Afraid to fly? Yep ... I am
Never in a zillion years — I say again, never! — did I foresee being afraid to fly aboard a commercial airplane for this reason: the potential for violence by passengers against the flight crew.
Another incident erupted aboard an American Airlines jetliner. A flight attendant reportedly suffered broken bones after being punched by a passenger (in first class, no less!). Her transgression? She bumped into him in the aisle.
So he decided to get back at her.
Neither my wife and I fly much these days. The most recent commercial flight I took was in February 2020; I flew from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to Portland to bury my beloved uncle; my aunt asked me to be a pall bearer, so of course I had to accept.
To be honest, the notion of flying commercially had become a nearly nightmarish event ever since 9/11. You know about which I am talking, yes?
Now this!
Here is a stat that’ll make you decide to stay grounded: There have been more in-flight disturbances involving passengers and crew members in 2021 than in the entire history of commercial air travel.
The pandemic is to blame, or so we are being told by airline executives. Passengers are venting their pent-up anger at certain targets. Flight attendants qualify as those targets? Are you kidding me?
We hear about passengers bristling at the notion of being told to wear masks while they sit in a confined space next to a couple hundred other passengers. The idea is to protect everyone on board against spreading a killer virus. Passengers object to those orders. They’re fighting with each other on board aircraft cruising along at 500 mph at altitudes of 30,000 feet — and higher — above sea level.
There was a time in my life when next to nothing frightened me. The older I get, the more skittish I become. The notion these days of boarding a commercial jet for a flight that takes any length of time to complete has become something I would rather not do.
I do not want to become part of a news story. Or worse, to become a statistic.