How does it feel to fly on an airplane for the first time? what if you are afraid of heights?

When you taxi, you barely feel the plane move at all. At this point the cabin crew will tell you all you need to know about what to do in case of emergencies and such. They will do a demonstration or show a video of where the exits are, how to fasten your seatbelt, when portable electronics can and can't be used, etc. All the instructions the flight crew will give you are all on the safety card which is in the pouch on the back of the seat in front of you. The captain will come on and give a little speech about the flight and what to expect - something about how long it will take until you take-off, what to expect weather wise in your destination city, and how long the flight should take.

When the plane prepares for take off, it starts to go really fast down the runway, and then within a few seconds you are up in the air. Things may seem a little wobbly at first, but that's just because of moving through the different altitudes. Your ears might "pop" as you climb through the altitudes.

Your ears pop in air planes because the air high above the surface of Earth is less dense than air near the surface. As you ascend in an airplane and the air pressure decreases, the air trapped in your inner ear will cause your eardrums to push outward. This expansion causes not only the discomfort you feel before your ears "pop," but also a decrease in hearing ability, because the pressure on your ears drums makes the sound harder to transmit. Your body can equalize the pressure between your inner ear and the atmosphere by allowing some air from your inner ear to escape through the Eustachian tubes, two small channels that connect the inner ears to the throat, one on each side. When they open, you feel the pressure release and you hear the change because it鈥檚 happening in your ear. This equalization of pressure is the "pop."

On the way down from an air plane flight, the air pressure increases, while your inner ear is still at the lower pressure it has adjusted to. Now, the extra pressure pushes the eardrums inward. Eventually, the pressure will equalize again, but many people don鈥檛 like to wait, they want to "pop" their ears

For take-offs and landings (the WHOLE way up, and starting from the BEGINNING, or TOP of descent), the best ways to alleviate ear pressure are to:

*Chew gum
*Drink something
*Suck on a hard candy or mints
*Yawn
*Pinch the nostrils shut, take a deep breath in through the mouth, then force the air into the back of the nose as if trying to blow your nose
*Place hot damp towels (usually like the ones distributed to first and business class before take-off and landing to freshen up with - just ask a flight attendant for them) or paper towels that have been soaked in hot water and wrung out at the bottom of two paper or styrofoam cups, then hold the cups over the ears.
*Another trick that used mainly on babies and small children, but can be used on anyone, is to gently but with some pressure, rub your neck repeatedly from the chin to the base of the neck. This will cause a swallowing motion that will relieve pressure build-up in the ears.

Once you are in the air, things will feel smooth. You will hear the humm of the engines, but that's normal, nothing to worry about. I actually find it relaxing. If there is turbulence, you might feel the plane wobble a little bit (usually up and down) but remember, planes are designed to withstand this, so take a deep breath and try not to think about it. It might give you a few butterflies in your stomach though. After a few minutes, you will hear a ding. This is the captain letting the flight attendants know that the plane has reached the cruising altitude. At this point, the rate of ascent will decrease. You will also get an announcement that it's OK to use portable electronic devices at this time.

To entertain yourself:
*Read a book, magazine, the paper, or do a puzzle (such as crosswords or Sodoku if you like those).
*Listen to music using an iPod, MP3 player, or CD player.
*A laptop is good to have as you can play games on it, connect to the internet, and get any work done that you may have. (You have to have a WIFI card in your laptop and the airline will charge you to connect to the internet) or watch DVDs.
*Try talking to the people next to you. Sometime you will meet some really interesting people, and forge friends

When you are approaching landing, your ears again might "pop" as you descend through the altitudes (remember the techniques above to help alleviate the pressure). You will feel the plane slow down and the cabin crew will prepare you for landing. As you get close to your destination, the captain will come back on and tell you how much longer until you land, and what the weather is like. When the plane touches down it kind of feels like a short jolt, and then you hear them turn the engines to idle and the plane slows down pretty fast.

From there, the plane will taxi to either the gate or the designation where a bus will pick you up. You wait for the plane to decompressurize a few moments before they start letting the passengers out. That was your flight.


For more in-depth information, plus security rules and regulations for the US, UK, and EU, you can read about plane travel on my website: http://jamiehassen79.angelfire.com/plane...

If I can be of any more help or assistance, please feel free to contact me.

It's exciting during takeoff then it's just smooth and easy. Landing is fun too. I love flying - I love airports too, watching all the people is so interesting.

It's different than going up in a tall building. Totally different experience. Try it, have fun and enjoy it.

Large airplanes ride very smoothly so, if you don't look out the window, you will not even know you are in the air. You have to wear a seatbelt during takeoff and landing but, during the rest of the flight, you can take off the seatbelt, walk around, go to the restroom, or chat with people. You can sleep on the plane or read magazines or books. You can rent a headset and listen to music channels at your seat. For long flights, movies are shown. Statistics show that it is much more dangerous to ride in a car than to fly in a plane. Given the millions of people who fly everyday, the risk of an accident is very, very low.

honestly i thought i would be so scared but it was like nothing i was almost dissapointed in a way it kinda just feels like being in a car or bus its not bad at all
im afraid of heights by the way

The first few times that I flew on commercial flights, I was very apprehensive, especially on taking off and landing. After a few flights over the years I got used to it and enjoy it.

I do not think it was a fear of heights, since you do not have to look down to the ground. You can always sit in an aisle seat. I like to look out the window now. Most of the time you can only see the tops of billowy clouds. Now when it is clear I like to try to pick out landmarks like major rivers.

If you are nervous about it now, you will probably be afraid the first time. Just accept that it is a normal feeling and that it does pass.

When I moved to NYC from Japan, my first flight on international connecting flight I was VERY AFRAID.
First one was ride to Seoul, then connecting flight to JFK.
Once I got used to it and when it landed at JFK, it was interesting because it was dark and amazing!!

Flying on an airplane is definetly a unique experience. Taking off and touching down is deffinetly something worth watching and all the people, its just so cool. on the subject of heights, being on a plane is really different than being on a tall building but if your really that afraid of heights just pull down the shade on the window and it barely feels like you left the ground.

I'm afraid of heights and I had my first plane ride last year. It made me a little nervous at first but after a while it was okay. I was a little dizzy though. If you close your eyes I feels like you're just riding in a car.