So upset and nervous about Friday. I cant believe the weather!

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JerseyShoregirl.fearofflyinghel...	So upset and nervous about Friday. I cant believe the weather!	Lead	[-]
Posts: 20 (12/17/08 09:14:27) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Tags : None Well, my flight is Friday around 11 am out of St. Louis on Southwest.. looks like the weather in St. Louis will be OK...around 50 degrees and no precipitation. Great!! Philadelphia on the other hand..is calling for bad weather. I am so upset about this. I think they will be getting a wintry mix.. like ice and rain and snow...do planes land safely in this..coming in on approach what is it like??? I am losing sleep. I have been waiting to go home and just be with my family safe and sound.. and now if I fly into bad weather on Friday, all I can picture is flying and the plane rocking around and dangerous conditions landing. I HATE THIS. More than likely it will be a delay...but what does that delay mean?? They need time for all the planes to land?? It confuses me. What if the weather doesnt let up? I lose out. I cannot even believe this..I just want to cry.. and I have already. I am beyond terrified... Somebody please help.(pilot??) flying about the clouds in snowy weather...do they do that? Like..what if its snowy, icy over Indiana and Ohio.. does that affect us above the clouds??? Do they land the plane in freezing rain and snow??? Is there more turbulence??? So many questions right now. I really am so nervous about all of this..I want to change my flight..but the prices go up drastically on Saturday. What do I do??? What if its a horrible landing??
Capt Tom Bunn MSW LCSW		#1	[-]
Posts: 2453 (12/17/08 09:26:26) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	There is a vast difference between the images you have in mind and the reality of flight. The images are not based on evidence, but are based on fear. You don't know enough about how flying works to understand what is a risk (which we of course know about and control) and what is not a risk (yet drives you into anxiety though it has no relevance). The choice you have is to keep driving yourself into great anxiety and then looking for reassurance; that is not good for your health as you are wrecking your immune system with all these stress hormones. Or you can enroll in one of the programs and get a handle on things. The program I recommend you enroll in is "Complete Relief" at www.fearofflying.com/relief/
Capn Steve	Friday weather	#2	[-]
Posts: 538 (12/17/08 18:06:56) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hi, again, JerseyShoregirl -- Please -- take a few deep breaths, and relax a bit. You have seemed to worked yourself into an unwarranted tizzy. Capt. Tom is right -- there is help available. And he can certainly provide it. Even short-term (which you're now into, since you're planning to fly on Friday -- day after tomorrow). It appears that you are scheduled to arrive into PHL at 2:25 PM Friday. (I checked SWA's website to get the schedule.) Of course, weather forecasting more than two days ahead of time can be spotty. But at this point, it appears that PHL is forecast to be getting liquid precipitation (i.e. -- rain, and only rain) upon your arrival. This helps a lot. But even if it were snow or freezing rain, the only potential landing problem would pertain to the runway surface. As far as the airplane is concerned, aerodynamically, it's not an issue. In-flight engine and airfoil anti-icing equipment will already be in use. (Unlike for departures, where de-icing, and sometimes, anti-icing, fluid, must be applied to the wing and control surfaces prior to takeoff.) And -- airport authorities are generally quite diligent about keeping runways in acceptable condition for landing. They plow them and treat them chemically. Flying ABOVE the weather, as you mentioned. That's one of the true pleasures of flying. You are up high, cruising serenely over everything, while all those poor folks are down there on the Interstate dealing with ice and snow and associated crud. Please try -- for a moment -- to think about this whole thing as regards your flight crew. Do you REALLY think that any of them would subject themselves, let alone their passengers, to a life-threatening situation? I can tell you -- as a very-recently-retired Captain -- NO!! And -- I realize that this is not merely a matter of "thinking rationally." If that were all it took, cure of Fear of Flying would be a piece of cake. Because -- the vast majority of Fearful Fliers, as far as I have seen, are very intelligent people, who would normally respond positively to "rational." But -- there are far deeper emotional issues involved here. That's where Capt. Tom and Lisa are well-placed to help you. I would urge you to avail yourself of their services, both before and after your upcoming flight. The cost is well worth it, as many others have attested to. Best to you. And please -- enjoy your trip home to see your family. To me, that was one of the best parts of airline flying -- taking people to see their loved ones. Cap'n Steve
OneAnt		#3	[-]
Posts: 722 (12/18/08 02:58:01) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Capt Steve- I don't know if you read the responses to your trip report that I re-posted on flyertalk.com (if you haven't, I encourage you to do so), but a few of them hit the nail on the head. YOU, and folks like you (which, I assume, are the vast majority of the people working for AA), are the main reason we all flock to AA to fly. We know that the flight crew has our (the passengers) best interest in mine at all times. I flew DFW-AUS, AUS-DFW Wednesday evening. The pilot was a bit of a jerk (I asked him where the Admirals Club was in Austin, and he gave me the "You should ask the AAgent" line with some attitude), but the crew, even the pilot, aside from that comment, were awesome! I had an instant turnaround in AUS with the same crew, and the head FA asked me why I was back (I was in 3F on the way down--it was a full flight and I wanted the space--and 21D on the way back). I explained that I was trying to get the 1700 miles I needed to requalify for the year. She laughed. Especially when I told her that I do the same thing again Thursday evening--same flights. Jersey.Shoregirl Everything will be fine! The one thing that every fearful flier says after the flight is: "I'm back, safe and sound," even if they were nervous beyond belief. Capt Steve or Capt Tom may not fly for Southwest, but people JUST like them do. Get on the plane. Get cracking on the SOAR course, and you'll feel a hell of a lot better.
JerseyShoregirl.fearofflyinghel...		#4	[-]
Posts: 21 (12/18/08 05:47:57) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	OMG thank you... I needed some encouragement and some answers. I just keep checking Phillys weather... and yes, I am on SWA Flight 3600 on Friday, Steve. So..the turbulence wont be so bad with just rain and sleet??
Portastorm		#5	[-]
Posts: 54 (12/18/08 08:21:35) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Jersey.shoregirl -- I just finished two weeks of constant flights on SWA in snow, sleet, freezing rain, and fog. Did we have turbulence? Yes, one day when we took off from Austin while an upper-level low pressure system was right overhead. Was it "bad" turbulence? Nope! The pilot kept everyone in their seat and it was no worse than driving down a bumpy road for about 5 minutes. Remember ... scary does not equal unsafe! The other flights were great and once you get above those low clouds that cause the precip, it's sunshine and smooth sailing.
Capt Tom Bunn MSW LCSW		#6	[-]
Posts: 2455 (12/18/08 10:56:30) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Jersey, turbulence is a fact of life. It is NOT a safety issue. So, somewhere between the fact that it is absolutely safe and your fear of it, something is short-circuited. What do you think turbulence means? Or, do you try to get on the plane and take your mind away from the plane, pretending you are elsewhere? If so, turbulence gets in the way of this attempt to mentally escape awareness of where you are. Or, if you just can't believe that that feeling does not mean danger, why do you believe your non-pilot mind when people who know about it know - and tell you - it is OK? There are not questions just for you; I know a lot of people can't seem to settle their feelings in turbulence, and I suspect it is because they are doing their best to block their awareness of being on a plane, and turbulence won't let them - nor will takeoff. Sure, if nothing at all were happening on the plane, no turbulence, no changes of sound, no movement at all, you could take you mind a thousand miles away and use that to get away from your fear. But, since turbulence is a fact of flying life, that strategy is not going to work, because even if you flight IS smooth, you will worry constantly during the flight and before the flight about the possibility of turbulence yet to come. The only way to effectively deal with this is to strengthen yourself emotionally. We can help.
JerseyShoregirl.fearofflyinghel...		#7	[-]
Posts: 22 (12/18/08 12:39:18) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I am sorry guys...I feel like I am a big pain about this. I know I did fine before on my flights in the summer time..but that was nice weather!! LOL When I get the extra cash (I really dont have any now..kinda struggling financially for the moment) I am going to purchase one of the programs. Well, NOW my flight is changed to Saturday morning... Only because of my parents worrying about coming to pick me up in the snowy mess. Which is fine...My mom changed it for me. My flight is now Saturday morning at 8 45 out of St. Louis on SWA. Flight 3007 I believe. Its supposed to rain all day in St. Louis and Cloudy and cold in Philly. As long as taking off in rain is fine..I will be OK... well, I think! ;-)
Capn Steve		#8	[-]
Posts: 539 (12/18/08 17:43:41) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hi JerseyShore -- Hopefully this flight change is making you feel better about the whole thing (?) As far as flying weather in general goes -- I keep telling FFs, Don't worry about it. That's what you're paying your flight crews to do. And -- they know how to handle it; that's what they've been doing for years. Oneant -- yes, I read the responses on flyertalk.com. Very gratifying. Thanks for posting it. (In fact, several months ago I registered to post on flyertalk, but have never gotten around to doing it.) Amazing how many were asking about the traditional water cannon salute, which I did not have. Not even sure who sets that up. The gals in Flight Administration didn't mention it when I was in there discussing Final Flight details. I'm sure the City of Chicago probably charges airlines for that sort of thing. Woulda been nice, but I don't feel all that deprived . . . Cheers. Steve
Capt Tom Bunn MSW LCSW		#9	[-]
Posts: 2456 (12/18/08 18:05:28) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	No problem, Jersey, because most people I work with feel the same way. I just wanted to see if we could touch on what it is, for you, that turbulence means. What do you think?
JerseyShoregirl.fearofflyinghel...		#10	[-]
Posts: 23 (12/19/08 10:28:58) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Yes..I think once I invest in one of the programs..I will really start to feel better about flying... I just wish I didnt have all this anxiety... Capt. Tom..I can tell you exactly why I get so nervous about turbulence... seeing too many darn movies with airplane crashes in them. The fear , the bouncing and sounds of the plane..etc. The overall feeling you get when the plane bumps around. Coming into approach always makes me nervous...it always sounds like the plane is stopping or the engines are quitting. Then having turbulence really freaks me out. I Just hope and pray that this flight is fine...and that I sit next to someone nice and I get home safe and sound.
Capt Tom Bunn MSW LCSW		#11	[-]
Posts: 2459 (12/19/08 16:45:47) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	OK. Here is the thing. To try to deal with anxiety, you try to block the flight out of your mind. Every time there is a change, for at least a moment, you have something intrude through the block, and that makes you feel the anxiety. The changes in engine speed when landing are due to changes in "drag", the amount of wind resistance the plane presents. When flaps are put out, that increases drag, and the engines have to speed up to compensate. Flaps are put down a bit at a time, so each time more flaps go out, more drag, and thus an engine speed change. Then the gear goes out. More drag. More engine speed. You get the idea that the plane is changing speed, but the engines are changing speed to keep the plane at the same speed.
JerseyShoregirl.fearofflyinghel...		#12	[-]
Posts: 24 (12/19/08 18:42:57) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thank you, Capt. Tom for explaining that. Well, its the night before...feeling nervous..but confident that the flight will be alright! WISH ME LUCK!!
Capt Tom Bunn MSW LCSW		#13	[-]
Posts: 2460 (12/19/08 20:03:19) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The engines change speed between of changes in "configuration" (flaps, gear). Those things cause "drag" (more wind resistance), so the engines have to change to compensate. When the engines change speed, it does NOT mean the speed of the plane is changing. Think of riding a bike. When level, you can pedal for a while and pause for a while, and yet yours speed doesn't change much. I think, as to turbulence and the engine sounds, etc., you are trying very hard to not pay attention to the flight and to block it out of your awareness as a strategy to control the feelings, and when anything changes, or when turbulence intrudes, your strategy fails you.
Capn Steve	Looks like you've arrived	#14	[-]
Posts: 540 (12/20/08 09:18:14) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hi JerseyShore -- According to SWA's website, your flight has arrived in PHL. Looks like the weather was pretty good, for the most part, both STL and PHL. Enroute radar shows virtually nothing. According to AA's flight planning chart, there was light chop forecast for approximately the last half of your flight, between 26,000 feet and 34,000 feet. Hope it wasn't all that bad. And -- hopefully, you're feeling better about the whole thing. Let us know how it went. Cheers. Steve
Capt Tom Bunn MSW LCSW		#15	[-]
Posts: 2462 (12/21/08 10:32:19) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	It does sound like the plane is changing speed, but think "bicycle" -- the speed of the bike is not directly the speed of how you are pedaling. On level ground, you pedal for a while and then you coast. The plane doesn't change speed when the engines do. The flaps are put out, causing more wind resistance, and more engine speed is needed to compensate. But then, when we glide down toward the runway, we don't need as much power because - like on the bike - we are going downhill.
Leslie		#16	[-]
Posts: 1319 (12/26/08 20:17:11) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	OneAnt wrote: "I flew DFW-AUS, AUS-DFW Wednesday evening. The pilot was a bit of a jerk (I asked him where the Admirals Club was in Austin, and he gave me the "You should ask the AAgent" line with some attitude)" OneAnt, I must scold you for this. First, the pilot's response was reasonable, not jerky. How would a pilot know where the airline club was? Pilots don't use the airline clubs. It really is a question for a ground agent, not for a pilot. Second, doesn't AA send you a nifty little wallet-sized Admirals Club location card every year? United sends one for its Red Carpet Clubs (although it's depressing to see how many closed this year ... no more DFW RCC, and that was a nice one).
OneAnt		#17	[-]
Posts: 729 (12/26/08 23:09:48) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hiya Leslie- Normally, I'd agree with everything you said. Let me set the scene for you. I was the first person in line at the gate counter, out of a group of about eight, and the only person there--after waiting 10 minutes in line--was the pilot getting his usual printouts; no gate agent, no nothing. (I was waiting to see if I could switch from 4E to 3E so I could put my feet up on the magazine rack on the return trip). I finally got tired of waiting, and decided to ask the pilot about the Admirals Club instead of worrying about the seat change. I said, and I quote, VERY politely, "I know you're busy and I'm sorry to bother you but could you tell me which direction I need to go to find the Admirals Club?" I think you had to be there to get the snarkiness from the response when he said, "You'll need to ask a gate agent about that." It was the "That's not my job. Who do you think I look like?!" response. I wasn't out of line asking and, as I said later in the post you quoted, I don't hold his response against him. But considering the situation, he could have been a bit more accommodating. Even if he didn't know where it was, a simple change in the wording would have made a difference: "Sorry, I'm really busy with flight prep and have no idea where it is. The gate agent should be up to help you very soon." Anyway, I didn't make a big deal out of it before because it wasn't a big deal. But since you pointed it out, I figured I'd elaborate.
Capn Steve	Admirals Clubs	#18	[-]
Posts: 544 (12/27/08 15:49:57) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hi, Leslie and OneAnt -- In keeping with the spirit of the holidays, please allow me to point out that you're BOTH right. Leslie is certainly right. This is not something that a pilot (or, F/A, for that matter) would necessarily know. In fact, AA didn't want us coming anywhere near the Admiral's Clubs, as far as I could tell. (However, if I understand things correctly, retirees are eligible to become Admiral's Club members. So, I guess I could pursue that now.) OneAnt is also right. Of course he knew that, as he pointed out. But -- given the scenario that he described, he was totally justified in making his query. Seems to me that El Capitan could have been a bit more personable in his response. Cheers. Steve (P.S. I have no idea where the A.C. in AUS is located, despite having flown there numerous times. But I certainly would not have given anyone any "attitude" had they asked me.) (P.P.S. Hope you're both having an enjoyable holiday season.)
JerseyShoregirl.fearofflyinghel...		#19	[-]
Posts: 25 (12/27/08 21:03:56) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hello everyone!! Thank you Thank you and Thank you again for putting up with me after I had myself all worked up. Last weeks flight on Saturday the 20th...was wonderful!!! Not a packed flight...flight took off in time..sat by a college student..he was really nice to talk to and our flight was soooo fast! We had fun flight attendants and over all it was so comforting! We hit a tailwind and went 690 MPH groundspeed to Philly that morning!! I got into Philly within 1 hour and 20 minutes. It was all good and only a tad bit bumpy..but the norm...nothing out of the ordinary. Just happy to be home with my family. WELL..then TODAY the 27th. Did not feel comfortable on this flight at all. It was SWA flight 22. 2 hours late taking off to begin with..completely packed. Sneezy people all over. and my worst fear.. We landed in thunderstorms and torrential downpours!!! :-( It was a very turbulent approach and I wanted to pull my hair out..(my boyfriend sat right next to me) I just prayed so hard we would land safe. I DID NOT Like this flight. Of course up in the sky was fine.....all sunshine.. but once we started our descent into the black clouds... I just wanted to cry. (but I knew I couldn't of course) I was so tense and just prayed to myself and held my hands in my face everytime the plane would dip and would quietly say.. OMG..I dont like this. Please God..get us there safe. BUT...my point is.. I CANNOT let todays flight scare me from flying again. Especially after last weeks flight that was awesome and pleasant.
Portastorm		#20	[-]
Posts: 55 (12/28/08 07:08:02) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Jerseygirl, I checked out your flight history on SWA22 yesterday from Philly to St. Louis as I assume that is where you went. Doesn't look like the flight path deviated much at all so you didn't have any delays once in the air. And yes, St. Louis had heavy rainfall at the time you landed. I'm sure it was disconcerting. The irony though is that you were just as safe in the middle of those clouds and rain as you were about 20,000 fight higher in the sunshine and thin, smoother air. That is the challenging part to remember. Hey, give yourself at least some credit for at least getting on those airplanes despite the fear. Many people don't get nearly as far as you. At least you get on there and persevere. You know what is left to do in terms of facing and overcoming your fear.

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So upset and nervous about Friday. I cant believe the weather!

So upset and nervous about Friday. I cant believe the weather!