Ever heard of a Pilot with extreme fear of drops, + training questions

[Gary Ward]

Hello everyone, hope all is well for everybody. This is kinda an long and silly post so sorry in advance but here goes, My name is Jarod and I’m 19. I’ve always been into airplanes and aviation and always loved learning the mechanics of how they work and fly but for the longest time I never thought I’d be a pilot.

I’ve always been TERRIFIED of drops…. Not heights mind you, but drops the feeling of negative G that you get in your stomach, I would rather get hit by a bus than deal with that. And so every time I flew (which was often about 10 times a year) I’d be in awe about the view but also at the same time be nervous to death of turbulence or ( I know it’s next to impossible but, the wing or elevator failing in flight). So despite loving planes and flying this for the most part has kept me from ever thinking I’d be a pilot.

Flash forward to now and I just graduated HS and after doing AFJROTC I wanted to join the AF as a engine mechanic but Before I did my grandfather who has been a pilot for 45 years finally dragged me up on a flight with him and let me use the controls abit…. And needless to say I got absolutely hooked. I did some scrounging for funds and am currently a student pilot in flight school and I’m about 10 hours into my training and I’m loving it, unfortunately I still haven’t quite gotten over my fear of falling and I’m constantly in the back of my head paranoid about falling out of the sky from a structural failure.

Let me just say I absolutely Love flying right now, the view is just amazing and the feeling flying a plane and how it just “floats” I love it. All the complexity behind lift and physics weather and engines.

I just was wondering if anyone here would maybe have any advice or could offer suggestions to help me fully conquer my fear of falling and my worries of aircraft.

Thank you all for taking the time to read this I greatly appreciate it!
Jarod

I suffered the same when I learned to fly. I worried about everything, it was a distraction from learning.

Felt sick also from bumpy days early on. Did not, could not learn much when I was feeling sick.
It also physically drained me after only 45 minutes in the air.
I was a terrible lander at first. We spent many hours in the pattern practicing.
Took me 100 hours and about 16 months to get my PPL in 2016.
At about 200 hours I started instrument training in a school plane and finished that in my own 172.
Now I have 1000 hrs and can land greaser landings pretty much every time. Been doing some real short field landings on grass which is a lot of fun.

Good luck to you, don't give up. It just takes practice and hours.

 

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

Has anyone actually ever heard of a wing full on failing on a Cessna or piper that hasn’t been caused by reckless flying or exceeding structure limits? That’s like what drives me paranoid every bout of turbulence.

Exceptionally rare - particularly the strut braced Cessna's. One due to a missing bolt (strut attach). A couple for reasons not clear. Otherwise flying into IMC and loss of control.
Pipers - there are some issues with spar attachments, but again, exceedingly rare and the FAA has an airworthiness directive to inspect for issues.
They are strong enough to withstand quite a bit of turbulence - enough that your vision would be starting to grey out if the load is sustained.

 

[Timbeck2]

In the book Stick & Ridder Flying by Wolfgang Langewiesche is a chapter written by Leighton Collins titled "The Dangers Of The Air" where the author goes through what most pilots believe are dangers while in reality they miss what are some of the real dangers.

I will warn you that if you read that chapter, you will be terrified to turn. I don't think that chapter and I'm even going to say, most the book isn't written very well. There, I said it.

 

[Daleandee]

I will warn you that if you read that chapter, you will be terrified to turn.

It warns against using the rudder to turn the airplane. The fact remains that some pilots fly believing that is the purpose of the rudder. A few accidents/fatalities have been caused by that.

Coordinated turns involve rudder use. The writer is simply making that point clear. If the chapter terrifies you, perhaps it should.

I believe the book is worth reading. The reader can judge for themselves how well the information is written.

 

[Pugs]

I will warn you that if you read that chapter, you will be terrified to turn. I don't think that chapter and I'm even going to say, most the book isn't written very well. There, I said it.

it's a well written book for the time period it was written but it's not exactly a page turner is it?

On the topic at hand. The bumps and such are just par for the course. Remember, in learning to fly you may well be putting yourself in the highest perceived stress situation you've ever been in and that can amplify all your senses. A lot of this will simply go away as you learn and become comfortable with the various phases of flight.

 

[Timbeck2]

it's a well written book for the time period it was written but it's not exactly a page turner is it?

Heh, you can say that again. All the time I was reading it I was thinking as I turned the next page and then looked ahead a few, "What, thirteen more pages on the same subject?" The chapter in question seemed to say over and over again, "If you turn while climbing, you're going to stall and spin in." I don't remember the author mentioning "keep the ball in the center" very many times. Maybe my eyes were glazed over and I didn't see it.

 

[422Phil]

Congrats Jarod for facing your fears. I started flight school as a last ditch effort to immerse myself and try to get over my extreme fear of flying. It was to the point that my wife didn’t want to sit next to me on flights. The fear got so overwhelming that I would drink heavily before and during the flight or take a sleeping pill. I found a great husband/wife small flight school in Jacksonville FL and warned them that I wasn’t in it to get a PPL, just self improvement. Three yrs and 300 hrs later, I own a 172 and love flying it. Plus I no longer need pills or booze to fly commercially. I was probably somewhere between 25 - 30 hrs when I stopped “obsessing” about the wings falling off or the engine quitting. As much as practicable I still avoid flying in turbulence because it’s just not fun. Enjoy the process! If I can beat it, so can you.

 

[DaveInPA]

I can only speak for my experience and about to cross 500 hours. For me it’s always been about time and experience things get more comfortable. If you are so uncomfortable that you aren’t safe then you have a real problem. Sounds like you are uncomfortable but not to the point where you are freezing or doing anything bad. For me in the beginning it was as you described…then I got my ppl…flew some solo but was still not too comfortable…then instrument and it started to get much better…then more solos and with friends…then commercial…

at some point it just clicks and bumps and drops and shear that used to bother you just doesn’t any more. My advice, own the fear and anxiety and recognize it’s real. Also recognize that over time it will lessen and at some point you will look back and wonder why it was so hard for you

good luck!

 

[chemgeek]

Keep in mind that airplanes are predictable. You are learning to be aware of and control the plane, not the other way around. Often, practice and repeated exposure will desensitize you to irrational fears and worries. At least we hope so. A key milestone is when you gain confidence in your awareness and control.

P.S. NOBODY likes turbulence. It's just a rough ride you can't predict. But you can control your plane's reaction to it. Stalls, on the other hand, are fully controlled and predictable maneuvers. Explore them, and slow flight, too.

 

[jarod]

Exceptionally rare - particularly the strut braced Cessna's. One due to a missing bolt (strut attach). A couple for reasons not clear. Otherwise flying into IMC and loss of control.
Pipers - there are some issues with spar attachments, but again, exceedingly rare and the FAA has an airworthiness directive to inspect for issues.
They are strong enough to withstand quite a bit of turbulence - enough that your vision would be starting to grey out if the load is sustained.

Thank you, I actually did some further research and saw what you were talking about. I can’t really find anything on Cessna wings falling off during regular flight but I did find a few albeit rare cases of piper wings coming off from cracks.
I guess I just have to trust my rental company inspects there planes lol.

anyways thank you all smooch for the advice and input it really does make me feel a lot better, if others are able to move on to fly with this, so can I.

I will update everything as I further my training along and inevitably have more questions for you all. And one day when deciding to rent a piper or a Cessna lol…
Thanks
Jarod

 

[Lndwarrior]

Drops, bumps, landings, turbulence, clouds, they all scared the crap out of me. And I am not exaggerating. Even after a hundred hours I was still afraid of flying. I'm not sure exactly why I stuck with it. I think it was both the challenge and the beauty. Thirty years, and a thousand hours later, the real fear only comes when things, like severe turbulence, happen.

To be clear, I am still a little anxious every time I climb into my plane. I believe this is healthy.

Sometimes I can feel fear trying to creep into my mind. Now, I am able to analyze whatever aspect of the fear is concerning me. Then I make a conscious plan to deal with it. Sometimes the plan is, "The hell with it, I'm not flying today." Other times I may just change my minimums for that day. Sometimes I realize that I am capable of dealing with that particular issue when it comes up, and I go fly. This is what happens most of the time nowadays.

I am still very uncomfortable flying in "no good landing out option" conditions (over water, heavily forested areas, etc). I think this starts from the fact that where I live there has always been reasonable landing out options.

A few months ago, on a bucket list trip, I found myself flying over miles and miles of Louisiana swamp. The thought that even if I survived the landing, the chances of me surviving in those conditions was marginal. I must have matured along the way because the realization came to me that there was absolutely nothing I could do about this at the time. Strangely, that single thought allowed me to stop thinking about it and just enjoy the incredible beauty. I could not have done this even a few years ago.

My takeaway is that experience, and time, can help quell flying fears. The excitement, challenge, and beauty of flying is worth the effort.

 

[Ed Haywood]

A bit of perspective on the wings ripping off ...

A Cessna 172 certified in normal category has a minimum load limit of 3.8G, which means it is engineered to withstand 1.5 times that limit, or 5.7G.

I flew 30 minutes of aerobatics in my Decathlon today. Several of the maneuvers involved vertical down lines, eg pointing the nose straight at the ground with full power for several seconds. I was pulling out as hard as I could. At no point did I exceed 4G, and most of the time I was under 3.75G. I was TRYING to exceed 4G and could not do it.

You are NOT going to rip your wings off.

 

[Randomskylane]

I was talking to an AP recently who said he’d had 20+ engine outs

that seemed shocking to me then he mentioned that early ultralights were less reliable than his chain saw.

so go fly an old ultralight and be cured

 

[Rgbeard]

@jarod

any updates?

 

[Snowmass]

What’s the best way to alleviate fears? Do what you fear! I suggest getting your feet wet with some aerobatic training.

I agree. Power off stalls not so scary but power on are more violent. The first time I did a spin I was terrified as the plane, an Aeronca Chief, seemed to be pointing straight down. But that big rudder stopped the spin instantly. So the idea is to do really scary but not dangerous things several times and then normal
things will seem tame. Also, if in a Cessna with struts, I have heard that short of entering a thunderstorm they have never has structural failure (I have not verified this).

 

[Clip4]

Hello everyone, hope all is well for everybody. This is kinda an long and silly post so sorry in advance but here goes, My name is Jarod and I’m 19. I’ve always been into airplanes and aviation and always loved learning the mechanics of how they work and fly but for the longest time I never thought I’d be a pilot.

I’ve always been TERRIFIED of drops…. Not heights mind you, but drops the feeling of negative G that you get in your stomach, I would rather get hit by a bus than deal with that. And so every time I flew (which was often about 10 times a year) I’d be in awe about the view but also at the same time be nervous to death of turbulence or ( I know it’s next to impossible but, the wing or elevator failing in flight). So despite loving planes and flying this for the most part has kept me from ever thinking I’d be a pilot.

Flash forward to now and I just graduated HS and after doing AFJROTC I wanted to join the AF as a engine mechanic but Before I did my grandfather who has been a pilot for 45 years finally dragged me up on a flight with him and let me use the controls abit…. And needless to say I got absolutely hooked. I did some scrounging for funds and am currently a student pilot in flight school and I’m about 10 hours into my training and I’m loving it, unfortunately I still haven’t quite gotten over my fear of falling and I’m constantly in the back of my head paranoid about falling out of the sky from a structural failure.

Let me just say I absolutely Love flying right now, the view is just amazing and the feeling flying a plane and how it just “floats” I love it. All the complexity behind lift and physics weather and engines.

I just was wondering if anyone here would maybe have any advice or could offer suggestions to help me fully conquer my fear of falling and my worries of aircraft.

Thank you all for taking the time to read this I greatly appreciate it!
Jarod

I have the fear of falling down. Hard on the body.

 

[jarod]

@jarod

any updates?

Hello all, sorry been so busy with work and school kinda forgot to check back for awhile. Indeed I do have some good updates for everyone though.

I am just passing about 20 hours flight time and preparing to do my first solo flight. I can say though that I feel MUCH better about flying now and enjoy it a lot more. I actually enjoy looking down at Scottsdale or the lakes and seeing the amazing views and it doesn’t make me uncomfortable at all anymore. I can’t say I particularly enjoy turbulence now but it doesn’t bother me anywhere near as much now and I may barley just ever so slight actually kind of enjoy the really small bumps. I just need to work more in my landings especially crosswind landings and then I’ll do my first solo.

I wanted to sincerely thank everyone on this thread for telling me their stories and advice and helping me to keep it up and I’m really glad I did. I feel much better about it now and I sincerely love and look forward to each lesson and flight (besides stalls still not a huge fan but better with them).

I will update you all after my first solo but while I have your attention here are some boring photos I took that no one asked to see but I’m sharing anyways lol
Thanks
Jarod

 

[Ryan F.]

I will warn you that if you read that chapter, you will be terrified to turn. I don't think that chapter and I'm even going to say, most the book isn't written very well. There, I said it.

It could be argued that the bulk of the book’s content is out of date. The topics discussed have been informed rather considerably in the intervening 77 years of aviation history. I don’t tend to recommend the book for these reasons. That said, I don’t consider it valueless.

 

[dtuuri]

I can’t say I particularly enjoy turbulence now but it doesn’t bother me anywhere near as much now and I may barley just ever so slight actually kind of enjoy the really small bumps.

It's not too late for a cure. Get a girl (has to be a girl if you're a guy) and find a roller coaster. Ask her to comfort you as you go over the top, again and again, cause it's so scary, you know, and you want to become an airline pilot and need to get over this phobia. You can thank me later.

 

[Daleandee]

It's not too late for a cure. Get a girl (has to be a girl if you're a guy) and find a roller coaster. Ask her to comfort you as you go over the top, again and again, cause it's so scary, you know, and you want to become an airline pilot and need to get over this phobia. You can thank me later.

 

[Ed Haywood]

The first time I did a spin I was terrified as the plane, an Aeronca Chief, seemed to be pointing straight down. But that big rudder stopped the spin instantly. So the idea is to do really scary but not dangerous things several times and then normal
things will seem tame.

Spin training is a great way to remove fear of stalls.