Fear of Flying. Knowledge

Hi

We just had a message posted on the Forum asking about something called 'shake stick'...an expression that worried the writer. She thought it was some thing awful that could happen to an aircraft.

In fact it's a safety device that's a normal part of any airliner. Far from causing fear this knowledge should have been a positive thing. Unfortunately the words 'shake stick' were incorrect...the correct words are 'stick shaker'.

It's very very common for anxious people to misinterpret facts, that's why on our forum you have the chance to ask a pilot any question you can think of about flying.

Keith

Fear of Flying. Icing.

On my flight back from the Channel Islands this week I noticed that some ice was forming on the front of the wings. As a pilot I know that this is perfectly safe but I wondered how differently this would be seen by someone with a fear of flying. Even though the clouds are made of water vapour as soon as they contact the wing it turns into ice which sticks to the wing and spoils its shape and efficiency. In the cockpit there is an ice detector that warns of the presence of ice, which prompts the pilots into switching on the anti icing devices. Depending upon aircraft type this can be electrically heated wing edges. hot air directed along the front of the wing or inflatable

rubber tubes along the wing that break off the ice mechanically.

So if your fear of flying involves worrying about ice on the wings I hope that from now on you'll relax and be confident that it poses no problems for the aircraft.

Keith and the team.