Is flying really scary?

Russell · Mar 3, 2013

We flew back from Cuba on the day that tanks were stationed at Londons airports because of an increased terrorist risk.

The stewards handed out the newspapers when we were sat at Guantanamo, the front page had a picture of a tank sat at the entrance of the airport we were flying into, people on the plane freaked... the stewards took the papers back.

gibbleking · Mar 3, 2013

was sat in our car in the bowels of the sister ship of the herald of free enteprise coming into dover when it went past the wreck.our bay doors were open before we got to the walls ..we had water lapping over the front and washing underneath ...we didnt have a care in the world untill they figured thats why the ship sank...now i hate ferries.ps the russians used our ship as target practise one day with their subs...try having one of them pop up beside you for a look see.

02gf74 · Mar 3, 2013

why is flying scary? surely it is the crashing that is scary.

I fly but donlt like it, not just be cause there is not enough leg room butg if something goes wrong it's curtains - not sure why they don't have parachutes for each passenger..... actually I do: it is cost - there was programme that flying could be made even safer but it is down to cost - it is cheaper for the airline companies to pay out insurance to the relatives of the ones that died than to spend money improving safety.

hamster · Mar 3, 2013

Isaac_AG":1zqnnk6o said:
Russell":1zqnnk6o said:

1 in 25,000,000 chance of dying in a plane crash.

Considerably less than cycling.

Take your pick.

Click to expand...

But my feeling is if your hit on a bike there is a fair chance of survival if your in a plane crash there is zero chance of survival, I'd take the bike any day, I've survived a side impact on a bike, battered and bruised but I walked away

Alison

Actually the crash survival rate is a surprisingly high 75%. The best place to sit is the back...fortunately also the cheapest. Passengers in the front will get 8-10G of deceleration, which is usually fatal. At the back it can be as low as 2G, the same as a roller coaster. Most crashes are around landing, caused by descending too fast, for which parachutes are not helpful anyway.

drystonepaul · Mar 4, 2013

sylus":o1o2f7v5 said:
not scary...just boring

+1

The tedium nearly kills me every time.

Andy R · Mar 4, 2013

drystonepaul":ar5xp1gt said:
sylus":ar5xp1gt said:

not scary...just boring

Click to expand...

+1

The tedium nearly kills me every time.

What they said - although all the hanging around at airports and and the endless security stuff is the worst part of it for me. That, and ever decreasing hand luggage allowances and ever increasing costs for hold luggage.
Air travel has lost any attraction for me long ago - it's just a virtual necessity if I want to travel a few thousand miles in a reasonable time.

Neil · Mar 4, 2013

drystonepaul":3ezbj7cl said:
sylus":3ezbj7cl said:

not scary...just boring

Click to expand...

+1

The tedium nearly kills me every time.

I'm divided - short-ish flights eg 2-3 hours around Europe, tend to be pretty dull affairs, just a convoluted, tedious, bustle of doing a fair distance in a convenient time.

Long-haul to more remote destinations, I tend to find more enjoyable - plus, depending on who you fly with, can be reasonably comfortable, audio and video laid on, or power to use your own entertainment stuff. Plus it does really seem more of a true journey, than short-haul which seems a bit like an elaborate train ride, with some bumps along the way.

Tazio · Mar 4, 2013

I've been on huge amounts of flights over the years. Including 4 to and from Australia in the space of a month last year. Just very boring as I tend to fall asleep pretty much as soon as they adjust the cabin pressure on the plane before take off.

The best flight I have ever had though was in Scotland flying to the island of Barra. If you don't know about flying to Barra then Google it.

David B · Mar 4, 2013

Tazio":2chu7ahs said:
I've been on huge amounts of flights over the years. Including 4 to and from Australia in the space of a month last year. Just very boring as I tend to fall asleep pretty much as soon as they adjust the cabin pressure on the plane before take off.

The best flight I have ever had though was in Scotland flying to the island of Barra. If you don't know about flying to Barra then Google it.

On a retro note, the air service to Barra crops up in the excellent 1963 British Transport Films documentary Thirty Million Letters.

David

Is flying really scary?

Russell

Old School Grand Master

gibbleking

Old School Grand Master

02gf74

Old School Grand Master

hamster

Retro Wizard

drystonepaul

Andy R

Senior Retro Guru

Neil

Old School Grand Master

Tazio

David B

Old School Grand Master

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