How to stop being afraid of flying?

Understanding fear of flying

What is the name of the fear of flying?

The phobia of flying is called aviophobia, or alternatively aerodromophobia. These two terms are synonymous: they cover both the fear of being on a plane and the phobia felt at the mere mention of air travel.

The term aerophobia is sometimes used incorrectly to refer to fear of flying. That label is wrong: aerophobia actually refers to fear of fresh air or wind.

Where does it come from?

Like some other phobias, it is a composite fear, or umbrella fear. Its origins vary greatly from one person to another, which makes it impossible to establish a single diagnosis that applies to everyone.

The phobia or fear of flying is triggered by the situation of being in flight, but in reality it brings other fears or phobias into play. These are associated disorders that get activated by the situation of being in a cabin.

Some disorders associated with fear of flying

• Claustrophobia
• Aquaphobia (when flying over a body of water)
• Social fears
• Agoraphobia (in particular the fear of being unable to escape)
• Acrophobia (fear of heights)
• Astraphobia (fear of lightning) and brontophobia (fear of thunder)
• Cumulophobia (fear of clouds)
• Emetophobia (fear of vomiting)
• Irrational anxiety
• Difficulty with loss of control
• Fear of death

Sometimes, a mild fear of flying is fuelled by exposure to disaster movies or by high receptivity to news about aviation accidents.

In other cases, a bad experience during a flight can trigger irrational anxiety: turbulence, a delay on the tarmac perceived as abnormal and therefore worrying, a bumpy takeoff, a storm. The passenger then extrapolates, filling the gaps in their knowledge with mistaken beliefs. What is in fact a routine, fully controlled event becomes a source of fear and anxiety.

Finally, in rare cases, fear of flying is linked to physiological dysfunctions that show up during a flight. They can be tied to physiological issues unrelated to aircraft. Taking a fear-of-flying questionnaire or consulting a therapist may be necessary to establish a diagnosis.

More than any other phobia, fear of flying is different for every person. Identifying the origin of your anxiety is fundamental to understanding it and being able to overcome it — so that one day, you no longer fear flying.

How to stop being afraid in a plane

Quick tips to control your in-flight fear

Before getting into therapies and methods that durably cure fear of flying, here are a few easy solutions you can put in place to take the drama out of air travel.

If you experience a low-intensity fear, these tips to no longer fear flying could really help.

If you wanted to sum it up, these tips aim to reclaim the airplane and the airport by turning them into a welcoming place. They let you control how your travel day unfolds: arrive at the airport early so you have time to go through every check-in and watch the ballet of planes taking off; pick your seat in advance so you sit in your favourite spot (an aisle seat, perhaps, for more freedom of movement); let the cabin crew know that you feel anxious about flying — they are trained for it and know how to reassure you in case of turbulence. But the most important tip is probably this one: to keep your mind from ruining the flight, replace mistaken beliefs and negative thoughts with reliable information about aviation safety.

Debunking myths about flying and aviation safety

Debunking mistaken beliefs is fundamental to no longer fearing flying. Anxiety is often fed by negative intuitions or myths. One of the most widespread concerns air pockets. They are supposedly responsible for the shaking you feel during flight. In reality, the opposite is true: air pockets do not exist. Turbulence consists of small jolts that move the plane only by a few centimetres — the equivalent of a pothole in your car, only far less dangerous.

Worried about technical failures? You really shouldn't be. Aviation safety is more advanced than ever. The more you know about aircraft, the fewer reasons you will have to worry. Every part of the plane is double or triple-checked before, during and after the flight.

Aviation safety has learned enormously from past events. In 2018 alone, more than 38 million flights reached their destination safely. Flying is by far the safest mode of transport.

Get informed to stop fearing flying

Strengthening your knowledge of aircraft and air traffic is one of the keys to controlling your fear or your phobia. It stops you from filling in the blanks by imagining the worst whenever something unfamiliar happens during the flight.

This cognitive part is at the core of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), on which the Fofly method is based. The informational part is inseparable from the behavioural side; together, they form a proven and effective method to no longer fear flying.

CBT, the most reliable method to no longer fear flying

Cognitive behavioural therapy is the method of choice that psychologists use to durably cure phobias, and in particular fear of flying. This is exactly what the Fofly method has been built on since 2011.

As its name suggests, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is made up of a cognitive component — to learn about yourself and the object of your fears — and a behavioural component, to acquire automatic responses to apply in real situations.

The cognitive part notably includes strengthening your knowledge of aircraft and aviation safety. It puts you in a position to interpret any unexpected signal correctly. A storm, turbulence, a delay on the tarmac? It is planned for and normal — and now you know how it is handled by the pilot.

The behavioural part defuses the mechanisms that generate fear of flying. You learn to short-circuit negative thoughts by replacing them with alternative thought circuits. It is calibrated to the nature of your fear and to the situations that trigger it. It may include relaxation and cardiac coherence exercises to send your body the signals that everything is fine.

Finally, CBT can be complemented by VRET (virtual reality exposure therapy). This phase uses the technological possibilities of VR headsets for a gentle exposure to the causes of your phobia, supervised by therapists.

An e-learning programme to no longer fear flying

The Fofly E-learning programme applies this CBT-based method in a self-paced online format. It delivers the full pedagogical content of our in-person work in three structured phases, accessible whenever and wherever you need them.

• Phase 1: with an airline pilot specialised in fear of flying. You learn everything you might want to know about aircraft, air traffic and aviation safety, so that no in-flight event remains a mystery.
• Phase 2: with a psychologist specialised in CBT and fear of flying. You go through the behavioural side of the method, learning how to build positive responses to situations that used to trigger fear, notably through relaxation and cardiac coherence exercises.
• Phase 3: self-paced exposure. You apply what you have learned in a controlled setting, going back over each technique as many times as you need before your next flight.

Available 24/7, the Fofly E-learning programme adapts to your schedule and to your rhythm. You can pause, rewind and revisit modules as often as helpful — a flexibility that traditional one-day workshops cannot offer.