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.

Related posts:

1. Fear of Turbulence and Pilot Announcements
2. Can Planes Crash from Turbulence?
3. Fear of Flying and Flight Attendant TLC

Okay, so yes, I’ll admit it.  Airplanes do crash.  But the likelihood of it happening to the one you’re on is pretty slim.  The latest airplane crash statistics show that your kid has a better chance of growing up to be President of the United States than you have of dying in a plane crash.

So let’s talk for a moment about fearful flyers’ dwelling on the, shall we say, negative side of flying.

Show fearful flyers two newspaper stories–one about safety statistics and another one about a plane crash–and I can bet they’ll read the one about the plane crash and ignore the other one.

Perhaps you want more concrete evidence of their negative flying bias.  Here are two.  The traffic on our crash statistics page gets the most visitors…because of  fearful flyers and their crashing mentality.

My blog titles that are negative about flying get more readers than those with positive-sounding titles. Like the title of this post–did you decide to read it because of that dreaded “crash” word in the title?

Like I said, fearful flyers like to dwell on the bad side of flying–crashing and dying.

In our fear of flying classes, we tell fearful flyers that they have to do something different.  In other words, stop dwelling on the plane crashing and remember about how safe it is.  Capt. Ron is fond of saying, “Flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.”

So how do you change the channel of the airline crash channel that plays continually in your mind? If you need some reinforcement about the good parts about flying–the soaring and the safe takeoffs and landings, then I have just the place for you.

It’s called Flight Level 350. The best way to describe this site is that it’s like a YouTube of Aviation.  Video after video of planes doing what planes do best.  Planes of all sizes and shapes.

I just watched a video of a huge Qantas plane, certainly the biggest I’ve ever seen, takeoff.  It was a beautiful site.  As I watched the takeoff roll, I thought of all the times I’ve heard fearful flyers say, “How can that big piece of metal possibly get off the ground?”  This Qantas plane just gently lifts up off the ground and points skyward.   Without any hesitation or being like the Little Engine That Could “I think I can I think I can.”  This huge mass of an airplane just lifts up and off it goes.

If you have a trip planned and find yourself dwelling on crashing, dying, and turbulence, do something different.  Bring up this site and watch a few videos.  Marvel at the marvelous machines.  Then visualize your flight floating and soaring like the airplanes you’re watching.

And then repeat this mantra over and over: “I think I can, I think I can” and pretty soon you WILL become a fearless flyer!

Related posts:

1. Planes and Fear of Flying the Hollywood Way
2. Afraid to Fly? Then Meet the Pilots!
3. Today Wasn’t A Good Day to Fly

When not airborne, he hung around the airport and was permitted to move about from plane to airport to facilitate changing to other flights. As interesting as the myriad of activities he engaged in to occupy his time and distract from his fear were the comments from readers of the article.  Some questioned the validity of his fear versus the publicity-stunt aspect.  While there may have been some mixed motivation, I found his activities to have a basis in some sound strategies for fear of flying.

For instance, he uses  the Sky Mall catalog as a means of distraction.  Check out this funny video from the Boston Globe article to see what I mean, and then the next time you fly, you can use the Sky mall catalog to distract you from your flying fear as you and your seatmate discuss the unusual items you can purchase.  Perhaps a snow cone machine is in your future?

Related posts:

1. Quick But Strange Fear of Flying Cure

I came across this column called Feeding the Fear of Flying about the writer’s fearful flyer husband.  The couple’s solution to cure fear of flying made me smile and reminded me of what we advise fearful flyers to do.

The writer described her own fear of heights (which doesn’t bother her in an airplane) and told how her husband has tried everything to get over his fear of flying.  Well, not everything, because he hasn’t come to Fearless Flight.com for help to my knowledge!

The one thing that made him feel better was to fly in one of those small twin-prop planes, the ones that scare the pants off me.  Give me a big solid commercial airliner and I’m great.  Put me in one of those little tiny cans, and I suddenly remember MY fear of heights.

The writer guessed that her husband’s fear of flying was less in a smaller plane because he felt more in control.  He could see the pilot.  Not being in control seems to bother 90% of the fearful flyers I work with.  I just spoke with someone earlier today who realized that this was a large part of his fear.

The writer and her husband have read that some airlines are considering putting on one of the radio channels a live voice feed from the cockpit to calm the passengers. Pilots can choose to speak on the PA system when they want, but with this live feed, the passengers would sample everything that goes on in the cockpit.  Meet the pilots…up close, personal, uncensored.

Until that day comes with the Pilots’ Cockpit Radio Show, I’d suggest doing something else to Meet the Pilots.  Ask to pre-board because you’re a fearful flyer.  Tell the flight attendants that you’re afraid to fly and that it really helps you to connect with the pilots.

I just spoke with a woman who followed this advice, and it made a huge difference.  She had flown only twice in 38 years when she decided to tackle her fear. She bought the Fearless Flight Harmonizer, then came to the Cleared for Takeoff class and heard our advice:  Meet the pilots.  She said the pilot was very kind and even took her into the cockpit for a few minutes.  During the flight, she kept her eyes closed, listened to the Flight Harmonizer, and visualized being a cork on the water.  It worked!  Now she’s looking forward to many more trips to make up for all that lost time.

You CAN overcome fear of flying by doing something different.  OR you think of all the things the airlines can do to make you feel better about flying.  I’ve learned the answer is inside you, not inside the cockpit.

About the Author:  Diane Owens has been helping people overcome their fear of flying since 2005.  She writes about fear of flying for Fearless Flight.com and assists Capt. Ron Nielsen in spreading the message that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.

Related posts:

1. Pill-Popping Pilots–Are You Kidding Me?
2. Today Wasn’t A Good Day to Fly
3. The Crashing Side of Flying

We always tell fearful flyers to admit their fear of flying to the flight attendants when they’re first boarding.  Even though flight attendants have a lot to do on a flight, the majority of them will be compassionate about your fear of flying and give you a little extra TLC.

Yahoo travel has a great article written by an anonymous flight attendant on “Seven Ways to Annoy a Flight Attendant.”  Carry-on complaints were big:  carrying on luggage you can’t lift and ignoring the flight attendant’s request to put your stuff underneath the seat in front of you.  Obviously, flight attendants aren’t weight lifters. Their prime responsibility is passenger safety.

Not one of the seven tips has to do with fear of flying.  Flight attendants can and will help you with your heavy fear of flying baggage that you’ll be carrying onto the flight.  Try saying something like this the next time you fly: “Just wanted you to know that I’m a fearful flyer, so I’d appreciate any extra attention during the flight.”

This FYI announcement is helpful for both you and the flight attendant.  Many fearful flyers are afraid of “freaking out” during the flight and making a scene that would require the attention of the flight crew.  By making your fear of flying known up front, it will help them to help you.  Really.

Try it on your next flight and then let us know what happens.

About the Author:  Diane Owens has been helping people overcome their fear of flying since 2005.  She writes about fear of flying for Fearless Flight.com and assists Capt. Ron Nielsen in spreading the message that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.

Related posts:

1. Turbulent Flight Causes Injuries
2. Miracle on the Hudson Flight and Fear of Flying

If you have a fear of flying, you’ll enjoy travel expert Pauline Frommer’s interview of Capt. Ron on 4/5/09 for syndicated radio station WOR’s The Travel Show.

During the five-minute interview, Capt. Ron presents some interesting statistics about fear of flying.  He talks about the steps associated with overcoming fear of flying as well as his secret and “most successful” tip for helping people overcome fear of flying.  You’ll have to listen to find out what the tip is.

After the taped interview has ended, host Arthur Frommer comments that Capt. Ron is very “jocular” yet fear of flying is no joke.  Yes and yes!   Capt. Ron’s entertaining, animated, and playful personality is why fearful flyers connect with him and listen to what he’s saying.  Yes, he does joke around about flying, but his joking around during the classes helps people lighten up about their fear of fllying.  It is his warm and friendly personality that endears him to fearful flyers everywhere!

I don’t know about you, but if I’m going to learn something, I’d rather learn it from someone who presents information in a fun way.  I’m more likely to listen and learn if I’m entertained at the same time.  Learning from Capt. Ron is enjoyable because he always presents things in a fun way.  I’ve seen some of the fear of flying materials that are out there, and they positively put me to sleep!

If someone is joking around when I’m interacting with them, it helps me to relax. Relaxing is important for fearful flyers who come to us because even the very act of seeking help to overcome their fear makes them anxious.

Capt. Ron also takes the complicated process of flying and makes it easy for anyone to understand.  He’s a born instructor.  As he says in the interview, he “demystifies flying” because if you’re a fearful flyer and don’t know the real facts, you make it up as you fly along.  Education is a powerful weapon in overcoming fear of flying.

Yes, fear of flying is no joke to anyone, especially Capt. Ron.  And Arthur Frommer has Capt. Ron pegged perfectly after hearing him for five minutes.  However, I can’t think of anyone better to work with if you have a fear of flying.  And that’s no joke!

About the Author:  Diane Owens has been helping people overcome their fear of flying since 2005.  She writes about fear of flying for Fearless Flight.com and assists Capt. Ron Nielsen in spreading the message that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.

No related posts.

Keep in mind that the people I’ve spoken with are all people currently working with Fearless Flight.com to overcome their fear of flying.  They’ve taken steps.  They’ve done the work.  They’ve been willing to make some changes.  And it truly shows.

Maria told me how amazed she was that she didn’t “freak out” when she heard about the accident.  She said, “It doesn’t make me more scared.  It gives me more confidence.  Planes can float.  People can get off.”  I told her that I was impressed with her new attitude about flying.  She thanked me and commented, “I am changed.”

Craig sent me an email in which he said:  “Usually this would have freaked me out, but I am getting better about flying. Also this proves that a lot can go wrong, and a plane can be OK. “  Everyone gives all the credit to the pilot, and Craig is no exception.  He said, “People can see from this how amazing most pilots are. No amateur is flying a commercial jet!”  So true, Craig!

Reggie commented in her email that  she doesn’t allow herself to dwell on the news about the accident.  Fearful flyers like to dwell on crash details, so in our live Cleared for Takeoff classes Capt. Ron says, ”STOP WATCHING!”   Reggie took this advice to heart:  “I took what little news time I chose to expose myself to, regarding the US Air incident… with a degree of comfort knowing I had a tad more knowledge than ever before thanks to your CLEARED FOR TAKE-OFF Program, that I had recently attended, at Sky Harbor Airport.”

Joanna is also following Capt. Ron’s advice about exposing herself to news coverage.  She said, “I wanted to watch the coverage enough to find out what the likely cause was, if anyone was hurt and that was about it. I’m washing my hands of it cuz I gotta fly in a couple of weeks!!”

The Today show also addressed how the miracle flight may have affected people with a fear of flying.  Dr. Gail Saltz gave some tips for people whose fear of flying was adversely affected by the Miracle on the Hudson flight, even if it was a successful outcome.  She also discussed the posttraumatic stress that some passengers may experience.

I don’t know what the results will be of the survey conducted by Inside Edition, but I can report that the people who are working with Capt. Ron at Fearless Flight.com are making great progress overcoming their flying fear.  Bit by bit, it CAN be done!

About the Author:  Diane Owens has been helping people overcome their fear of flying since 2005.  She writes about fear of flying for Fearless Flight.com and assists Capt. Ron Nielsen in spreading the message that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.

Related posts:

1. Fear of Flying and Flight Attendant TLC
2. Turbulent Flight Causes Injuries
3. Fear of Flying Worse Than Before?

If you do fly, perhaps you’ve seen people at the check-in counter frantically shifting items from one bag to another.  I witnessed this myself after the holiday season last year when my daughter attempted to fly with one really heavy bag and one not-quite-so-heavy one.  She opened up her bag on the floor right there at the counter and started shifting as I asked an onlooking smiling male traveler if he’d like to take some of her heavier things to Chicago for her.

Fear of Flying or Fear of Heavy Baggage?

I just saw a television news alert that said not all airport scales tell the truth.  Many of them are not set to zero so they reach the 50-pound limit much faster as a result.  One of the scales tested in the report from the Cincinnati airport at a Delta counter was off by 37 pounds!  Yikes…Can you hear the heavy sound of Ka-Ching!?

Here’s a hint for fearful flyers and stressed-out travelers alike.  If you feel that your luggage might be close to the 50-pound limit, ask the baggage agent to reset the scale to zero.  According to the tv report, there is a reset button on each scale (which are really run by computers).  This simple request will save you money as well as the hassle of doing the baggage counter re-pack shuffle.  Or pulling out your credit card.

About the Author:  Diane Owens has been helping people overcome their fear of flying since 2005.  She writes about fear of flying for Fearless Flight.com and assists Capt. Ron Nielsen in spreading the message that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.

Related posts:

1. Top 10 Worries Besides Fear of Flying
2. Fear of Flying and Flight Attendant TLC

“Am pleased to report that I had the best experience ever! I was even able to enjoy my holiday and not be filled with dread at the thought of having to get on a plane to return home. YAY!”

YAY indeed.  When you’re no longer afraid to fly, the world opens up.  You’ll find you actually have time to worry about other things instead of crashing, dying, turbulence, etc.   In fact, as I was getting ready for a five-day trip to Chicago, I discovered some of them.

10.  Worries about what to pack. What to take when the weather’s different from where you live?  What will I feel like wearing three days from now? How many clothes are too many?  Not enough?  Warm enough?  Boots, umbrellas, or bikinis?  What will my favorite outfit look like wrinkled?

9.  Worries about what I left behind. The good news is that once you’ve left it behind, it’s too late to worry.  I left home without a toothbrush (pretty easy to replace but still a pain, and bad breath is never welcome no matter what city you fly to) and my watch, which made the next worry even bigger.

8. Worries about Time. How will I wake up in time to leave on what I call a “red rooster” flight (one where you get up before the chickens).  Which friend would be willing to drive me to the airport at 5:00 a.m.? How much traffic or construction on the way to the airport?  How long will it take to check luggage?  Will security lines be long?  (Hint:  They always are!)  Will the flight be delayed?  (Same hint as the security lines.)

7.  Fear of not bringing enough money. This can be remedied by a quick stop at the ATM on the way to the airport, provided you have money in your account AND you’ve covered worry number 8 above–there’s enough time to stop.

6.  Worries about who’s in charge at home. In my case, it was my daughter who kept my cats alive (not the plants though) and Captain Ron who minded the Fearless Flight store.  To cope with this worry, use your cell phone to check in.

5.  Worries about lack of sleep. This applies if you’re taking the aforementioned “red rooster” flight or the other famous flight of color, “the red eye.”  You can try to catch a nap on the plane, provided you’re not sitting across the aisle from a screaming baby.  Don’t stop at Starbucks on the way to the gate either.  Caffeine not only aggravates sleep, it also aggravates fear of flying.

4.  Worries about how you’ll look/do/appear when you get to your destination. Will your presentation be successful?  Will your daughter away at school have taken up with a scuzzy boyfriend?  Will you still look as good as you did 20 years ago when you fly back to your high school reunion?  Will you need a vacation from your vacation when you get back?

3. Fear of germs. In the share-the-air environment of an aircraft, this one did cross my mind even before I saw the woman seven rows behind me wearing a surgical mask.  I’m not sure she was more worried about giving germs than getting them.  I was happy to be seated several rows ahead of her.

2.  Fear of your seatmate. Will you be seated next to the aforementioned cry baby or the huge man who really needs two seats?  A woman dressed like the Southwest Airlines Playboy Honey of the month?  (Oops, sorry, this last one isn’t a fear if you’re a guy, is it?)

AND THE NUMBER ONE THING TO WORRY ABOUT: Two words:  Lost Luggage. Will your luggage be there when you get there? Everybody worries about this one, folks, because it’s a very real possibility!  To deal with with this fear, I try to visualize my luggage riding on the destination airport’s carousel, ala the Power of Positive Thinking and the Law of Attraction.  So far, this has worked–even when I was a “little” late getting to the airport (because I left my watch behind, remember) which resulted in my luggage being tagged with a yellow fluorescent tag LATE CHECK IN.  The baggage carrier kindly warned me she couldn’t guarantee my bags would arrive at the same time I did.  But they did–thank you, Southwest.  So much for embarrassing luggage labels!

And speaking of labels, when you get over being a fearful flyer, you can wear a brand new label, just like me:  WORRY WART.  But becoming a fearless flyer is entirely worth the trade off.

About the Author:  Diane Owens has been helping people overcome their fear of flying since 2005.  She writes about fear of flying for Fearless Flight.com and assists Capt. Ron Nielsen in spreading the message that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.

Related posts:

1. Leaving Fear of Flying Worries Behind
2. Whether You Fly Or Not
3. Fear of Flying or Fear of Landing

Ever play the alphabet travel game?  It goes like this:  I’m going to Alaska and bringing my axe, my baseball bat, and my curling iron.  Each person repeats the list and adds another item and so on down through the alphabet.  Ever played the TSA version of this game?

The original game was played long before the TSA began playing with its own rules of the travel game–what you can and what you can’t carry on.  The TSA is responsible for a whole new three-ounce size revolution–go into any convenience store and you’ll see tons of “travel-approved” sizes of toiletries now on the market.

It’s bad enough to be afraid to fly.  But it must be awful to also have to worry about what’s on the approved list and whether your stuff will be pitched by one of those well-intentioned TSA agents if it’s not on the list of acceptable travel items.

Once a fearful flyer is ready to fly, they need the list of what’s TSA permissible and what isn’t.   Someone just did a search for “curling iron” on our site.  Unfortunately they didn’t find our site helpful in that regard.  But because we want to help make flying as enjoyable as possible for you, here’s the link directly to the TSA’s website of what you can and can’t bring on.

So maybe you’ve overcome your fear of flying and are all ready for the big trip.  Ready to play the guys’ version of the  TSA travel game?

I’m going on an airliner and I’m taking an axe, a baseball bat, and my favorite golf club.  Sorry but you and all that stuff won’t get very far past the TSA screeners!  Even if you leave your axe and baseball bat behind, your prized putter Tiger Woods once used  isn’t approved to fly in the cabin with you, no matter how much you distrust the baggage handlers and how nice you are to the TSA agents.

Let’s play the ladies’ version of the packing game:   I’m going on an airliner and I’m taking an aerosol can of hair spray (3 ozs. or less), bath oil (3 ozs. or less), cuticle cutters, deodorant (3 ozs. or less), and eyelash curler.  Great!  You’ll sail right past security with all this stuff in your carry-on bag.  Unfortunately, the TSA site, like our site, doesn’t have “curling iron” listed on either the okay-to-bring or okay-not-to bring list.  Although there’s not a list of approved beauty products, I’d say it’s probably safe to bring it, but if the TSA pitches it, you can always use your eyelash curler in a pinch!

About the Author:  Diane Owens has been helping people overcome their fear of flying since 2005.  She writes about fear of flying for Fearless Flight.com and assists Capt. Ron Nielsen in spreading the message that flying is the safest way to travel on the planet.

Related posts:

1. Whether You Fly Or Not