It seems as though the fear of flying has increased in the past few months. This fear comes after several plane disasters that occurred at the beginning of the year. Fearful feelings toward flying can be due to rapid exposure to current aviation-related incidents. Currently, the news and exposure of accidents can reach anyone with a device available to them. This causes an illusion of constant aviation-related incidents. In the past, aviation issues were not documented as rapidly and to this extent, especially not minor issues and near misses, like what occurred earlier this year.
In February of this year, there was a near-miss collision that occurred at Midway airport in Chicago, involving a Southwest jet and a private plane. The occurrence was caught on video and shared through all social media platforms. The constant display of accidents, as well as minor incidents relating to disorganization, or near misses, creates a newfound fearful environment surrounding planes. This wasn’t common in the past, before social media and the ability to obtain perspectives and documentation from different people. For these reasons, and the illusion of exposure, people are beginning to think that plane disasters are increasing. Though statistically, plane accidents have been continuously decreasing.
In fact, so far, this year has marked record-low numbers of monthly plane accidents nationwide. The NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) database of aviation accidents shows a yearly decrease, with the total number of accidents in January of 2023 being 90, in January 2024 being 80, and a total of 78 in January of this year.
There have always been occasional aviation accidents, though it isn’t until recently that these accidents have reached exposure from all media outlets. This display of disasters on social media platforms is one of the main causes of the sudden increase in fear of flying. That is because videos and images of incidents are easily accessible and are circulated rapidly. When an incident occurs that is not completely fatal, it is probable that there are people recording within the flight. For example, earlier this year, a Delta plane heading to Toronto from Minneapolis had a dramatic crash landing at the Pearson International Airport of Toronto.VIA: Travel Weekly Asia
This crash was a result of major wind gusts and an unusual increase in speed right before landing. The plane tilted to its right side while landing, causing the right wing to be ripped off, and for the plane to be flipped upside down. There were 80 passengers aboard the plane, 21 being rushed to the hospital, though all were survivors of this incident. During this affair, there was a man videotaping his departure from the plane, as well as the view of the upside-down plane from the outside(https://www.tiktok.com/@todayshow/video/7472829668299820334?_r=1&_t=ZP-8wc1lqeRy7K). It quickly circulated throughout social media, as a firsthand point of view of the event, before reporters and news outlets could interview any survivors.
The seeming disorganization of airports is also catching people’s attention. For instance, Newark Airport in New Jersey faced severe technical issues on April 28th of this year. Their air traffic controllers faced dark radar screens, losing radiator and radar signals with the planes they were serveiling. This occurred for a total of 90 minutes, a longer period of time could have caused major accidents in the air. This is due to the decades-old technology they are using, and also the staffing shortages they are facing. This event caused weeks of flight delays and cancellations, causing fear and worries over the organization’s reliability and the current state of flights.
I interviewed three BHSECQ Y1’s to see how media outlets impact their feelings toward flying:
Sydaili Dottin says that growing up she was not an avid traveler by plane, with her first flight taking place in 2021. Though since then, she has been flying once or twice a year. Initially, she was a bit nervous about flying because it is anxiety-inducing to have easy access to flight accidents, especially when she opens Instagram to relax, and instead is faced with “planes exploding and colliding with each other”. She agrees that exposure from all media outlets has a role in the increase of fears related to aviation. Sydaili explains that In the past, tragic events like plane crashes were impersonal unless a loved one or you were a part of it. Though lately, Sydaili says, “social media has sparked more personal feelings towards these incidents because we are all watching them occur so frequently”. Without knowing any statistical background information, she believes that the number of aviation incidents has increased a bit and that its exposure has created a lot of tension.
Melanie Gomez says that she usually travels once or twice a year, and usually internationally. She never really gets nervous, though sometimes turbulence freaks her out. The latest accident has caused her fear in relation to flying now though. Melanie explained, “Seeing crashes, especially so close to the ground is concerning. I would expect the technology of planes to be more advanced and capable in this day and age” referring to the technical issues at Newark airport. Social media and other outlets are causing her to believe that flight incidents are increasing.
Nathalie Romero usually travels by plane once a year. She believes that the media is fully to blame for the tremendous increase in fear, and says, “The media tries to create a narrative to further influence the fears of people”. The constant stream of plane incidents on her feed causes her to question the reliability of flying. She says “The amount of plane accidents monthly may not be increasing, though many of these incidents are occurring close to each other in time, causing viewers to believe that there is an issue”.
In the age of advanced technology and accessibility, incidents will always be caught on camera, and usually from multiple perspectives. In the past, immediate and advanced documentation of aviation accidents wasn’t as common and frequent. This means that currently, frequent and direct exposure to these accidents causes misjudgment of the number of accidents that are actually occurring and therefore increases fear.