Aviophobia!!

Aviophobia - Fear of flying is a fear of being on an aeroplane (airplane), or other flying vehicles, such as a helicopter, while in flight!

I remember the time when I boarded a plane for the first time back in 2007. I was super excited! It was from Pune to Hyderabad as the buses were fully booked out. Airtime was about 45mins and I remember being sad to get off the plane so soon!

Soon after my first airplane travel, flights became a part and parcel of my life to visit home as I moved to Delhi to pursue my MBA. During my student days, I used to book flights at odd hours, for their reasonable pricing and I never used to realize when the flight took off and sometimes used to be up only with the landing thud.

Turbulence is scary of course, especially around monsoons to Hyderabad. However, that never stayed at the back of my head before boarding the flight. The most terrible flight I ever had was from Mumbai to Hyderabad with rains throughout the journey.

From what used to be just a mode of travel is now a phobia for me. It all started in 2014. People may vaguely remember this incident but for me, it impacted the most and changed my routine with flight journeys. It is the MH370 flight incident. Many people would have tracked the coverage of this incident during those times but for me, it stayed on. Not that I had any friends or known ones on it but I somehow empathized with the incident at my own cost.

I traveled several times after this incident but never with a pleasant experience – particularly the short distance flights within India or Europe. On international flights, I usually get used to the idea of flying after 30mins or so as it becomes more stable a journey and of course a glass of wine could do wonders!

Algiers take-off click - Beautiful aerial view of Mediterranean sea 

It is not that I won’t use the flights at all – of course, I love to reach my destination asap and I will always go for it, come what may! But all my dear ones do know that I just don’t find the travel agreeable anymore. I love the landscapes that you can see from that high above and during the take-offs. I also enjoy seeing the flights take off and land from the airports but I have unfortunately lost the charm with flying!!

My family sympathizes with me but there is nothing anyone could do about it. My poor husband gets his hands squeezed whenever I travel with him :-P. This is an interesting site that I read online which puts me at ease that I am not alone in this and some known facts to remind myself when I am at unease.

As a great man once said, ‘All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on’... So it is a matter of time before I get back to my earlier association with airplane journeys and enjoy the most amazing experiences that I embark on starting with the take-offs (which at this point is after the landing)!!