So haven’t posted in a little while as the last two months have blurred into a quasi-one-week overload. But I am due to get on a plane in a few hours and fly to Cape Town to do the Argus and “live the dream of the Cape Town euphoria” for a long weekend.  Got me thinking about the fear of flying.

So I qualified as an aeronautical engineer from TUKS. Fluid and air dynamics and mechanics, drag, lift and thrust make great sense to me. Flexure in a plane’s aluminium wings, control systems, failure modes and the implications of weather – although they “feel” scary – are really safe. Flying for me is a highlight. I know that an accident will only happen as a result of a combination of many sequential faults, not one big BANG. Saying that, I’ll bet my pension on the fact that I die in a plane. But I’ll die laughing – I guess.

But some people and their behaviour on a plane downright freak you out. Hyperventilating, squirming and screeching. I mean really. If you think you’re going to die, why not laugh it off. Put your head in your lap as the safety guide suggests, and just kiss your arse goodbye. But don’t bother me watching my quirky in-flight video clips.

But that is just me – what about all of you? Do you hate flying? Get some sweaty palms? Think of happy Labradors running in open fields as your aircraft loses touch with terra firma?

But I must tell you – there is one fear I have. And that is MEGA SHARK. That would be the only reason I’d have to open my sphincters mid-flight and give up on life. Check this one out!

Click on the image to make it bigger and read about Mega Shark!