A majority of people traveling using airplanes as a mode of transportation are afraid of flying. Every flight for them can turn into a real challenge. However, despite the fear of flying, flying is the safest mode of transportation in the world at the moment. However, some things like turbulences can make a person doubt the safety of air travel.

Today for our readers we have gathered a list of things that a person should not be afraid of during flight and things that are really dangerous.

Turbulence

Every passenger of an airplane has experienced a phenomenon called turbulence. During turbulence, the plane begins to shake violently with the intensity often varying. It is quite normal to feel scared in this situation but still, there is absolutely no reason for a person to get panicked.

Turbulence is a phenomenon which is resulted due to the difference in temperature of the ascending and the descending air. This usually occurs over the large bodies of water and mountains or rarely due to passing by airplane. However, in the end, a person should not be afraid as if the plane would fall apart under the turbulence. Planes are designed to withstand these turbulences.

Flashing light in the window

Some of the passengers also get scared by the flashing lights of the airplanes. However, in reality, there is nothing to be scared off. These flashing lights are mounted near the tips of the wings. Their purpose is to prevent the collision of airplanes especially when they are near the airports.

This light sometimes also reflects from the clouds and makes an illusion of lightning that can scare many passengers. Do not be scared of them as planes are even designed to be perfectly safe from real lightning bolts.

Planes often get struck by lightning but the protection designs make the plane not able to sustain any damage for both its flight cabin and its controls. To protect a plane from bolts of lightning, materials that cover an airplane are attached tightly to each other. In order to prevent the control from getting fried, the copper grids, as well as fuel tanks, are filled with inert gases that prevent the burning. As for the wings they are equipped with anti-static discharges.

Still flying straight into a thunderstorm is not a good idea which is why pilots avoid flying in storm clouds.

Bending wings

One other main fear of passengers is the bending wings but there is nothing to be scared about as wings are designed to be flexible. As we said before, panes are designed to fly through turbulence so the wings won’t be breaking any time soon.

Noises during takeoff and landing

Although some airplanes make some very suspicious sounds, this does not mean that they are the sounds of impending danger. They can be caused due to the opening of flaps before a plane lands.

As for the strange sound which is as if a person has swiped a coin on a guitar string is the sound of Power Transfer Unit. This is a device that is for regulating the entire hydraulic systems of an airplane.

As for the Clanking and the creaking sounds of an airplane after takeoff or before landing are due to landing gears being stored or deployed. The vibration experienced during landing is the result of a device that works to prevent sliding. As a side note, abrupt landing in cases like rains are a good thing as in this way the plane is much easier to control.

Things that are really dangerous

Icing

One of the most dangerous things that can happen to an airplane is “Icing”. This usually happens when during the flight; the atmosphere has cold drops of water as well as on the runway ground. If the plane accumulates icing, it might become heavier than it is scheduled to be which makes it difficult to be controlled.

Still do not be scared of it, as aviation engineers have come up with an ingenious way to prevent this situation as well. Before the plane takes off, it is covered in a special liquid to prevent it accumulating icing. If icing still happens during flight, the crew deploys the “Ice Protection System” as well as immediately leaves the dangerous area.

Storm clouds

Natural phenomenon like the following can be a great source of worry for any passenger as well as the pilot.

Thunderstorms
heavy rains
tornados
squall winds
dust storms
ash clouds from volcanoes
abnormally high or low temperatures

Still, to counter these unexpected natural phenomenons, crew members are trained for an action plan as well as they have weather radar to see the storm clouds. The color of a storm cloud on the screen of weather radar points out the intensity of the storm. If the color is dark then the storm is dangerous. Based on the intensity of color for the storm cloud, the crew makes a decision as if they should continue on their predestined route or choose a new path.

Clear-air turbulence

While the crew can warn the passengers about the normal turbulence for letting them fasten heir seatbelt, there is very little they can tell the passengers about “Clear Air Turbulence”. As it is evident from the name, this turbulence is caused in fairly normal weather. This is why it is even impossible to predict it in weather radar.

Still, most planes are designed to pass through these clear air turbulence without any serious damage. The only danger is for the passengers who at the time are not sitting on their seats. This is the main reason a passenger should keep their seat belts fastened through the entire flight.