Nothing unnerves me like airplane crashes. (((shudder)))

[Colleen]

What is it about airplane crashes that makes some of us break out in a nervous sweat ~ even when we have no flight plans on the horizon? That's a rhetorical question. I'm aware of the rational reasons why air accidents seem particularly horrific. We feel less in control when we fly, for example. That's a biggie for me. Every single time I fly I really do wonder who's in that cockpit. As a controlling person, it takes a lot for me to accept the fact that when I fly, I have zero control. Zero knowledge, really, of what's happening at any given time. Yeah, that's true of life in general, when one thinks about it. Still, we generally take comfort in having some semblance of control. Flying doesn't allow for that comfortable facade.

 

None of this means keeps me grounded. I fly. I came within ten hours of earning my pilot's license, for that matter. But I tell you, if I saw a plane drop out of the sky within yards of my house, well...suffice it to say I'd need some serious tranquilizers before booking my next flight. I truly feel not only for people who lost loved ones in the accident the other day, but for those who were witness to the tragedy and aftermath.

[Julpost]

I know exactly what you mean. It's not the same by a long shot, but I once had a dream that I watched a plane crash and it was awful!! It still makes me sick to remember it.

[Ria]

I have to fly to Florida in early April. I am afraid to fly; this is a somewhat new fear (ie, 15 years or so). I flew all over Europe when I lived in London. I've flown a lot. And I am terrified to get back on a plane. Terrified. So terrified that I now find myself waking in the night and having panic attacks. It happened again last night. I woke dh at around 3 am and blurted out, "I can't do it. I can't go. They'll arrest me because I'll scream on the plane."

 

God help me. I do have Xanax for the flight. I really want to go; dh's parents are paying for us to fly down and go to Disney with them. The boys are thrilled. I want to be thrilled, and in my rational moments I am. But I hear you. I'm scared. I'm unnerved.

 

Ria (who is really not afraid of anything else, I promise)

[Tree House Academy]

This is something that particularly touches me because my dh flies often. I remember hearing the news of the flight that landed in the Hudson River a few weeks ago as i was driving. They called the flight number over the radio and my heart just sank. At that time, they were calling it a crash. My husband was NOT flying that day...but I knew that someone's husband (wife, child, etc) was. It is a touchy thing for me...not because of uncertainity as much as the fact that very rarely do plane crashes end "happily." Often, we can walk away from a car wreck...but very rarely can the same be said for a plane crash victim. :(

[Tracey in TX]

Statistically we're safer in the skies than the highway...(blah,blah,blah). That doesn't help calm fears, though, does it? I've had two friends scheduled on fatal flights. Thank goodness last minute changes altered their respective fates. DH was supposed to fly on 9/11. It's terrifying. I pray every time we fly. I also try not to think about DH as he travels. As a former pilot he reminds me often that we're safer in planes than driving. It doesn't make me feel any better. (Just scares the **** out of me while driving long distance.)

[MamaT]

I'm not afraid of flying, but neither can I look out the window. I think I'm in denial about where I actually am while on the plane. I know this sounds silly, but oh well.

 

My dh flew in from San Diego this week - the same day the plane crashed in Buffalo. I was a little nervous - just tried not to think about it and go on with my day.

[mamaof2andtwins]

The crash of flight 3407 was 15 miles from my house. I have friends that live less than a mile away. When a plane crashes it is devastating because it affects so many at one time. It is a terrible, terrible thing, but I am not afraid to fly. I have friends that are a nervous wreck. One of them would not go with us to Chicago last fall for a women's conference because we were flying. I understand.

 

I lived on the alternate runway path to the airport for 12 years. I didn't think about it. My husband told me after the plane crash last week that he did think about it, but he never dwelled on it. We mostly had cargo planes and small, private planes fly over since it was the alternate runway.

 

As I get older I come face to face with how little control I have over anything.

 

Jennie

[Erica in PA]

I agree. I have a phobia about flying, which got worse after I had children, and then worse again after 9-11. I've only flown three times in my life, all of which were when I was an adult, and each time it's been harder to deal with my anxiety. At this point I would really prefer never to fly again, even if that would mean missing out on some fun trips. It makes me feel sick to even think of flying.

 

I think for me the fear about planes versus cars is due to at least two things: 1. the lack of control in airplane situations-- at least in a car crash I or dh might be able to do *something* to improve our chances of survival; and 2. While I'd rather avoid both, of course, I would rather die in a car accident than in a plane crash. The thought of pitching back and forth, up and down in the air, and then falling, falling, falling possibly for quite some time before finally hitting, knowing you're going to die in that horrible way... it would be a literal nightmare come true for me. I think that's why the fact that it's statistically less likely to be in a plane crash than a car accident does nothing to lessen my fear. Because it is a possibility *at all,* that is enough to be terrifying to me.

[Only me]

When I was younger (before having kids) I didn't mind flying. When my oldest dd was 3 and my other dd was 10 weeks old we had to fly to New York for a wedding. We had several family members on board. We ran into some bad turbulence. We fell for several feet. Back then they didn't require children to have a seat if they were under 3 years old so I had my baby in my lap and my husband was holding our 3 year old. The stewardess came by and told us that we would have to move one of our children to another aisle because we only had 4 oxygen masks. Luckily my brother-in-law was sitting in front of us so he held our 3 year old. It got so bad that people were screaming. It lasted for about 10 minutes and then we were ok. At that time I told myself I would never fly again but I've had to.

 

Two years ago my family flew to Disney. It was the first time my ds (10) had been on a plane and the first time that my daughters were old enough to remember. They had a blast but I was terrified the whole time. I even took Xanax but it didn't help.

 

We are flying to Disney again next month and I feel sick over it. Not only that but we have have a layover in another city so that means 4 flights total. After the recent plane crashes I told my dh that I am terrified but it is too late now that we have the tickets. My dh flies all the time overseas for business (that's how we had enough free mileage for his trip). He used to flying to places like China or Japan so taking a 4 hour flight to Florida is no big deal to him. I'm starting to lose sleep over it and I have to be brave for the kids.

[Danestress]

When I travel, I almost assume I might crash. I leave my house in a state that wouldn't be too embarrassing, I say my prayers, and I make my peace. I sit there and think, "Okay, well, everyone knows that thousands of pounds of metal can't really fly. We've been fooling ourselves. But okay, God, I'm ready."

 

A friend of mine was on that plane that landed in the Hudson. He said he just knew they were going to die, and he held the hand of the person sitting next to him and waited.

 

Horrible.

[lynn]

Thanks so much for reminding me. DH mentioned this tonight also. Yep, he has a business trip this week and will be flying.

[MeanestMomInMidwest]

Here's my take on it, and please forgive me in advance if I assualt someone's sensibilities:

 

If you're going to die, you will. If not, you won't. For instance, my friend's dh was assigned an alternate job (one he had never done before) at his worksite out of the blue one day. That same day there was an explosion that killed the person who was doing my friend's dh's job. It wasn't his (my friend's dh's) time to die that day. On the other hand, a plane falls out of the sky and lands on some poor guys house, killing him (or her, I don't remember). What are the chances? I mean really, the statistical chance of dying because a plane falls out of the sky onto your house must be astronomically small. It was that person's time to go.

 

With that said, I am a nervous flyer, but I just remind myself, that if it is my day to die, death will find me whether I'm in an airplane or frying eggs in my kitchen.

[Tracey in TX]

Here's my take on it, and please forgive me in advance if I assualt someone's sensibilities:

 

If you're going to die, you will. If not, you won't. For instance, my friend's dh was assigned an alternate job (one he had never done before) at his worksite out of the blue one day. That same day there was an explosion that killed the person who was doing my friend's dh's job. It wasn't his (my friend's dh's) time to die that day. On the other hand, a plane falls out of the sky and lands on some poor guys house, killing him (or her, I don't remember). What are the chances? I mean really, the statistical chance of dying because a plane falls out of the sky onto your house must be astronomically small. It was that person's time to go.

 

With that said, I am a nervous flyer, but I just remind myself, that if it is my day to die, death will find me whether I'm in an airplane or frying eggs in my kitchen.

UGH, a pragmatist!;)

 

You are right, but it doesn't allay fears. ETA: Never thought of dying while frying eggs. Gee thanks, something else to ponder. LOL

[MeanestMomInMidwest]

UGH, a pragmatist!;)

 

You are right, but it doesn't allay fears. ETA: Never thought of dying while frying eggs. Gee thanks, something else to ponder. LOL

Is that what I am, a pragmatist? Now I know.:)

 

and, for what its worth, I rarely fry eggs.

[CactusPair]

The way I figure it is this, I will die, sure, but I'm not goint to die this way, ie in a plane crash. I cannot stand the idea of dying in a plane crash no matter how remote the chances. The idea of plunging from the sky is too horrifying for me, perhaps bec. I have sensory issues??? I'll have to go another way.

 

I am devastated every time I hear about a plane crash. The tragedy is unbearable. I hope never to set foot on a plane.