are you afraid to fly since 911?? or over the ocean in general??

Question

mainly i'm referring to travelling to a different country. but within your own country is a fine answer too. i'm nervous about going to london. it will be my first time out of the good ol u.s.of. a. i've been thinking about 911 or crashing in the ocean....haha i know i sound silly, but it's kind of weird. does anyone else do this too??

come to think of it...maybe i'm looking for some comfort here! any tips on different ways of thinking, etc..?

Answer 1

Others have had some excellent thoughts. Especially Bostonian. He put it in perspective, I'll try to do so as well.

Avoid dwelling on your fears. Learn more about how aircraft fly and the various security measures to keep them safe. Commercial aircraft have multiple redundant systems and highly training pilots - two of them!),

Of course nothing is 100% safe, but there is no safer way to travel thousands of miles. By a lot!

The death rate on commercial aviation is actually much lower than staying home. Out of the billions of hours of passanger time flying each year, thousands should die each year, on average, but it is way, way under that. You can't get in a car accident, slip in the bathtub or fall down the stairs on a 777. And if choke on the turkey sandwich, the flight attendent knows the Hemlich. And if you need a doctor, far too often, my wife gets paged!

Examine what it is that you feel out of control about (aerodynamics, terrorism, whatever). There are many areas of your life you accept greater risks (someone could suddenly cross the centerline on the highway, regardless of how good a driver YOU are). The difference is likely that driving is familiar and flying is not. Unfamiliar things are always less comfortable to us.

9-11, the way it was done, couldn't happen again. The few times since that someone has acted anything like that kind of a threat, the other passangers have subdued them. The guys with box cutters was a one-time strategy that worked because our previous paradigm was to go along with a highjacker's demands.

Consider getting a prescription for an anti-anxiety drug for this flight and the next few ones you take. Several successful flights might help develop enough familiarity to reduce the fear.

Get excited about your trip! The sights, the nightlife, the fish&chips on every corner. Double-decker buses and Big Ben and the fricking Queen - QEII herself with matching Corgies! The fun of a foreign country but they all speak English (even if with a funny accent!)

Good luck,
David
35,660 miles flown this year. But 5 months to go, yet.

Oh, and the money comes in DIFFERENT colors!

Answer 2

Not at all. I've flown hundreds of times since 9/11 and have no fear of flying whatsoever. All over the US, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and Asia.

From the terrorists perspective, 9/11 was a "one-time good deal" and they knew it. They'd never get another chance to try whether they succeeded or failed.

When compared to everything else that can happen on an airliner, terrorism is an infinitesimally small part of the whole disaster equation. Yet even when this minute chance of being a terrorism victim is included, you are still 50,000 times more likely to be killed in a highway crash on the way to the airport than you are to die on any commercial airliner.

As atrocious as 9/11 was, most people don't consider that we'd have to repeat 9/11 every 38 days to equal the number of people killed on US roads by drunk drivers! Everyone is in a snit and tizzy over the chance of being a terror victim, but gives virtually no concern to the far more real likelihood of being killed by a drunk driver. Go figure!

So, watch out for the morons and crazies on your way to the airport. When you get there, sit back and relax as you're in the safest environment since you left your mother's womb.

Answer 3

Well, here's the thing. If your plane is going to crash, it's probably going to do it during and just after takeoff. That's the most critical point in a plane's flight path, since it is just getting off the ground and trying to gain alitudue from ground level, where wind direction and runway length are crucial to the flight's success. I only say this because once your plane is airborne, you have very little to worry about in flight and during landing. Aside from the occasional turbulence (wear your safety belt when seated), you're going to be in for a smooth ride. Also, empower yourself with knowledge. During an ocean flight, I've taken time to read the safety cards to know how the slides work as inflatable rafts, I always check for where the exit nearest me is, and know that the seat cushion and/or the lifejacket below it can serve as a floatation device in the event of an emergency. My answer to your fear after 9/11 or flying over the ocean is the same: sure, there's a tiny chance you could be one of the unlucky ones to land yourself on a flight that goes down. But you can't live your life in fear, and you can take reasonable steps to ensure your survival in the extremely rare event an accident may occur. Go out, try to have a good time and enjoy yourself. Know that millions of other people are doing the same thing.

Answer 4

No, I've travelled across the pond 4 times since 9/11. I'm confident that it won't happen again, as we've stepped up security. Every flight has a sky marshal on board, so I feel safe.

Also, I'll say in advance, "Welcome to London! hope you have a great time there and see all of the sights" I'm sure you'll love the changing of the guard etc. Enjoy!"

Answer 5

I'm actually going to be travelling over to England pretty soon as well and I feel fine. For as much as all of these reports claim that airport security really isn't that good, I feel that it is improved. Besides, I don't think passengers on a plane would let anything happen since 9/11.

Answer 6

no. not afraid at all. why should i be? i took a flight right after 9/11. and in fact i flew over the pacific ocean. indeed, on my way back to the states, i took a wrong turn in bangkok airport and ended up in the middle eastern wing; i found myswelf in the middle of several thousand middle eastern people. so i did what i do, i sat down in the midst of a lot of folks wearing sheets, smiled, nodded, and went on about my business. and we all did what we all do best in airports, which is we ignored each other. no big deal.

what i am afraid of is getting to the airport without time to take my shoes off and put them back on a dozen times, have my bags checked, rechecked, and checked again, only to find at the last stop that my nail file is contraband. that sux.

Answer 7

I'm not afraid at all. When I think about that it's funny, because I am afraid of almost everything else in this world (everything from being sexually assaulted to identity theft) but flying is just something I'm not afraid of. Good luck on your trip to London, I hope it is fun, and worry free! Once you get going, you'll feel better. Just bring a lot of books/magazines and an iPod and you'll be set!

Answer 8

I purely a tiny tiny tiny bit frightened about flying usually. yet out of a scale of 10 (a million being lowest) there is purely a .0005 possibility that i'd not fly if I had the prospect. as well, i'd not go from Brazil to Europe or Africa anyhow. notwithstanding the land may be slightly scary besides, after 3407 close to Buffalo, huge apple crashed.

Answer 9

You can't allow the idea of "terrorism" scare you from doing anything that you want to do or plan to do. If you do, then you are letting them win. Security really has gotten more strict since 9/11 and you always have to believe in our national security and hope for the best. If it's your time, it's your time but you might as well live it up while you get the chance!

Answer 10

i am terrified to get on a plane since 911. I couldn't believe someone could be so evil doing that. I won't even get on a ship after i watched the movie titanic. I rather stay on land. As my grandmother would have said, if it was meant for us to fly God would have given us our own wings, so if we were meant to go on water safely, then God would have made it where we could walk on water as well. Hope this helps