Going to Florida again

[seatonl]

Hi everyone,
Once again I'm going to Florida this summer (July 14) and my usual nervousness is creeping up on me. Like last year, I leave from Phoenix to Tampa and then onto PBI. I've been tracking the Southwest flight for about a week and that helps. I'm also booking a quick flight in 2 weeks from here to Burbank just for practice. Back in Feb/March I did a practice flight with a FOF class here in Phoenix and it was fine - and WITHOUT alcohol! It's been years since I've done that.

Anyway, the anxiety is building again, but I have to counter it with some of the tools I've learned. Viewing some of the in-flight videos of take-off really help to get the sensation. Like others, I'm sort of concerned about the weather over there lately. A lot of Tstorms.

I plan for the practice flight on June 29 so I'll let you know how that goes. I gotta do it, gotta, gotta, gotta.

[tusphotog]

Anyway, the anxiety is building again, but I have to counter it with some of the tools I've learned. Viewing some of the in-flight videos of take-off really help to get the sensation. Like others, I'm sort of concerned about the weather over there lately. A lot of Tstorms.


I wouldn't worry about the weather out east just yet. This storm system which really messed up the midwest yesterday should blow through the east coast by tomorrow. I don't think it's even going to affect Florida. The worst thing tstms do is delay your flight, and the pilots just go around them. It's stunning to see the storms up close--especially the ones which go to 50, 60 or 70,000 feet.

I love BUR! When it's not busy you can really get through the TSA carnival quick. Plus you get to board by stairs. My recommendation: when you board head for the rear stairs if they use them. You'll get onboard quicker. Great views of the mountains when you leave BUR as well!

[StPeteMark]

[quote=seatonl....I gotta do it, gotta, gotta, gotta.[/quote]

I've been doing it on a regular basis during the past year...but it opposite directions. I've been fine and you'll be fine, too! Your prep is great; our advice remains the same. :thumbsup:
.

[seatonl]

Hey St. Pete Mark,
Thanks for replying! I remember your support last year. Your take-off videos really help. Like I said, I gotta do that flight from here to Burbank again just to get the feeling back. After Florida, if I can afford it, I really think I need to go over to L.A./Burbank once a month to start making it routine. I think some of my problem is that a year goes by in between flights and my fear conditioning keeps kicking in every time. I've also seriously considered checking out the flight school at Deer Valley airport. Hmmmmmm.

[aerobat]

I love the gotta, gotta, gotta!! Yep, we gotta do it, and there's something wonderful about it, too, as we repossess the feeling of success and of ownership of the flying experience.:hyped: I found that practice flights in between the "hafta" flights really helped me maintain the high-level continuity. For the first year or so, it felt like the flights were my FoF workstation and I just couldn't wait :woohoo: to go to work!

Flying lessons! :tongue: Well, of course! That's the next thing one does, isn't it? I took a "discovery flight" just to see what the cockpit view and hands-on-controls feeling were like, and...did I ever get sucked in. Oh, ho, ho...look what happened to me.:lol: I came back from that flight babbling "this is the purest form of the drug; I gotta have it; I'll do anything to get it!".

About two weeks later I had a job as the manager of a small flight school.

You have yourself some great flying, seatonl...and tell us all about it!:thumbsup:

Barb

[LeslieDEN]

I really think I need to go over to L.A./Burbank once a month to start making it routine.
I'm all for that! Think of all the Rapid Rewards points you'll accrue too!

Seriously, at the end of last year, when I was in danger of losing my elite status on United, I made several "mileage runs" from Denver to Albuquerque and back just to keep the status for 2007. But it had a secondary effect, and that was keeping my toes in the air during dry stretches. So I'm a big fan of pointless flying. :)

OK, now this is going to sound seriously crazy, but you might come to enjoy pointless flying and look forward to it if you really start doing those LA/Burbank trips once a month. I did! I looked forward to the DEN-ABQ trips, just settling into a seat with a book, no responsibilities, nothing to do that day but fly, visit an airport in another city, and fly back. But it's not as if you're being nonproductive because at the end of the day, you've stretched the ol' flying muscles and more importantly, you've got miles/points to show for it. (Sick, I know ;))

[Rebecca]

I've also seriously considered checking out the flight school at Deer Valley airport. Hmmmmmm.:thumbsup:

[Barb-SAN]

Hi everyone,
Once again I'm going to Florida this summer (July 14) and my usual nervousness is creeping up on me. Like last year, I leave from Phoenix to Tampa and then onto PBI. I've been tracking the Southwest flight for about a week and that helps. I'm also booking a quick flight in 2 weeks from here to Burbank just for practice. Back in Feb/March I did a practice flight with a FOF class here in Phoenix and it was fine - and WITHOUT alcohol! It's been years since I've done that.

Anyway, the anxiety is building again, but I have to counter it with some of the tools I've learned. Viewing some of the in-flight videos of take-off really help to get the sensation. Like others, I'm sort of concerned about the weather over there lately. A lot of Tstorms.

I plan for the practice flight on June 29 so I'll let you know how that goes. I gotta do it, gotta, gotta, gotta.

Hi Seatonl,
Good seeing you back here again. That's great news that you were able to do a practice flight without alcohol! Would you tell us more about the FoF class in Phoenix? What did it cover? Where was the practice flight? Was the class sponsored by an airline?

I think your idea of short commercial practice flights is excellent. If you do them frequently enough, they will begin to seem routine, and won't trigger so much anticipatory anxiety. That's great that you have discovered some tools that work for you too.

If you are concerned about thunderstorms, have you considered trying to book your flights for early in the day? Also, I found it helpful to go to FlightAware tracking software and look at the flight activity around a specific airport. First, I would look at the weather map, and see where there was some storm activity. Then I would go to FlightAware, and watch how the planes flew around the thunderstorms. You can see some examples of that over on the tracking board here too. It really helped me understand how the whole system works, and that the planes can, and will, avoid the thunderstorms.

I think it is WONDERFUL that you are actually considering flight school! :D

I've been taking Cessna lessons on and off for 2 1/2 years now. Although my total flight time is only 34 hrs., more than anything else that I've done, THAT has been the VERY BEST in helping me to really understand flying, and get over the fear of flying commercially. In fact, I just came back from flying a Cessna 172SP with my instructor this evening. It had been a year since my last flight, so I was kind of nervous all day. But we had a beautiful flight...no turbulence, and I was glad to see that I still remembered how to do things like taxi, take off, and land after such a long break. We flew along the Pacific Coast, saw the sun set, saw a few hot-air balloons, watched the city lights coming on as we flew back to the airport. Just lovely!

So, YES....by all means take some lessons. Even if you don't go all the way to becoming a pilot, taking some lessons can help you more than you would imagine. It's also very important to find an instructor you feel comfortable with, who understands fear of flying, and that you are trying to develop your confidence, and understand how planes fly.:thumbsup: Go for it!!

[seatonl]

Thanks to everyone for your nice replies. You guys are great.
The class I took was from fearless-flight.com. It's based here in Phoenix at the Sky Harbor Airport and run by Captain Ron Nielson and Diane Owens. He just retired from USAir. They're both wonderful.

The first class was a discussion and overview about aviation. The second class was an hour pre-flight lesson more about aviation and weather. Then we took a round-trip flight to Burbank. Overall I was fine, but got a bit jumpy in mid-flight - not due to turbulence but just my usual nerves. I'm one of those weirdos who doesn't mind take-off but hates cruise. I'm just waiting for something to happen.

Anyway, thanks for your encouragement about my idea of monthly practice trips. I think I need to tackle this by experiencing the sensation and de-sensitizing. Also, if I can really plow into reading, studying, whatever while flying, I hope to shift my concentration from fear/worry to "work mode." I've tried to do that in the past by writing in a journal what I see out the window. What kind of distractions have helped you all in this way? Doing cartwheels down the aisle? Ha!

[Barb-SAN]

I've seen that class advertised, and am glad to hear that you felt it was worthwhile. I don't recall hearing anyone else here mention it. It's always great to be able to refer someone to a "hands on" class, especially with a graduation flight. We haven't found very many of them being offered around the country.

The 'Work distraction" that helps me the most during cruise is taking photos out the window, and trying to figure out where we are. I bring a map and try to recognize landmarks. Doing flight tracking in Google Earth ahead of time really helps too, as you can start correlating what you have seen on the tracking with the view out the window.

If you want some physical exercise type distractions (other than cartwheels down the aisle), you might check out the little booklet "Airplane Yoga" http://www.amazon.com/Airplane-Yoga-Rachel-Lehmann-Haupt/dp/1573223522/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-9902642-8516928?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182398193&sr=8-1 This might be a way to relieve some physical tension if you start feeling antsy during cruise. Taking a walk back to the bathrooms can also relieve tension, and provide a little activity to break up the flight.