Facing Flying Fears – Plane & Pilot Magazine | Aviation

One supposes they are looking for some juicy description of a desperate situation fraught with daunting danger, culminating in a near-escape from certain death. My usual come-back is, “Well, I don’t recall ever being truly afraid, but there were some times when I wished I were somewhere else than where I was.”

Whether we admit it publicly or not, we may occasionally encounter fears while flying, as well as harbor doubts about our motivation for flying an airplane. I’ve seen people solo or even earn their certificate, only to walk away after proving their point, content to have finished the goal they had set. Seems a shame, and a waste, but for some people, it was enough to have done it.

For others, the realization that flying’s no longer for them comes after a particularly challenging bout with bad weather, or with some growing responsibilities in their life, or an acceptance of the finality of aging. It’s not so much fear as a developing uncertainty of one’s ability to manage outcomes. 

“The sky is not inherently dangerous,” goes the old saying, “but even more so than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of the slightest mistake.” That we are trespassers in a hostile world bears heavily on our minds, at times.

For those in training who say,…