Travel Discussions

Well, I'm a nervous flyer in general. I love that it's the quickest way from point A to point B, but I really, REALLY hate to fly.

That said, I've had two particularly scary flights.  One was in March 1993 when I was flying from Detroit to Norfolk to visit a friend.  It was during a "storm of the century" type of thing and oddly enough Detroit and Norfolk were the only 2 airports open on the east coast and midwest.  We probably shouldn't have been in the air that day. It was just awful the way the plane was being thrown around by the wind.  The sweet guy next to me kept buying me drinks, talking to me to take my mind off of it, and didn't mind at all when I screamed and clawed his arm.

The next worst was in 1998 when I was moving from San Diego to Pennsylvania. Another windy day and a very short runway.  The plane started down the runway then came to a screeching halt and the pilot said "uh yeah, we're going to have to go back to the gate to remove some cargo.  We're too heavy to take off."  Nice.

I hate flying.

I was in New York visiting family when TWA flight 800 exploded in mid-air on July 17, 1996. We were on long island about 20 miles from the crash site. And we had to fly home 2 days later out of JFK airport. Turbulance was the worst I have ever experienced. You know its bad when the stewardess sits down in the seat beside you and grasps the arm rests. It was very frightening.

I was on a flight from Minneapolis to Indianapolis and the plane was hit by lightning. It didn't scare me at first because it just sounded like a big firecracker went off, but then we hit turbulance. We landed in a horrific downpour with lighnting and thunder all around.

I haven't flown since 2000, and it was from here to Chicago.  O'Hare was deserted on a Tuesday morning at 1am, so I never got to see it crowded, there was me and the janitors.  I was like, hey, they say it's always crowded here.  I remember asking a janitor waaaay down a walkway indoors.  Our voices echoed SO loud.  I'll never believe anyone who tells me that airport is crowded LOL.

Anyways, the flight back was a little bumpy, some wind turbulence and I got kind of scared for about 3 seconds but I thought of my dad.

I lost my dad when I was 7 in a plane crash.  He was the pilot in his 4-seater in a storm.  Lightning struck his left wing over Enid, Oklahoma.  I felt my dad was with me all during my flight.  I remember not fearing anything, that if I was gonna go...

We landed safely and all was OK :)  I love to fly, just wish I did it more often.  My husband has never flown and refuses to.

My worst flights have always been in and out of Southern California. When those Santa Ana winds start gusting... well, you just have to sit down and hold on. Oh, and Texas during Hurricane season. 

Middle of December, flying to Orlando in 2000, I think. I ended up on a small plane, like 30 seats, after flying half way there (forgot where we connected). It was very icy and stormy and we were delayed in the plane for an hour while they deiced the wings of the plane.

When they finally took off, it was very bumpy and the plane seemed to be off course due to the wind. People were crying and praying (and throwing up. Yuck) and my friend Bill who was with me was singing "I Fall to Pieces" because NOTHING affected him. I actually wasn't too afraid because there was nothing I could do and Bill was keeping it so light (I guess....). The people on the plane didn't appreciate him singing about falling to pieces especially since Patsy Kline was killed in a plane crash. But that's Bill for ya!

We had a very bad landing and everything was all over the plane but we did land safely. I learned later that the pilot himself was fearing a crash. Amazingly, for someone with anxiety and who wouldn't fly until 1999 when forced to, I honestly only was afraid a few times when I could tell the plane was having serious issues.

I also found out that my very first flight was also turbulence filled and had issues but since it was my first flight, I didn't know that was abnormal so I never worried. When we landed, my hubby and sisters who were with me (to go on a cruise) told me it was the scariest flight they were ever on. Ignorance is a bliss. I had no idea. 

NOW, I'm scared to fly since 9/11 and knowing what I know about plane crashes. Then, I was more afraid of being stuck in the air and wanting to leave. Obviously one cannot simply walk out the plane door if one decides they want to leave the area.

Coming back to Houston from Atlanta one December night the turbulence was severe the entire flight. Hated it. Everyone was dead quiet. Loved that.

Coming back from Albuquerque one night we picked up major turbulence and the plane got real quiet.  A young boy behind me said "We're gonna die" and we all heard him. His father hushed him and he said "I don't care, I'm scared!"

Only time I've been truly uneasy was when we had to wait over an hour on a fully-booked flight from McAllen, Tx. before we were cleared for takeoff. The plane was HOT and I was crammed between two other passengers. I've never been more relieved than when we took off.  That's when I started driving to McAllen. 

We were on AA and the landing gear wouldn't come down. We knew something was wrong eventually. Then the captain came on and told us what was happening and to take the crash position and to take off anything sharp (glasses, heeled shoes) etc. It was really surreal. There were ambulances on the ground, etc. The captain did a great job because he had to come in way too low. Anyway all was ok but NO ONE from AA was there to do anything for us. I think at some point we each got $100 toward another fare.

I was on a flight to berlin, west germany back than and the plane had to fly right between two apartment buildings one on each side of the plane in order to land at the airport.  One could see right into these peoples apartments.  And to top it off after we landed and departed from the plane we where greeted by soldiers with machine guns.

Scariest flight ever was actually on the ground for me...we had to land in Haiti on our way between the island where we lived, Bonaire, and Miami.  Passengers boarded, and while we were waiting to take off, a man and woman got into a fight...seemed like a domestic dispute.  Some tiny little business man stood between them as they screamed at each other before the police boarded and removed them physically.  I was only 9, so fortunately, at that time, I had no idea how serious that situation was!  My parents were, however, very aware and NOT happy!

A few years ago my family and I were traveling to California, it was an evening flight and halfway there we hit some seriously turbulent weather, there was lightening hitting the plane and we were being jostled and bounced around so badly that we were nearly sliding out of our seats even though we were fully belted in.This lasted for what felt like forever, passengers were screaming and crying, heads were flaling about, I swear it was as close to a near-death experience as I ever want to get. When we finally and gratefully landed, a passenger commented to the the Pilot "you should have felt it back there". the pilot responded with "you should have felt and seen it up here"  Needless to say, it was not a good flight but we had a great pilot that's for sure.

Some years ago I had a 20 minute flight between Colorado Springs and Denver, Colorado. The tarmac was icy and they had to rock the plane back and forth just to get away from the terminal. We finally got to take off.

During the flight I noticed the plane would increase speed then decrease speed. You can tell simply from the sound of the engines. Then we went to a higher altitude to then go lower. A fellow passenger and I decided there was something wrong with the plane but no one said anything.

We landed in Denver where they promptly grounded the plane. No explanation.

Longest 20 minute flight ever!!!

Scariest flight?

I've not been on a plane since I went to Denver and back in February of 2000, but I had been on many trips overseas and domestically before, and only a few times was I scared.

The one memorable "boy, this is scary" part wasn't so much frightening because of turbulence or any mechanical issues as it was psychological.  It was a night flight over the Atlantic (the redeye express to Spain), and I suddenly became acutely aware that this was the farthest I'd been from home alone ever and that I did not know anyone where I was going to land (either in Madrid or Sevilla)!