Are we sure we want access to this site?......

Hi,
Thanks to Google network advertising, I found the following website:
The PPRuNe Forums (The Professional Pilots Rumour Network).
On this site we can "eavesdrop" on pilots discussing all kinds of issues...Do we really want to have access to such a site?......

SAS pilot fell asleep while co-pilot at the toilet

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Google translation from daily swedish newspaper:

SAS-pilot fell asleep in the cockpit

When the co-pilot went to the bathroom, the captain aboard an SAS plane fell asleep , en route between Copenhagen and Stockholm. The co-pilot had to call twice before the pilot woke up and opened, reported Aftonbladet, referring to a report by the Norwegian newspaper Verdens Gang.
The captain's explanation is that he did not had time to sleep properly because he would fly five routes on one day. Some measures in the pilot will not be taken, announces the SAS.

Come to the dark side.......

So, I am thinking of flying to Athens for the weekend in 2 week's time.
I am inviting you to join me in my voyage to the dark, very anxious part of my soul....

It starts with an email to my travel agent - "Find me those flights, please".
Minutes after, she sends me a potential itinerary.
Aegean Airways...hmmm....who are they and can I trust them, I ask myself....I have 2 options, but they are the only ones with a convenient schedule...it's a 2 hour flight, so maybe I can manage flying an (what I thought is) esoteric airline...
I decided to Google them. Nice website...read their history, not enough experience for me....but, a member of Star Alliance, I am thinking they would not consent to anyt airline that's not adhering to safety protocols, so I feel a little better....
"At the risk of you not wanting to work with me anymore....Let me know what aircraft is used for this flight" I tell her. (I also want the name, address and phone number of the pilot and co pilot, but perhaps that's too much...)
"It's an Airbus A320-100/200" (if she could not work with me, she wouldnt I am sure...but she is my cousin and my travel agent so she needs to give me those answers or I wont talk to her in family gatherings..).
Personally, I feel less safe in AIrbus air crafts. I prefer Boeing. Ok, so what's to do, they are the only airline that I can fly with. Next step - Google the aircraft...hmmm....small/medium size...one aisle...not loving it...
Moving on..what is the accident record for this aircraft...

"For the entire A320 family there have been 17 Hull-loss Accidents with a total of 795 fatalities as of July 2010.^[60][61]  Other occurrences for the A320 include 33 non-fatal incidents such as engine failure, APU fire, runway excursion, and minor collision near gate.^[62] There have been 50 incidents of glass cockpit blackout.^[63][64][65] There have also been seven incidents of nose gear malfunction, including JetBlue Airways Flight 292."


Oh god....17, 33, 50....I do want to arrive to Athens safely....Ok, so I will Google Aegean Airliines Accident record. WIkipedia says - 1 incident in March 2010, flight returned to Athens because of engine malfunction....hmmmm....
Statistically though, it's almost nothing - 1 incident that I see since 2003 (where the records of the site start), they fly 6 million passengers per year..Ok, I can try to manage this logically....


Anyone going through this same process or is it me alone out there.....


Fly safe.

Delta flight 4951 9/29

Ok....so some of our worst fears on crashing upon landing...caught on tape..or should I say "mobile phone"...hey, wait...wasn't his cell phone supposed to be closed??!!! I promise you, if i was the one sitting next to him, I probably would have jumped his phone and confiscated it...god knows if his open cell phone intercepted the airplane systems and created a mal function with the landing gear....(probably not...).

Regardless...this short video grants us an inside look to what we fear most. Luckily, it ended well, this time.

Let us all fly safe.

My window syndrome

As a fearful flier, I usualy like to have direct access to the window. I need to feel that I control SOMETHING when I am up there, 35,000 feet above ground.

In cases of turbulence, I just look ot the window. If the skies are blue and everything below "looks normal" to me..I am able to calm myself down. If I see that instead of being above the clouds the plane is IN a cloud or fog, then its time to get stressed...

The problem begins during those night international flights, when for you its night time, but outside its mid-day in that time zone. 99.9% of the passangers are asleep and there is NOTHING more important to the cabin crew then to make sure we stay asleep. They are really zelous about that (that way passangers are less annoying...)

So, it's dark in the cabin and suddenly there's serious turbulence. My instinct, as I said, is to immidiately look out the window. The shutter is closed, so, I open it just abit - 2 inches, so I can see what's out there and not bother everyone too much...Not a second goes by and an angry stewardess jumps on me -Miss! Please close the shutter immidiately!!
Since I am stressed, I dont usally handle this attack too well...and I usualy snap right back at her/him..... "I will NOT close the shutter, as I am anxious and keeping it slightly open helps me cope!!!!" I tell her. The stewardess is usually shocked that I dont obey her orders, and my tone sends her right out on her way. If she still insists, I still keepit open but I usualy also write a complaint letter to the airline and complain about the lack of empathy to those who suffer from fear of flights.

Exception - On international flights, I prefer to sit on an isle seat, helps me that I know I can get up any moment and not feel couped up. Gotta choose my battles...

Safe flight.

A temporary cure for fear of flying...

People, I think I found a temporary cure for fear of flying.....fly business!! In the past 15 years, right after I quit my airline job as an air hostess, I was horrified of flying, and I still am.
But I have to say, I had a small pleasant break from this fear....
It just happened that I had to fly to Paris a few weeks ago, and my dream came true - I was finally upgraded to the business class!!
For the first time in my life, I was not cooped up like a sardine, my legs were stretched and then some :-). The chair became flat as a bed, I was offered some goodies like socks, eye mask and more. I chose the eye mask, covered myself with a blanket and WENT TO SLEEP!!!
I woke up when the captain announced we were 30 minutes before landing and that we needed to get our seats back to the upright position!! WOW!!! I cannot even begin to describe my feeling...I had 30 minutes I could use to feel terrified, but "decided" i will not ruin the sublime feeling that I slept through the whole flight...
The experience was SO amazing that When I returned from Paris to my home land, i actually bought a seat in business class (for additional 300$), as I couldnt even imagine myself crammed and scared in the back...

Bottom line, yes its more expensive but hey - it was WORTH THE MONEY AND THE EXPERIENCE.

What does it mean though with regard to our fear of flying? Perhaps some part of it we can attribute to the uncomfortable feeling of being cooped up in economy class with no place to move and our freedom and personal space compromised.

Conclusion - I have to be rich if I want to control my fear of flying...

Another reason I became fearful

On my honeymoon, we flew over to the Island of Madeira. (What an AMAZING place! I called it "God's flower garden" - so beautiful).

Trying to land there was one of the most shocking experiences in my life.
At that point, I really was not a fearful flier.
But suddenly we seemed to have hit mega- turbulence, turbulence I have never experienced before in the hundreds of flights I was on.
In fact, it was not only turbulence, we flew all over the place, up and down and to the sides like a leaf in a storm….

After researching what the hell happened…..I learned that trying to land in Madeira is like” trying to put a thread through a needle hole”….Seems Funchal airport is considered to be one of the most dangerous airports in the world to land in due to strong cross winds. I also learned a 747 crashed there a few years back….

I think that was it for me. Actually, I am SURE that was THE traumatic event for me and the only one I remember. It happened ONCE, 16 years ago....

Ta ta,

Karen

Why did I become fearful of flying?

People ask me how I became a fearful flier, when before I hopped around the world happily with no worries what-so-ever....
Why there was a certain person who told me he thought my story didnt sound like the truth, rather something I made up to draw attention...
A pilot that heard my story found it very amusing that I'm all panicky before and sometimes during a flight...
In fact someone wanted to write an article about me once...

So what DID happen?

My explanation is - Control issues.

It is clear to me that the moment I will be given a task or I would have to work again during a flight - I will not even remotely resemble the miserable wreck that I am as a passenger.

Why?

Even though as a flight attendant I had zero control of the aircraft, I did feel I had a type of "control" over the passengers. Their well being was my concern and I was attuned to every wish. It was never about me, it was about the passengers, about rendering good service, about making the flight as comfortable as possible.

Today, as a passenger, it is ALL about me. I sit there, for HOURS on end, squished between other passengers in the same row, no leg space, the chair in front of me is almost in my face and I just sit there, waiting. So when that happens, anxious inclined people like me, tend to start thinking strange and pessimistic thoughts...
The distance from there to thinking what can happen when you are suspended high up in the air is very short, believe me...

No doubt, when I travel with my daughter, I feel that I HAVE to be less stressed so that I don't stress her out. Since her well being is the most important thing to me on the flight, I spend less time on me, thus less visible fearful signs.

Bottom line, give me something important to do on the flight, not just read or watch a movie and I believe I will feel much much better.

Have a good one!

Karen