By: Katie Borders

Opinion Editor

There’s nothing like that feeling of being stuck thousands of feet up in the air, flying in what is basically a luxurized tin-can, and having merely a threadbare seat belt to keep you from going splat on Mother Earth. 

Let’s face it: we will all die one day. I, for one, am terrified of flying on planes for just this reason. Personally, I believe that dying on a plane would be one of the worst ways to go. It terrifies me to think about all the ways one could die on an airplane. Among the vivid scenarios: exploding, crashing into water and drowning, or losing an engine and crashing flat into the ground. 

To add to my stress of flying, there is nothing remotely comforting about possibly dying surrounded by strangers and sitting in seats that have both seen and experienced it all… from a toddler’s neon pink chewing gum to a disgusting brown substance that, for the sake of this article, we will gaslight ourselves into thinking is chocolate. Not only are airplane seats unspeakably unsanitary, there’s nothing like breathing the same air as 100+ other passengers for several hours. Being surrounded by all of these unsettling conditions, it is impossible for me to relax while flying. 

Flying also involves awkward social interactions, namely, almost touching elbows with a complete stranger for the full course of a flight. Seating is usually so squished together that it’s a struggle to not accidentally brush elbows with your neighbor at some point. And when you do, there’s that awkward laugh, apology, and avoidance of eye contact to go along with it. And let’s not forget the clumsy shuffling and mumbled apology maneuvers every time someone in your row has to use the loo. Even thinking about it, I wince. 

There’s also that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach (both figuratively and literally) when turbulence hits during your flight. While I find it petrifying, I’m baffled that others find it “exciting.” One person I talked to about turbulence claimed that he liked it because of the “feeling of the unknown” and “not knowing when the pilot would catch you.” As you can imagine, I was stunned by this point of view, and it did nothing to relieve my fears of flying.

And lastly there’s the airplane food: how someone can ruin a simple egg and bread sandwich, I will never know. However, every airline I’ve flown with has managed to ruin it somehow. There’s nothing like choking down preserved airplane food that probably hasn’t seen the light of day in an unspeakable amount of time, with the worry in the back of your mind that it could be your last meal…