Originally Posted by tonyk38

Tell yourself you'll love it! Once you're off the ground, you're usually hard pressed to realise that you're in the air and moving. It's very smooth! Sit back and enjoy the movies, read every word in the inflight magazine, oh and bring little blow-up cushions for your heads and then you just might even get some sleep!

The other thing I'd recommend is a good cold remedy for the flight. I'd say I've caught colds on about a third of all flights I've been on. They're the perfect breeding ground for airborne germs!

Originally Posted by madsad

Thanx for the advice Tony, germs? i have three to take onboard!!! & hubbys tum will make the perfect cushion for me!! (dont tell him i said that!)

Donna.

Originally Posted by tonyk38

LOL, in that case you'll probably sleep like a baby all the way there!

Originally Posted by Geordie George

Epic, but useful! You're right about the lack of control being a major factor in the fear. And the strange, scary noises - I do tend to spend whole flights listening to the plane and panicking whenever there's a change in noise. I really don't get the whole getting drunk thing ... I tend to prefer to fantasise that should the plane be crashing I'd have a fighting chance of surviving by being sober, rather than being completely incapacitated by the beer monster.

Six flights coming up on the way to Aus (in February). Absolutely petrified doesn't even come close to describing it!

GG

Originally Posted by madsad

Hi Guys,

My big lump of a hubby is sh!t scared of flying :scared: He,s flown back & forth most of his days except the last 10yrs weve been together.

Apart from him having a few drinks has anybody got any ideas how i can calm/relax his fear?

We have 3kids to amuse during the flights & there is NO way he will be getting drunk & leaving me to it

Me on the other hand,have never flown in my life before,never even been in an airport!

Flying or the thought of it just doesnt phase me at all,not being a smarty here,just dont think it will bother me,i,ll probably be too busy concentrating on the kids & hubby

Any hints,tips guys?

Cheers Donna x

Originally Posted by madsad

Thanx for the advice Tony, germs? i have three to take onboard!!! & hubbys tum will make the perfect cushion for me!! (dont tell him i said that!)

Donna.

Originally Posted by Night Nurse

Flying Part 1

Well, I keep encouraging the stewardesses to 'rest' their heads in that region but they keep muttering something about my concentrating on landing instead Now, I'm going to get in trouble with Night Nurse aren't I!

But seriously folks, this getting drunk thing, whilst being fun, doesn't work and especially not on longhaul flights. One of the best ways of relaxing is too avoid the stimulants (tea, coffee etc) and whereas the booze may loll you into a sleepy state for a little while it ain't going to help you sleep for a decent, prolonged period.

As it's my job to fly the things you'll be glad to know that I stick to water throughout the whole flight and this, combined with a light meal, rather than trying to eat the whole trolley, helps to chill the body out and help drop off to sleep (thereby making the journey seem shorter). I would also recommend bringing something sloppy but comfortable to change into. It's difficult enough trying to relax and sleep without trying to ensure your highly pressed suit isn't getting too rumpled. Okay, so you're not wearing suits, but you know what I mean. Tracksuit trousers and a sweatshirt are what the best dressed pilots can be found wearing if you were unfortunate enough to witness the bunk habits on long flights.

Ear plugs are a must (I can't sleep without them now, even at home) and I would thoroughly recommend covering your upper torso and head with a blanket. Yes, you'll look daft but it really does work (and keep your head on the outside of your husband's blanket, Donna, lest fancy the unwanted comments and 'recommendations' of the cabin crew.

Finally in the sleeping list is a BIG reading book. You need something to take your mind off being in a big aluminium tube that's hurtling through space (sorry, couldn't resist it). If you're REALLY stuck ask the pilots if you can borrow one of the aircraft technical manuals. These actually have sleep built into them as I can attest every time I pick one up to refresh my memory regarding those big things that stick out the side of the big aluminium tube and somehow get it to fly.

The 'not being in control' fear has to be the most common fear of all. What are those strange noises, bumps and movements? Of course, familiarity cures a lot of these problems as we get used to finding ourselves in an alien environment but the 'once a year whether we like it or not' flyer is not going to be familiar! So, just a few that I can think of without clogging up the server and preventing any further posting by anyone.

First of all, those boys and girls at the pointy end know what they are doing. Every six months they are put through two days of driving tests and either pass or go looking for a job in MacDonald's. During those two days every plausible and, sometimes, inconceivable problem that could appear does. Training, training and more training means we get to do things almost in our sleep (a good thing at 0300 with the sun inching over the horizon straight in your eyes having flown 5000 miles). Such headline catching 'horrors' as an engine failure become such a non-event that we spend a good deal of the process deciding whether we can continue to the destination and get our customers where they need to be, rather than screaming and wrestling with a shaking control column (why do they always do that in films). So, I know you may not be able to fly an aircraft and don't feel particularly comfortable in how a 380 tonne hunk of metal gets itself off the ground but you'll have to trust us on this one; we're perfectly happy and know how and why. This isn't meant to sound big-headed but hopefully instill some confidence in your drivers.

The BIG sounds:

- On the ground you'll have a little jet engine whirring in the tail. This is called an auxiliary power unit and is used for air conditioning, supplying electricity and, when the time comes, for starting the engines. On some aircraft this is left running until afetr take-off and, if you're right at the very back, you might hear it going quiet. This is normal as it's not needed for the flight and leaving it running = more fuel being used = higher ticket prices for all!
- After engine start the pilots will select the flaps to the take-off position. There is normally quite a loud whirring noise from the centre of the aircraft as the hydraulic jacks to their stuff. If you're able to see the front or back of the wing you'll see panels drooping towards the ground. This is all normal and helps reduce the amount of tarmac needed to heave that big bird off the ground.
- During the take-off itself you'll be subject to two stages of engine noise. First of all the engines are brought up to about 30% power and everything checked and then (shortly afterwards) in comes the take-off power. If you're sitting near a wing and look out of the window you WILL see the engines shaking the wings and you will see the wing tips bounce up and down as you accelerate. All perfectly normal and taken care of by those clever aerodynamacists at Boeing and Airbus. No doubt you'll also feel the thump of the nosewheel going over the runway centreline lights, but we TRY and avoid those.
- The wingtips will rise up as the speed increases and lift increases across the wing. Sometimes this can look quite alarming (with a 747-400 wingtip rising almost 6 ft) but this is a good thing. If it were all too stiff the wing would be subject to more stresses and strains whilst a bouncy cantilever has some mighty fine properties regarding fatigue (so I'm led to believe).
- The next big noise will be the landing gear coming up. There are lots of doors to open, wheels to tuck away and doors to close back up again, so there is going to be a fair amount of noise. It only lasts about 15 seconds and, with a 747, you can actually feel the acceleration once it's all cleaned up.
- Then comes the bit my wife (the presently-sleeping Night Nurse......when it was me who got back home at 0630 after a 13:25 flight ) really does not like......the reduction to climb power on the engines. Basically, we rarely use full power for take-off (preserves engine life, makes it quieter, uses less fuel, keeps everybody happy) but we don't use anywhere like full power to climb. During the transition from quite a bit of thrust to a fair bit less comes the inevitable deceleration and noise reduction. LOTS of people think there is an engine problem but there isn't; it's just us being environmentally friendly and helping you to keep more of your hard-earned in the bank During the climb there will be a fair bit of noise on, noise off as you are step-climbed to your cruising altitude but once you're up there you'll hardly remember those big engines churning away through the night.
- Once the climb is going according to plan, up come the flaps with a repetition of the hydraulic pump noises that were heard on the ground.

Originally Posted by snappy

A friend of mine is terrified of flying but whenever he goes away on holiday he takes a trip to the doctor and says he wants to take a pill that will wake him up once he gets to his destination. This year they went to Mexico and he took the tablet just before he walked onto the plane and woke up just as they were on the runway in Mexico!!!
Sasha

Originally Posted by cadman

this friend of yours...........big coloured fella, mohican hair, lots of gold jewellery, ex. soldier wanted for a crime he didn't commit?

Originally Posted by cadman

this friend of yours...........big coloured fella, mohican hair, lots of gold jewellery, ex. soldier wanted for a crime he didn't commit?

More seriously, I hated flying, don't like heights or them park rides (but love racing /riding large fast motorcycles). I agree, it's the control thing but after a couple of holiday trips to europe I decided that hey, if it's gonna crash it's gonna crash! chilled out and started looking out of the windows at the views etc.
Still don't like turbulance though! but reassured by the advice that the plane ain't gonna fall out of the sky and it's true the staff wouldn't fly if it were dangerous.

Also agree on liquids etc. - long haul flight : only drink water, set watch to local time in Singapore or OZ and try and sleep in their time not Uk time although coming home from SP I watched 8 films back to back !
Make sure the kids have lots of felt tips, pads etc. etc. and tell your hubby you'll put your head "under the blanket" when you get there if he's a big brave boy.

Andy.

Originally Posted by walla1

What's a coloured fella?