To let my DS12 fly with grandparents.

[Cathaka15]

I have 4 dc and my 12 year old is going on holiday with his grandparents and two cousins. He's so excited. But I am terrified. With all that's been happening around the world and planes falling out of the sky. I am so scared to let him go. He's leaving on Tuesday. Ive told my dh how I feel but he says I'm being ridiculous. Am I ?

[QuodPeriitPeriit]

I love FlightRadar24 but just a word of caution - my 13yo recently went on school trip to US and I was tracking his plane when it suddenly disappeared in the middle of the Pacific Ocean (am in Aus). There were lots of other planes still there but his disappeared! Of course the plane was fine, the signal had just been lost but I was panicking until I got the message they'd landed safely. Really didn't work to decrease my anxiety about him the way I'd hoped, to say the least!

[Rumpelstiltskin143]

Great news, hope you can relax a bit now and that your son has a fantastic time.

[FreshHorizons]

Good news!

[Cathaka15]

Just wanted to say. My son has landed safe and sound. So happy but exhausted from all the radar checking. You guys were great. Thanks.

[TheWernethWife]

My son flew to Japan -I loved tracking his plane all the way there. Wasn't glued to the screen all day but could tell him all about it when he came back.

[GiddyOnZackHunt]

That sounds right cath.

[Cathaka15]

I read it was pilots flying from Glasgow to Toronto.

[GiddyOnZackHunt]

The pilots were arrested at a UK airport before a flight in the last few weeks for being over the drink fly alcohol levels. It was in the BBC website.

[Cathaka15]

I was with my mum. She screamed at them and the stewardess. They said if you don't like it We should get off and someone else will take our seats. I am not joking when I say people were standings/ sitting on the aisles. Most flights were like this. the blizzards of cold Russian nights didn't help either.

[FeckinCrutches]

Still can't find the drunk pilot story

[Cathaka15]

Navy -Nothing. I was 13/14 years old.

[specialsubject]

If you are ever stuck in a jam on the m25 near heathrow - there is usually a jam - look at the planes. One landing, one on final approach, one behind that , every 90 secs all day every day.

How many crash? Very, very few.

How many car crashes are there?

[ajandjjmum]

Just one warning about FlightRadar. Watched DD (who is 23!!!) coming towards the Eastern European airport she was landing at - only to see the plane continue for miles - literally 10 minutes flying past her airport.

Having nearly given myself a heart attack (as clearly it was a suicide pilot aiming for the nearby mountains!), the plane turned round and landed from the opposite direction for some reason.

Great website though!

[Cathaka15]

The drunk pilot I mentioned was when I was traveling during my teenage years. I traveled a lot to the former ussr countries and many of their internal flights were horrendous. People stuck on the aisles . Seeing the pilots drinking before they got on the plane. It just didn't phase me back then since I was only responsible for myself. But also recently two pilots were fired for drinking before a flight.

[FeckinCrutches]

Can somebody find me the article about the drunk pilots please? I'd be interested to know which airline that was!

[FreshHorizons]

He will have a great time! Well done for listening.

[Cathaka15]

Woke up this morning and reading all the comments I feel so relieved. I did need to hear that I'm overreacting and just have to chill. I'm going to get the app people have suggested and try to be more excited for him. He deserves it. thanks all.

[kath6144]

Dancetheblues - if you like monitoring planes, you'd love the app my DS (18, narrowly missed selection for air traffic control training recently) has on his iphone. No idea what its called, but it tells him not only where the plane is going, but also where it came from, who operates it, the type of plane and how many passengers are on it! We recently went to Europe on tunnel, he loved telling us where planes above us around Heathrow/Gatwick were going to, plus lots that went above us in Europe!!

Op - I would second using flight radar24, put the flight no in and you will be able to monitor his flight progress each way.

I get why you are nervous, I am similar but learning to chill more as DC get older - you just have to take a deep breath and let them spread their wings. My 2 were abroad separately last summer (age 15 & 17) - DS on a church volunteering trip to S africa, which was especially worrying, and DD on a Guide trip in Europe. Both had a fab time, DS is thinking of going back to S africa one summer, DD just been selected for another guide trip next year!

Hope your DS has a fab time and yes, I second keeping a diary.

[Fairylea]

I understand your worries but you have to remember so many planes take off and land every single day, the chances of anything happening even with the recent stuff is very low.

My dd is 13 and is spending half the summer holidays with her dad in the USA. He lives there and came to get her and take her back and then his parents who are staying there for longer than dd is are already there and will bring them back with her. She's fine about it all, it's a trip she does every year and I just put it to the back of my mind.

It's a ridiculous thing but one of the ways I cope is to imagine she's not 000s of miles away, she's just down the road. With FaceTime and messaging I brainwash myself into thinking it's not far away and it makes me feel better!!

[Motherfuckers]

And what planes fell from the sky Abyssinian?

[AbyssinianBanana]

Wtf, moyherfuckers -stating another poster's experience didn't happen like you were there? Just a couple of days ago some pilots were arrested for being drunk.

[Motherfuckers]

What planes have fallen out of the sky?

And people don't stand in the aisles, like on buses, they were perhaps just stretching their legs/going to the toilet. And the pilot was not drunk... What airline was this?