Have you ever been on a scary turbulent flight?

[AbsentmindedWoman]

I'm curious what it was like? I've been on quite bumpy flights before, but the flight attendants always looked fine/ bored, so I wasn't worried and just kept watching whatever film. But I'm lucky as have no fear of flying in general, so perhaps easy for me to dismiss it.

Has anyone been on a really frightening flight where you were worried things might deteriorate? Did you get on a plane again after?

Not myself, but a friend and her partner had a flight with really bad turbulence.

She said they were thinking of how to write notes to loved ones and where to put them so if they burn or anything else. The notes would be safe.

As we got on my husband said ‘every bone in my body says we shouldn’t get on this flight’ but we did.

I had one of those as a flight from Saigon to Bangkok. Only 5 rows of seats at the front in a cargo plane - I didn't say anything to my friend, but when we stepped off she burst into tears with relief.

Not turbulence per se, but one flight in very high winds, with 2 aborted landings (one very close to the ground) followed by diversion to another airport, where we had to land because we didn't have enough fuel for another go.....

the pilot got a round of applause that time!

Flight from Dubai to London. Not turbulence but engine (or wing?) issues. The plane was wobbling almost like the inside of a washing machine might feel like. I was flying on my own. There was wifi on board and I was texting my parents and boyfriend (now husband) to tell them I loved them because I was so worried we were not going to make it. Eventually they spent a few hours flying above the UAE to jettison fuel and turned the plane back around and got us back to the Dubai airport. Flight ended up being delayed by 12+ hours eventually but at least we made it out alive, phew!
Definitely didn’t stop me flying, I have been on several hundred flights and that’s really the only super scary experience.

@forinborin

Just in response to your reply to backinthebox and the ASN figure average of 14 accidents a year.

It's worth bearing in mind ASN have in the past included in their stats any commercial flight involving a involving "civil aircraft of which the basic model has been certified for carrying 14 or more passengers."...so they are including some of the quite small twins operating on regional flights around the world. Whilst all accidents are tragic but it would be wrong to think the ASN numbers mean we're seeing an average of 14 large airliners such as 737s/A320s/777/A350s crashing a year, far from it...

On the subject of passenger restraints, I'm slightly longer in the teeth that backinthebox (and FWIW I've had to name change since previous aviation discussions) but I was in the same line of work and I've only ever heard of hand cuffs/ties or similar being approved for restraints; never straight jackets and I've never ever heard of sedatives being administered to a passenger purely as a means of restraint...that would be a firing offence and probably a criminal act.

As for turbulence..plenty of experience, non frightening enough to be worth telling...

Yes, on a flight back from Lanzarote to the UK a few years ago. Hit terrible turbulence for what felt like a long time. Weirdly, although I don't particularly like flying, I don't remember feeling scared. People were being sick because of it and there was a lot of fear. Flight attendants were very reassuring and calm though.

The whole time my dad was saying a cleaner must have left it, this is so annoying, they’ll not being to get the cleaner on thr phone to check cause they’ll have been working night shift and they’ll be asleep. Over and over. Once we got into the room he went white as a sheet and lay on the floor! Half the plain was trusting of this clearly military man who was cool Calm and collected. Turns out he didn’t want me to die scared.

@Unsuremover this really moved me - your dad sounds amazingly protective. I can just imagine you not really twigging he was afraid himself, and maybe being slightly irritated by him banging on about the fictitious cleaner and then realising after he was trying to keep you calm!

Having reason to genuinely suspect a bomb on the plane must instantly chill everyone who realises it to the bone.

There was no division to the cockpit or anything - we were 'with' the pilot so were sat 'with' him. About fifteen minutes in, he started breathing strangely and holding his chest. He was a big man and was also sweating profusely. And there was no co-pilot or even any other member cabin crew.

We were all literally asking each other if anyone had flying experience (no) and frantically watching him to try and 'learn' what to do before he keeled over. Obviously I'm still here and we landed ok but the pilot couldn't get of the plane fast enough and it was left to someone else to come and help us disembark.

@SlightlyJaded this is the stuff of nightmares, but I'm sniggering in incredulous horror at being in the surreal position of trying to watch and learn the pilot

I was on an aeroplane trying to land in a thunderstorm, almost succeeded, landing gear down, when suddenly the pilot aborted and took the plane back up and to another airport an hour away. It was, frankly, terrifying, and I'm not a great flyer at the best of times. I held it together though (and didn't vom).

Also, an extremely turbulent flight from Orlando to London where the seatbelt sign was on permanently. I was travelling alone with a 6 month old baby, it was a loooooong flight.

Yes - cabin crew for 8 years, experienced many things!

Yes, wonder if there is anyone here who was on the same flight actually?
We were one of the last flights to land back in Europe before all air travel was stopped due to the Iceland ask cloud. We'd been really lucky to switch our flights to come home a day early otherwise we would've been stuck in Egypt potentially for weeks but the flight was horrendous.
Overhead lockers came open, people screaming, crying, praying, the sudden drops. All the lights off. All made worse cos we knew air travel was about to be stopped and we were worried the ash cloud could seriously harm the plane.
Seriously thought we were going to die.
There were reporters filming the landing cos we were one of the last flights but they would've just seen hundreds of pale, shaky people with puffy facing from crying... someone fainted when we got to the airport and a few were sick (assume delayed reactions)

Not turbulence but flying home from Greece and as we was coming in to true runway there was a stream of emergency services such as fire engines all driving along next to the plane and ambulances. The plane felt like it smacked onto the runway and it was the worst landing of my life.

Didn't get told anything, I assume problem with the landing gear but just as well and we didn't know!

I've been on plenty of flights with turbulence and a few rough landings but nothing too scary. The kids love flying through turbulence.

The most terrified I've ever been on a plane was my first and only solo flight as an air cadet. I only had to do a 5-minute loop around the air base but I was swearing to myself (I thought) the whole way round. On landing, it turned out that I'd been loud enough to activate the mic and the whole control room were killing themselves laughing

I was cabin crew for 10 years, so yes!

I now fly regularly for work (or did pre-covid ) and am very pleased to have non-sweary pilots who know what they're doing. It doesn't stop me wistfully thinking of my non-starter career as a fighter jet pilot though.

I was on a flight back from America once where a drunk bloke started laying into his wife over the Atlantic. It was dreadful, kids screaming etc. Some poor air hostess had to sit next to him for the rest of the flight and some fellas swapped seats to sort of surround him and get the kids out of his way. He was arrested by armed police on landing (because he also was wandering up and down the aisle shouting that he was a terrorist) madness.

Two weeks later the women sitting behind my sister on a flight shit herself all over. Good times.

@TidyDancer I’ve been on a couple of bad lanzarote ones.

I remember the pilot saying ‘welcome to a very windy lanzarote’ over the tannoy on landing, we were practically sideways!

I was on a Ryan Air flight from Dublin to Liverpool. We came in too fast, landed and then immediately did an emergency take-off. We struggled to get the power to go up, and were heading towards The Mersey. I can remember people behind me reciting the Hail Mary. The pilot gained control in the end.
I’ve continued to fly, but never again with Ryan Air

Yes - the last hour or so of an excruciating flight to the Maldives on a cramped 757. All cabin crew were seated in jump seats strapped in and didn’t look happy at all. It was very quiet on board.
Didn’t fly for a while (except flight home) but now know how to pick routes and what to avoid. Also flights in general seem to be better at avoiding turbulence now.

[quote Abouttimemum]@TidyDancer I’ve been on a couple of bad lanzarote ones.

I remember the pilot saying ‘welcome to a very windy lanzarote’ over the tannoy on landing, we were practically sideways![/quote]
Yeah it's known for that isn't it? I had a flight home from there cancelled once because of that and visibility issues.

Have had bad turbulence flying into Bangkok and Singapore - both caused by storms I think.

Was more bothered by a landing at Amsterdam - supposed to be on way to Tanzania. We turned round over Germany spent several hours jettisoning fuel over the North Sea. Landed with fire engines speeding alongside. Apparently was issue with landing gear. Before that I didn’t drink on flights, but pretty quickly changed that.

Twice, both times trying to land at Madeira, but ended up in Porto Santo.

Yep. EasyJet from Freidrichstaffen to Stansted.
Bloke with his son laughed at him and kept banging his seat every time we hit a pocket. Wanker.

@AbsentmindedWoman yeah I looked to my dad to see how worried I should be, and how to hold it the fuck together for as long as you can. Weirdly in a pre 9-11 world it was less worrying because we were putting faith in the system.

Yes. Once, taking off in New York, where we attempted takeoff twice and a warning light came on so we crashed back down onto the runway. We had to change planes but if we hadn't and had attempted again I was going to demand to get off. The other time was landing in Storm Doris in 2017. I was with my boss and we were both clutching the armrests while shaking. I cried!