Delta Airlines flight landing at Lindbergh Field, San Diego | © Greg Gross

One out of eight Americans is afraid, deathly afraid, to get on an airplane. That’s nearly 25 million people. It’s a phobia that terrorizes citizen and celebrity alike. But it doesn’t have to stop you…and the Web can hook you up with help.

Something’s come up and you’ve got to get to the other side of the country immediately, like tomorrow. There’s no way out of it. There’s just one small problem: The very thought of getting on an airplane leaves you almost paralyzed.

To those who suffer from it, fear of flying is no joke. Some can’t bring themselves to look at a plane, much less fly on one, without therapy, prescription medication or a couple of good stiff drinks beforehand (or maybe you thought it was a coincidence that almost every airport on the planet has a bar).

For these folks, even the act of driving to the airport can be crippling.

GROUNDED CELEBRITIES
There are those who estimate that this phobia affects as much as 40 percent of the world population, so if you’re afraid to fly, you’ve got lots of company. Some of that company may surprise you.

Michael Jackson, who toured the world multiple times, was loathe to do so by air.

Evel Knievel, who had no qualms about sailing through the air on motorcycles in some of the most insane stunts ever attempted, was afraid to get on an airplane.

Football coach turned TV commentator John Madden became famous for converting a bus into a recreational vehicle and taking it to NFL games around the country rather than flying. But if Madden were to take with him every famous person who was or is as afraid to fly as he is, he’d need a much bigger bus:

* singers Aretha Franklin, Cher and R. Kelly
* the Dalai Lama
* Muhammad Ali
* hockey star Wayne Gretzky
* actors Colin Ferrell and Billy Bob Thornton
* actress Jennifer Anniston, Megan Fox and Whoopi Goldberg
* hip-hop artist Fat Joe
* sci-fi writers Isaac Asimov and Ray Bradbury
* film director Stanley Kubrick
* dictators Josef Stalin and Kim Jong-Il

And believe me, that’s but a small sampling.

This phobia even turns up in song lyrics:

“I can’t stand to fly.
I’m not that naive.
Men weren’t meant to ride
with clouds between their knees.”

–”Superman,” Five for Fighting

The Department of Transportation has often pointed out that flying statisically is 29 times safer than driving, and it’s true. (Had they based their calculations purely on observing drivers in New York, New Jersey and California, it might’ve been higher than that.)

AN UNNATURAL ACT
So where does all this fear come from?

Much of it comes from Nature. Let’s face it, traveling thousands of miles while sitting in an enclosed aluminum tube several miles above the ground is not a natural act. “If God had meant for man to fly, He’d have given us wings,” right?

(He also would’ve made us a lot lighter. The only bird out there in serious need of Jenny Craig is the Thanksgiving turkey — which, as we all know, doesn’t fly. Coincidence? Perhaps not…)

Then there’s the issue of control — or more aptly, the lack of it.

When we board an airliner, the only part of the flight that we get “hands-on” with is fastening and unfastening the seatbelt. Everything beyond that — where we’re going, how fast, how high, keeping track of where we are — is all in the hands of other people. From the flight crew in the cockpit to the small army of aircraft mechanics and air traffic controllers whom we never see or hear, we end up having to trust a lot of strangers with our lives.

Some folks are extremely uncomfortable with that.

But there are times, probably too many times for those who suffer with this phobia, when flying is just unavoidable. What can one do?

HELP ON THE WING
As it turns out, plenty. And the Web can be a priceless resource for you.

There are support groups like Taking Flight, the Fear of Flying Forum and SOAR.

There’s a Fear of Flying Self-Help Course and at least two fear of flying clinics — this one in San Mateo, CA and another in Seattle.

Even the airlines are trying to help. Virgin, I’m told, is the driving force behind the Flying Without Fear
site.

There are lots more help sites on the Web for aviophobes. Just do a search on the terms “fear of flying help” or “fear of flying support” and you’ll be inundated. Some offer help for free, others for a fee. Some are run by therapists and physicians, others by pilots who’ve seen first-hand how much people suffer with this and are determined to help.

If you’re one of the people who suffers with this, I have two words for you:

Stop suffering.

If you’re willing to take the first steps toward conquering this, there are lots of folks out there who will take that journey with you. You can do this. You can beat this.

YOU can fly.

• Share