, and Xanax, have assured me I will see the world. I've got trips to Costa Rica, Mexico, and Spain this year (work related).

[darkangel218]

30. +1 for xanax.

I owe seeing my family to it

[bluesbassman]

29. i'm not, but my Mom was terrified.

Last flight I took with her (she passed in '97) she dug her nails into my arm so hard she actually drew blood. She was a trooper though, as we had an occasion to go visit a friend who was in the hospital up in St, Helena and his dad owned a small plane and offered to fly us up there. The nearest airport is at Angwin and it's a side of the mountain decent onto a postage stamp size runway. Mom was in the back seat so she couldn't get at my arm for that one, but somehow she managed to survive the flight!

Here's what the approach looks like.

[GliderGuider]

37. Sweet sight! nt

[shenmue]

31. I like pie

[giftedgirl77]

33. I don't mind flying...

I just don't enjoy the people portion of it.

[wildbilln864]

34. not afraid of flying just crashing. n/t

[etherealtruth]

39. I am terrified of flying

I do it ... oddly my job requires travel ... I will drive if I can, but end up flying several times a year.

It requires prescriptions and alcohol to do so (I can say, that I rarely drink and don't take drugs ... so when I do it takes relatively small amounts).

I don't know that I would ever be able to get back on a plane if I experienced what those folk did!

[hifiguy]

42. I was scared until I understood the physics of flight.

Never been scared since and now I can sleep on planes. I've been through some pretty bad turbulence but the planes are designed to tolerate multiples of those stresses.

The only thing that frightens me is how achy I am going to be after being jammed into one of those ludicrous seats for a few hours.

[TheKentuckian]

44. Not a bit afraid, I actually like it. Love small planes too. What I hate now is the airport

the experience is miserable. Maybe it will be less annoying as hell now that I don't smoke but it has definitely become unfun and crappy.

I also hate the spam in a can factor. Flights are jam packed with seemingly tiny seats but if I was wealthy and flying private it would be love or even well off and could go first class it would be awesome.

[kentauros]

46. Business class is nice :)

I had it once due to missing my flight to LA from Houston (horrible weather here) so Quantas comped me a seat in business class to Sydney (and then coach to Auckland, where I was originally headed.)

And another DUer gave me a site called "Lux Flights" but I can't find it in a search. I think this site is the same, considering it's all heavily discounted business and first class seats:

http://www.skyluxtravel.com/

[Warpy]

45. I figure there's only one crash to the average customer and I've had mine

I was seven and the landing gear wouldn't descend all the way. The plane circled the field for half an hour while all the fire trucks and ambulances assembled. I was so air sick I didn't care.

The belly landing produced bumps and bruises, the pilot was an excellent one.

So if you see me on a plane, know it's not going to crash.

I dislike flying because it's always been cattle class and that's just how I feel. It's crowded and stressful.

[mnhtnbb]

53. My dad was in a small plane that made a forced landing in the 40's. He wouldn't fly after that.

When I was growing up, we went by train or car. It was only when he was in his
80's--during the 1990's--that he finally agreed to fly again.

[madokie]

47. I haven't been in a big plane since the 737

and 727 were the planes we flew on. 747 had just hit the scene when I took my last flight. I like flying in small planes too, in fact thats where the fun is. I'll never forget my first flight in a piper cub and it was like riding in a wood wheeled wagon on a rough trail, rougher than hell and had me worried at first then the guy flying told me that this is normal. Nothing like flying in the big planes. The only place I experienced flight turbulence of any size was coming in to Los Angeles from the east. We dropped 350 ft one time or so the pilot told us

[MurrayDelph]

48. Not afraid, but it's a pain in the ass

Metallic joints in left knee and right thumb set off the magnetometer EVERY bleeding time.

They would make you take off your shoes, but rarely have a place for you to sit to put them on again afterwards.

Airlines charging for things that should be included (one of these days they're going to start charging "insurance" for the emergency oxygen masks)

This is why, anything less than 1500 miles, I prefer to drive.

[DeadLetterOffice]

49. My "fear of flying" has nothing to do with planes, or turbulence, or crashing.

My problem is that I have a panic disorder, and part of my personal coping strategy for dealing with said panic disorder is having an escape plan in case a panic attack starts at any given time.

Having an escape plan on an airplane at 35,000 feet is pretty much a non-starter. This, in and of itself, is enough to give me a panic attack -- it's kind of like telling people not to think of pink elephants, and suddenly all you can think about is pink elephants.

I can drug the crap out of myself and pull a direct flight off (I think), but if I'm going to have to change planes I MUST have someone go with me, no matter how good or plentiful the tranqs are.

[frazzled]

51. I used to be wicked scared

but somehow outgrew it mostly. I'm still nervous in turbulence, but have made my peace with it. Maybe it's about getting older and not caring so much anymore about things like my kids not having a mother. It's just not the way I'd prefer to depart this earth: falling out of the sky (especially into icy water).

Now, ask me about bridges. I get terrified when you drive onto a bridge and have to stop and wait. Terrified.

[mnhtnbb]

52. I'm not afraid of flying, I just hate the experience!

It used to be fun to travel somewhere. Now it's a PITA.
And if we are making a trip longer than 3 hours? I book business class.
I can't stand being squeezed in next to people--3 across or more--
so if I don't have frequent flyer miles to upgrade, I don't plan a trip
unless I can afford the business class fare.

If I can make a more than 3 hour trip by breaking it up into segments, I will
fly coach. But if it's international and no way to break it up...then the budget
needs to allow for business class or having the miles to upgrade.

[JonLP24]

54. I'm scared of landing

Also flying thru thunderstorms -- other than that I'm alright.

[KT2000]

56. Love taking off and landing -

the middle part is kind of boring.
It still feels like a miracle to me that these huge beasts can just sail through the sky - and those engines are so freaking powerful - fantastic!!!

[WinkyDink]

73. Those were the only parts I liked! The climbing and leveling off, and the amazing "coasting" down

to the airport!

It's the middle part when I had time to think about....THERE'S NOTHING UNDER MY FEET! That thought came to dominate, and now I won't fly.

[KT2000]

79. oh no - sorry to hear that

I consider it about the only time that I am free of any responsibilities and I have to trust the pilots to get us wherever and fate will take care of the rest.
Maybe think of it this way - there is part of the airplane under your feet and it has tons of wires and whatnot that are necessary for the plane to fly. Lots of great minds put these things together - from the design stage to the completed product.

[WinkyDink]

83. Oh, it's completely irrational, but I own it, as the kidz say! Grasp the physics, understand tur-

bulence and came to regard it as like a bird's flight, have read many books on crashes and near-crashes to know the odds of survival and percentage of "pilot error"---the whole schmear!

I just can't bear the sensation any more!

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

58. I'm nauseous a lot when I fly, does that count?

The air filtering and circulation equipment on planes sucks as far as I can see.

[dhol82]

59. Always try to get the window seat

Just love looking out the window and trying to identify landmarks.

Fascinating.

[Quixote1818]

60. My gut finds it un-nerving but my rational thinking reminds me it is much safer than driving

Any time I get a tiny bit worried I just run the stats in my head and then I am good.

[tabbycat31]

62. Not the most pleasant experience

But not terrifying. I fly so infrequently (about once in 10 years) that it really does not matter.

However, I HATE HATE HATE when I'm seated next to an obese person and I get 1/2 a seat instead of a full seat (on my last flight this happened, she immediately put the armrest up and was occupying my seat the entire flight).

[hunter]

63. Flying sucks.

If I was emperor of earth I'd ban it.

[Pakhet]

66. I'm not afraid of flying, but

I refuse to be treated like cattle.

[TorchTheWitch]

67. it's the "I can't get out" feeling of claustrophobia

Although crashing would clearly suck. There's also some sort of wrongness about it that bothers me about being so far off the ground.

I did fly once when I was a little kid. That age when it doesn't really occur to you to be afraid of anything. I flew by myself, too, and it was a business flight. Me and a whole lot of grouchy men in suits that drank too much. I think I had the grouchiest one sitting next to me. It was only about an hour and a half flight, but I was just about at my limit for sitting in a seat next to a pickled grouch paging through a book and staring out the window. Clouds are only fascinating for so long.

Once I grew up I just couldn't stand even the idea of flying - the claustrophobia of it mostly. I get rubber knees just going to the airport to pick someone up, and I can't stand seeing planes taking off or landing.

[laundry_queen]

69. I can relate

I flew a few times as a kid and found it fascinating. Loved it - even though I was very worried about crashing as we had our flights booked, as it so happened, after a large number of major crashes in a short period of time. However, my mom reassured me it was statistically safer than driving and that was all I needed to stop being worried.

As an adult, I flew twice. Both times in a small commuter prop plane, both times with a baby on my lap. Both times with turbulence. The second time, after flying with a baby and a toddler, I swore I'd never fly again. My then-husband had to watch the kids because I took gravol to calm my stomach and it made everything way worse - apparently I turned green, LOL. The gravol did nothing to help my stomach and then made me panic because I didn't have my wits about me. Also, there was something totally unnerving that if my plane crashed my whole family would be wiped out...never did fly after that. I might fly again when my kids are grown up, but I don't think I could climb on a plane with my kids at the moment. Can't afford it anyway, so it's just as well. The claustrophobia bothers me too. Mostly I get scared I'll get stuck on the runway with a broken down bathroom (small bladder here, lol). Honestly, I just don't see the appeal. My parents fly regularly and complain about it constantly. All the crap they go through is just not worth it for me.

[RebelOne]

68. I love flying. In fact, I was flying a small single-engine

Cessna trying to get my private pilot's license, but I ran out of money because flying is expensive. Before I flew a small plane, I was sky-diving out of small planes. But I decided to stay in the plane and learn to fly it.

[MiniMe]

70. I went through a period of fear of flying shortly after 9-11

But I have gotten over in now.

[lumberjack_jeff]

71. Everyone who is passingly familiar with how machines work...

... should, to some degree, be afraid of flying.

[WinkyDink]

72. Used to fly almost annually to Europe. Then finally the phobia set in. Never will fly ever again.

[Iggo]

74. I'm afraid of landing.

Seriously. Flying's a blast.

But I shit bricks (figuratively, mostly) when that plane hits the ground.

[Purveyor]

76. Who cares if one is on the 'no fly list'?

[nilesobek]

77. Terra Firma for me.

I would only fly in a family emergency and that hasn't happened yet.

[Major Hogwash]

78. Um, I must have not gotten that memo. What in thunder are you talking about??

In the wake of the AA turbulence emergency.

I was out of the house for awhile today and so I don't have a clue as to what you are referring to.

By the way, have a Merry Christmas.

[pinboy3niner]

81. Here...

The video is posted in replies 43 and 44 in the thread:

Holy crap. Crazy turbulence diverts American Airlines flight 280 to Japan
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=5970700

Merry Christmas!

[RushIsRot]

80. Flying is the safest way to fly!

[pinboy3niner]

82. Nun better!

[hobbit709]

85. I've been in lots worse than turbulence.

I don't fly now because of Vaterland Security.

[sendero]

86. I fly..

... but I don't particularly enjoy it I wouldn't go all the way to "scared", maybe just a bit nervous.