Your words can make a difference

This page is dedicated to everyone from all areas of the Travel Industry.

I request that you read this page from the point of view of “this is an opportunity” not “you’re doing something wrong”. There is a gap in communication between the airline industry and people who are afraid to fly. The entire industry consists of dedicated, compassionate people who just want to help make me more comfortable. When you speak however, I do not relate to what you are saying. There is a gap in communication.

In 1998, I was flying from Toronto to Calgary when I noticed the plane ticket said 747-Jet. Fearful flyers sometimes study and research the size and types of airplanes. I met the pilot on the ramp and said “I’m a nervous flyer and that is a smaller plane than I had thought.” He said “Don’t worry, we can land this plane on a highway.” I spent the next three hours looking out the window wondering which highway we were going to land on. He could have chosen to say many things, none of which would have been wrong. If he had said “That’s the safest plane we have.” I would have had a different experience that day.

This communication gap exists all around us. I was sitting in the
Ft. Lauderdale airport waiting for a flight, when I noticed a big screen TV in the waiting area to entertain passengers. I noticed that they were showing a plane that was out of control. It was spinning and flipping and diving. A couple seconds later I realized that it was film of an old fashioned airplane performing aerial tricks during an air show. Is this something that should be shown in a building that houses thousands of customers who are nervous about flying?

So, what is there to see?

There is an opportunity for the industry to understand their way of communication and make different choices. An opportunity based on seeing what we see. I am committed that the industry and fearful flyers become profoundly related. I am committed to bridging the gap.