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Another Routine Day to Fly

The crew arrived at the airport on a routine but chilly Saturday morning in early March.  It was a cold almost balmy morning due to the absolute stillness of the dark night air. Our passengers—those afraid to fly or not—are also likely making their way to Metro airport. They were no doubt having more of an adventure than we were getting families ready, parking cars, and navigating the terminal areas.

Time zone differences made it the middle of the night for our Phoenix-based crew, yet we share cordial morning greetings riding in the hotel van to the terminal, punchy and wide awake, the too-hot coffee from the hotel restaurant having a positive effect. Michigan mornings like these remind me of my youth, and I crave a cigarette or a dip of chewing tobacco although I quit those habits years ago.

We get to the airplane, and sensing that the pre-flight operation will run better if I’m not there, I take orders for breakfast from the First Officer (F/O)and the Flight Attendants. My treat. This one is on the Captain, and it sure feels good to do something nice and unexpected for my co-workers. I leave the operation in the charge of my flying partner and walk off to stand in line at the purveyor of quality airport food, which, in Detroit, is found under the golden arches, a long walk down the concourse.

The boarding process is halfway finished when I return.  My crew is pleased to get exactly what they ordered. I settle in for a hot cup of ship’s coffee. Airplane coffee: hot, dark and bitter. It tastes good. The F/O says that we are covered with morning frost and that we must de-ice prior to takeoff. This will create a slight delay, but we should arrive in Phoenix on time, in approximately five hours. Fearful flyers sometimes express concerns about de-icing.  However, de-icing is a normal part of  wintertime flying—that is, if a flight originates from some frozen-over city— and one can count on the airplane being covered with frost for the first departure of the day, which normally occurs before the sun is much above the horizon.

We push back from the gate with an almost-full airplane and start our left engine to do a single-engine taxi to the de-ice pad on the other side of the airport. Our frosty airplane creaks and groans as its cold, hard tires roll over the uneven pavement of the taxiways.

In the de-ice pad, we configure the airplane for the application of de-ice fluid. Switches and levers operate valves and flight controls. Checklists and communication. The hot fluid is sprayed on the airplane. That too-sweet smell, reminiscent of automotive anti-freeze, fills the air. Fortunately, the smell dissipates quickly, the end result being an airplane free of all frost and safe for flight.

Our second engine is started, and we are cleared to taxi and then takeoff for Phoenix. By now the sun is up. The sky is a beautiful azure blue, spotted by a low and broken layer of thin-but-dark grey clouds. During our takeoff, the de-ice fluid on the smooth, rounded nose of the airplane, called the radome, runs back quickly over the cockpit windows forming hundreds of thin, opaque zig-zag eddies, looking like a science fiction oscilloscope, but multiplied many times in parallel. The radome houses our weather radar antenna, and although rain is not forecast for our flight today, weather radar is our safety requirement on all airline passenger flights.

As our aircraft accelerated to our climb and cruise speed above ten thousand feet, the eddies stopped, and the fluid pooled in large droplets along the back edges of the windshield panels. I’m reminded of childhood trips in the back seat of the family station wagon, watching a light spring rain dance in whorls on the side windows. From years of experience, I know that this airplane will drip de-ice fluid from her greasy belly for the next several flights. That sweet smell will remain, a perfume of safe flight, for many flight hours. Experienced pilots will remember the hard years of long ago, when such resources were not available. We have come a long way from having a broom, a length of rope, and a pot of warm coffee for de-icing purposes.

Our flight takes us west over Southern Michigan. I know this area well, for Michigan was my childhood home. Looking down, the land seems almost foreign, the towns so close together. The speed limits on the roads are higher now, the towns have grown, and, in so many respects, the world has become much smaller, thanks in part to the jet engines that equip our aircraft.

Lake Michigan slides below us. The southern tip is a brilliant crescent of white ice, miles wide, standing guard in front of the steel mills of Gary, Indiana.  I’m reminded of my early aviation career during Chicago and Milwaukee winters when I flew small-package air freight. Looking back, those were good times. Back then, I only thought of surviving until the weekend and hoping to eventually go to work for the airlines. The paychecks were as minimal as the experience was vast.

It is mostly smooth as we cross over middle America. Better than half of the passengers sleep. One passenger, seated in coach, complains. Two in first class have had too much to drink and blessedly fall fast asleep.

The choppy air begins as we pass south of Pueblo, Colorado.  The F/O turns on the fasten seat belt sign and makes a gentle announcement to the passengers.  The flight crew understands the feelings that fearful flyers often experience when flying through turbulence. We make these announcements for your protection and your reassurance.  Fearful flyers are not alone when they share their flight with us. We understand. We care about you.

Many of the passengers largely ignore the announcement from the flight deck and the flight attendant’s directives, and continue using the lavatories. The turbulence is really only a mild-but-irritating chop, and nobody falls down or complains. Eventually the air smooths out, and we gently descend for our landing in Phoenix.

By some minor miracle, my landing is a smooth one, what we call a “greaser” in the industry. We touch down well ahead of schedule but end up having to hold for our arrival gate. Light westerly winds have allowed most of the fleet to get to the Phoenix hub well ahead of schedule, before the outbound flights are able to depart for their destination cities. The ramp and taxiways are a snarled mess with many airplanes of different sizes but with matching colors.  Eventually, we taxi to our arrival gate and, as the engines make a whining moan as they spool down after shutdown, I look at the clock on the instrument panel and notice, with slight disappointment, that we are a good twenty minutes behind our scheduled arrival time.

Our passengers are quite appreciative of the crew as they deplane, thanking us for the smooth flight. Nobody seemed to be any worse for the wear after being on this airplane for most of six hours.  Indeed, we had flown over much of this great nation, and it is only slightly after 10:00 o’clock in the morning, Phoenix time.

Though we arrived slightly behind schedule, our safe, mostly smooth flight was very typical of the service that the airlines provide. The level of professionalism and concentration that it takes to make these flights happen makes me proud to be part of the crew, proud of the airline I fly for, and proud to be part of the airline industry. When one is a member of a flight crew, he or she is truly surrounded by professionals. These people care. We care.

Welcome aboard!

Capt. Ron’s friend, Capt. John, is once again our guest pilot blogger to bring you his flightdeck perspective. He writes to provide a service to fearful flyers so they can see how incredibly safe (and routine!) flying is.  Capt. John has been flying since 1983 and has logged 20,000 hours. He assists Capt. Ron in the Phoenix fear of flying classes whenever his flying schedule permits.

Turbulent Flight Causes Injuries

If you have a fear of flying, it’s very possible that you spotted the story in the media over the weekend about the United Airlines flight ( Washington Dulles to Narita, Japan) that encountered turbulence resulting in passenger injury.

Sixteen people were injured on this flight after it encountered unexpected turbulence while flying over Alaska.  A quick review of this event makes several realities clear.

This encounter occurred on a Boeing 747-400, one of the largest passenger-carrying aircraft in service.  True, a larger airplane will often give you the smoothest ride, but a smooth ride cannot be guaranteed.

Although the sixteen passengers were thrown from their seats and injured when they struck the ceiling of the airplane, the rest of the 250+ passengers who were wearing their seat belts were unharmed.

Flight attendants are often injured while on the job.  Why?  They do lift the occasional heavy carry-on bags for the passengers who can’t; they handle their own bags too, and these are often quite heavy.  This causes many back and shoulder injuries.  The injuries that the chiropractor can’t fix almost always come from turbulence.  A large part of the flight attendants’ job involves passenger service, and to do these necessary tasks, the flight attendants must walk through the cabin, often pushing a service cart.  While in the galley, the flight attendants are standing in front of a coffee maker and sometimes several hot ovens.  When an unplanned encounter with turbulence occurs, anyone not sitting in their seats, with their seat belt fastened, is subject to finding the ceiling in an unexpected and injuring manner.

A couple of observations come to mind after this incident:  Most importantly, stay in your seat, and wear your seat belt when you are seated.  Doing this will protect you from injury.  Second, all aircraft are subject to encounters with turbulence, even jumbo jets like the Boeing 747.

It is absolutely true that turbulence is terrifying to the fearful flyer; perhaps doubly when the encounter causes injuries.  Remember that the airplane was not damaged by the turbulence, and the passengers who were seated with their seat belts fastened were not among those who were injured.

Our guest blogger for today was Capt. Ron’s friend, Capt. John.  You can look for Capt. John in the flight deck seated with his seatbelt fastened.  He has been flying since 1983 and has logged 20,000 hours. He assists Capt. Ron in the live Phoenix classes when his flying schedule permits.

Flying Cheap and Fear of Flying

PBS Frontline aired an excellent documentary recently called “Flying Cheap.” It highlighted the problems with regional airlines—those airlines that supplement major airlines by flying routes not profitable to fly with larger planes.  Frontline chose to air the program on the anniversary of the Colgan Air crash near Buffalo, NY.

I was surprised when I saw the special.  And if I was surprised, I imagined you, the flying public, was shocked.  Since I am an known as the fear of flying guy through my work at Fearless Flight.com, I immediately wondered what the reaction of fearful flyers would be.  I don’t know for sure, but I can imagine a fearful flyer thinking something like, “But, Capt. Ron, you said that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.”

I have said that often in my fear of flying classes.  And I will continue to say that.  Why?  Because it’s true.  How do we know that?  The current plane crash statistics tell us that the chances of crashing are 1 in 23 million.  What these statistics tell us is DESPITE the issues raised in the broadcast, flying on a commercial airliner remains the safest way to travel. However,

knowing the statistics has rarely helped anyone overcome their fear of flying because the solution isn’t a problem solved by logic alone. The solution comes from moving through your fears in spite of your irrational thoughts.

How Negative Bias Works

Sounds a bit like double-talk—even to me.  Here’s what I mean.  Phobias like fear of flying are fueled by stories in the media through a process called “negative bias.”  If I think that flying is inherently dangerous, then I will be drawn to stories and events that support this thinking.  That’s the way the brain works.  If I brand myself as a Republican or Democrat, then I have a preference for the values and principles espoused by each respective party and consequently don’t look for new information.  I’m even more likely to filter out information that might actually cause me to change my mind!

The NTSB and Breaking the Accident Chain of Events

After watching the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) hearings last year, I predicted that the Buffalo accident would be a catalyst for some needed changes in the airline industry.  These changes range from increased attention to the amount of time a pilot can remain on duty to the relationship between major airlines and their “code share” partners (those regional airlines that combine marketing resources and livery paint schemes to provide seamless travel for passengers).

The difference between you and me when viewing a broadcast like “Flying Cheap” or the NTSB hearings is perception, which varies widely because of our different backgrounds.  Before “Flying Cheap” was aired, you had no idea about the issues that were revealed.  On the other hand, I have been an advocate for Human Factors training for years-not just for pilots but for entire airline organizations. Safety happens on many levels in an airline, and accidents are the culmination of a chain of events. The pilots are often the ones who have the last opportunity to break the chain and prevent an accident, but they’re not the only ones. Other employees, such as mechanics in the Valuejet crash mentioned in the broadcast, are also responsible.

So I wasn’t shocked by the authenticity of the information or the way it was presented.  I encourage the process and whatever it takes to raise our collective consciousness to prevent accidents.  And no other industry has such a respectable tradition of investigating accidents to find causes and initiate corrective action as the airline industry.  I’ve said before, if each and every automobile accident were investigated and reported with the same diligence as a commercial airline accident, the number of automobile fatalities each year would be a fraction of the approximate 40,000 that do occur.

The same forces that cause us to resist change on an individual level are magnified in humanity as a group.  When do most fearful flyers initiate change?  When the cost of continuing existing behavior is outweighed by the benefits of changing.  When do organizations or industries (like airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration) change?  When the cost of continuing existing behavior is outweighed by the benefits of change.  And sometimes those benefits are not evident until public outrage is raised.  That, sadly, appears to be part of the human condition.

The fact is:  flying on a commercial airliner—including regional airlines—is still the safest way to travel on earth.  That should NEVER, however, serve as an excuse to reduce the vigilance that allows us to make that claim.

I will continue to promote airline flying as the safest way to travel on the planet.  Why?  Because the statistics support it to be so.  At the same time, I will continue to be an advocate of change in the airline industry to  improve those statistics even more.  Why?  Because I believe that it’s the right thing to do.

The Truth about Fearless Living

How do I view the issues raised in a story like “Flying Cheap”?  That’s easy—you tell the truth—always.  And the truth is that the issues raised in the story are real—and they have and will continue to have consequences if they go unacknowledged.  At the same time, if you use the likelihood of being killed in an accident as the only criteria for selecting your mode of transportation, you cannot justify getting into your car to go to the store.

Fear has a real purpose of alerting us to potential danger so that we can make a reasonable assessment about risk.  Fear is not supposed to prevent us from living a full, rich life.

So I choose to live fully and fearlessly. I hope you do the same.

Fear of Flying Pill–Myth or Cure?

Chalk up another success story for Fearless Flight!  A former fearful flyer named Dana recently contacted Diane Owens for help in her ongoing quest to overcome her fear of flying.  After watching a video on the Sky Harbor website  about my fear of flying classes, she told Diane that “Capt Ron was a pilot she could relate to.”  She said I seemed like  someone she could trust.

Dana’s impression of me from seeing me in a video goes to show you how important the role of perception is in our lives.  Can’t build “trust” into keywords on the internet.  It comes from within, the same source that will eventually free you from fear of flying and provide you with easy air travel.

The good news is that fear of flying can be overcome; the bad news is that there’s no magic fear of flying pill.  I was surprised when I first learned how many people search on Google for a fear of flying pill hoping to find an easy way to fly without fear.  Even more surprising has been learning how much shame  many fearful flyers have over taking legitimate anti-anxiety drugs (Xanax, Ativan, Alprazolam, etc).  While no “fear of flying pill” exists per se, I advocate taking prescribed medication after consulting with your doctor as a legitimate and sometimes essential strategy while learning to overcome fear of flying.

The first issue that fearful flyer Dana and I worked on was for her to come up with a game plan that allowed her to integrate the use of her medication with other non-medical coping strategies.  In this way, she could develop a long-term plan for coping with her fear of flying with an eventual goal of flying drug free or at least less reliant on drugs to cope with her anxiety.

All the coping strategies in the world may be for naught if your anxiety causes your mind to race to the point that you can’t remember those strategies when you need them the most. I tell people that there is no prize for seeing how terrified you can become and still get on the airplane.

Conquering fear of flying so that you are free to take advantage of modern air travel isn’t always easy.  It’s a process like the old saying that “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” So, until there is a bona fide fear of flying pill, we will have to make use of all the resources available–including the existing prescription anti-anxiety medications, education, coping strategies, self-help resources, and coaching services like those available here at Fearlessflight.com.

With some work and willingness to face your fear of flying, you will be able to become a fearless flying success story, just like Dana!

Facing Fear in 2010

I just ran across something about fear that resonated with me.  In conjunction with the new year, I’ve been doing a lot of reading on goal setting,  and I re-watched a five-minute video of a interview with Florida counselor Ken Donaldson that I saw a year ago that had helped me get my butt in gear and set SMART goals I was able to meet.

When I watched the same video this year, I heard Ken Donaldson say we shouldn’t let fear stand in our way.  Easier said than done!

Ken said instead of using the old acronym for fear, False Evidence Appearing Real, you should begin to tackle FEAR with the attitude of Face Everything And Rechoose.

I especially like this idea when I’m thinking of what I want to do in 2010.  Really, the thing that holds me back the most is my avoidance of things because of my fear.

Because I’m afraid of doing something, I avoid it or hold back or become stuck.  Kind of like what fearful flyers do in response to their fear of flying–they avoid flying or they fly only when they have to or they fly the same terrible old way they’ve been flying for years–scared and miserable.

So I asked myself what FEAR do I have that has caused me to avoid things.  Here’s my short list:  I’m afraid of technology.  I’m afraid of starting something complicated that’s going to take a whole lot of work or discipline.  I’m afraid of not being perfect or not doing something perfectly.

Keeping in mind Ken’s advice on tackling FEAR, I have come up with some goals for 2010.  (1) Increase our marketing of the newly designed downloadable Flight Harmonizer so that more fearful flyers will have the freedom to fly without fear with the help of this amazing audio product. (2) By June 1, finish and publish the book about fear of flying that Capt. Ron and I have been working on.  (3) Focus on continual improvement of our newly designed fearlessflight.com website so that it can be an even better resource for fearful flyers.  (4) I want to keep learning and using social networking tools to find and connect with fearful flyers such as our Facebook fan page.

These goals mean I’ll be facing my fear of technology and fear of trying something new and complicated.  I need to do some rechoosing in 2010 to meet the goals that I’ve set.  I’ll need to remind myself frequently that our mission and passion is to help people become better flyers and enjoy the freedom of flying.

What fearful thing do you need to face this year that requires you to rechoose?  Your fear of flying?  Fear of failure?  Fear of quitting a job you hate?  Fear of starting your own business?

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