51–59 of 59 posts
His fear of private aircraft is comparatively rational. The big commercial carriers have a far better safety record.
The law of large numbers apply, but only to large numbers.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
A friend of mine flies 737s for one of the major airlines, and he once told me, "When I'm up in the air I don't give a damn about the 150 people behind me. I'm sure as hell going to take care of myself though, and if I make it through they don't have much choice but to follow me." You may not be in control, but the pilot is, and he wants to make it to his destination just as much as you do.
That reminds me of the story a couple months ago in Britain [1]: "One passenger then identified himself as a qualified aircraft engineer and offered to try to remedy the fault. He was successful, and the plane landed in Glasgow only 35 minutes late...It was reassuring to know the person who had fixed it was still on the aeroplane." Normally I'd be very worried that my plane was fixed by someone that didn't actually w…
The reason was that if the inside wasn't smooth, the cannon might go off.
I don't understand the confusion that someone who is supposedly rich would fly JetBlue. They are pretty sweet as far as flying goes.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
So I wonder if taking a few lessons in a cessna 150 would allay this guys fears?
Maybe. I never had a fear of commercial flying, but the first few lessons in a cessna 152 on a sunny day sure reminded me why people are afraid to fly. That, and me almost killing me and instructor a few months later did that too. At least now, I can slip on landings in a very safe and accurate manner. edit: I'm sure a few lessons can desensitize a person
Glad you're still alive.
I wonder if understanding the mechanics of it all helps with the fear thing too. I seem to remember there's a decent amount of basic aerodynamics and such before they let you take the stick...
I'll share something my mom said to me when I was scared of flying as a kid: "They pilot doesn't want to die either". That has more-or-less destroyed any fear I have of flying.
I agree. I was recently 4 hours into a flight from Chicago to Germany on a large double-decker Airbus when I started smelling smoke on the plane. Suddenly I see flight attendants running to the back of the plane with fire extinguishers. Other flight attendants are running to the front of the plane with bottles of liquor. The captain comes over the intercom: "Flight attendants, prepare for emergency landing" Over the…
Ugh, I know exactly how that guy feels. I hate flying with an abiding passion (indeed, I view their 30 day trip as about as much fun as hitting myself in the nuts with a hammer over the course of a month). It is completely and totally irrational, but there's not much to be done about it. Drinking helps, some, but they don't serve drinks during takeoff, which is the worst part (I usually manage to relax a bit after ab…
> about as much fun as hitting myself in the nuts with a hammer over the course of a month Actually having been hit in the nuts by a cricket bowling machine (I.e. a baseball * 1.3 weight at about 50 miles/hour), I can tell you that every other concern seems petty in comparison for the 20 or so minutes it takes to get ones senses back. But I'm not about to recommend it as therapy.
Where does this data come from?