How to Conquer Your Fear of Flying
According to leading experts and frequent flyers
Note: If you are an anxious flyer, feel free to skip the opening section.
The sky went from light blue to an eery green. Soon, it was a deep black. Lightning flickered outside the window, illuminating clouds outside. I looked around the cabin, locking eyes with strangers. Their faces were blank with fear. Then, as if it were plucked from the sky, the plane dropped. There was a collective gasp. Then, the aircraft settled as if landing on a slab of rock. I looked back at a flight attendant. She looked scared, sending my nervous system into a panic loop.
Then, another jolt. It was harder this time. A few bags fell from overhead compartments, one coming down on a woman’s head. I remember thinking, “I thought this only happened in movies.” A man, rushing back from the bathroom, shot forward, face-planting in the aisle of the turboprop plane. The woman next to me began vomiting, and I handed her the bag from my seatback pocket.
The lights on the plane went out. For some time, there was no light except for the emergency exit lights and the lightning. The plane was barreling up and down and turning from side to side. At one point, it felt as if the plane would do a complete barrel roll. The drops were, on occasion, about five seconds…
