Just a thought cause they have so many lives in their hands... just wondering if theres ever a point where they get the jitters or anything, especially during the hardest point of the flight?
2007-01-26 03:44:43 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Cars & Transportation ➔ Aircraft
Oh yeah...during an engine out landing in dark and stormy weather...a heavy fully-loaded airline on a hot, high-altitude airport...a total electrical failure at night in the clouds...a plane taxiing in front of them on the runway just as they're taking off or touching down...
There are scary or even terrifying moments...but not very often.
I'd hate to fly on board an airliner where it's impossible for the pilot to ever get scared.
I think that the flight crew of United 232 were pretty scared...but like all good pilots, they were able to control their fear and made the best of a horrific situation.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5213018608655473877&q=flight+232
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Airlines_Flight_232
2007-01-26 04:15:12 · answer #1 · answered by 4999_Basque 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the scariest times in flying are during takoffs and landings. Pilots love flying, and they wouldn't do it if they didn't. Yet, at the same time, they know full well that anything could happen during starting or completing a flight. So they are constantly aware of the risks and possibilities, and they have to be prepared to do everything they can to make every flight safe, because they have more than just their own lives to take into consideration, but those flying with them and those on the ground.
So, do they get scared? To a degree?, yes, but they are more centered on concentrating on what they have to do to insure that the flight goes off safely and have to put the fear aside. Kinda like nascar drivers, while they are preparing for a race, they think about all the possibilities and what they may have to do to react to any given situation, so there is always some level of fear invloved in what they are about to do. It's what makes them the proffessionals they are
2007-01-26 14:08:42 · answer #2 · answered by greywolf 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am a flight instructor and an airline transport pilot, and my favorite answer to this is that if we were scared when flying, we wouldn't do it. Do drivers get the jitters when they pull out of their driveways??
Actually, for me anyway, the scariest/hardest times flying are when there is a mechanical problem or unforecast bad weather that can become life threatening. Take offs and landings are very routine and actually quite easy to do.
We all know we have an obligation to our passengers, but most of us are even more interested in keeping ourselves alive! Again, most drivers don't consciously think "oh, I have two passengers in my car. I better be extra careful today." They drive to keep themselves alive, and if they stay alive, chances are everyone else will, too.
There is an old saying - "Flying is hours of boredom and seconds of terror." I have rarely been scared, but often a bit bored.
2007-01-26 13:26:25 · answer #3 · answered by decivilian 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Under normal circumstances NO. We are too busy following procedures, & reading our checklists to take the time to get the jitters, & we are especially busy during take-off, & landing.
It's only when something starts to go wrong that we might get nervous but we train so much on simulators practicing emergency proceedures, that our training kicks in. It's usually not until long after the emergency is over that we have time to think about what just happened, & get the jitters.
The only time I get nervous is during a check-ride (recurring flight test), because you know the examiner is going to spring some kind of simulated emergency on you, or find another way to make the test challenging, but you just don't know what it's going to be, or when it's going to happen.
2007-01-26 15:01:14 · answer #4 · answered by No More 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
onetime i had a scared flight attendant on a short jump from Detroit Metro to Flint, MI. The flight was 20 minutes but it was through heavy cloud cover and bumpy all the way she kinda funny when we landed.
2007-01-26 13:06:49 · answer #5 · answered by bigalexe 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I am sure that every once in a while they may get scared, but they have practiced the procedures so many times, and have practiced for emergencies as well, they are extremely prepared for the situations that may come up.
2007-01-26 13:22:30 · answer #6 · answered by ? 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
although I'm not an airline pilot, I have talked with them and they said that it is scary in the back of your mind, but you soon become confident in yourself that you are probably not going to mess up in some way
2007-01-26 17:59:47 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No way they do it for a living, and very often.
2007-01-26 21:21:30 · answer #8 · answered by koolwakeboarder 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yep
2007-01-26 12:05:08 · answer #9 · answered by lowflyer1 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋