Article: Knowing a statistic may not be able to completely save you when your plane leaves the runway. But when you recognize that flying in an airplane is really safe, you can allow yourself to feel more comfortable on your flight as well as on your way to the airport. The fact of the matter is that flying is really, really safe. By far, it's the safest mode of transportation. When flying in a developed country, your chances of dying in a plane crash are 1 in 30 million. There are a multitude of other experiences in life that you likely never think twice about. It turns out that they are more dangerous than flying in an airplane. These dangers aren't meant to make you feel anxious about them. Instead, they're meant to show you how unfounded your worries about flying really are! Learn these statistics, write them down, and repeat them to yourself when you start to worry about what will happen on your next flight. Your chances of being killed in an automobile accident are 1 in 5,000. That means that the most dangerous part of your flight is your drive to the airport. Once you've made the drive to the airport, pat yourself on the back. You've just made it through the most dangerous part of your flight. You have a higher chance of dying of food poisoning than in a plane crash, at 1 in 3 million. You also have a better chance of dying of a snake bite, getting hit by lighting, dying of scalding of hot water or falling off your bed. If you're left-handed, it's riskier to use right-handed equipment than it is to die in a plane crash. You are more likely to die falling while walking onto the airplane itself. A large part of being scared is not knowing what will happen next. Why is the plane going so fast? Why do my ears feel funny? Why does the wing look weird? Why are we being asked to keep our seat belts on? When presented with an unusual circumstance, your first instinct is to assume the worst. To minimize this, learn everything you can about flying and how a plane works. The more you know, the less chance there will be for you to worry about. Here are some things you should know: The plane needs to reach a certain speed so that it can take off. That's why you may feel like the plane is going so fast. Once the plane lifts off the ground, you won't notice the aircraft's speed so much because there is no longer friction with the ground. Your ears pop when the plane moves up or down because of a change in air pressure. Certain parts of the wing are supposed to move during the flight. That's perfectly normal. These control surfaces are designed to push air while the craft moves, allowing the craft to be maneuvered. Turbulence occurs when a plane flies through an area of low pressure to high pressure, which will make you feel a "bump" in the ride. Turbulence is just like driving on a rocky road. It can't cause the plane to stall and start falling from the sky. On the rare occasion that turbulence causes injuries, it's usually because passengers weren't wearing seat belts or were hurt by falling overhead luggage. Think of it; you never heard of a pilot being hurt in turbulence. That's because pilots always wear seat belts. You can also learn about the inner-workings of a plane to demystify the process that has you so scared. Studies show that 73% of people who are afraid of flying fear mechanical problems that can occur during a flight. So, the more you know about how a plane works, the more at ease you'll feel throughout the process instead of asking yourself questions like "Why is the plane doing that?" or "Is that normal?" Here are some things you need to know. Four forces are at work to get the plane to fly: gravity, drag, lift, and thrust. These forces are balanced to make your flight feel as natural and easy as walking. As one pilot said, "Planes are the happiest in the air." You can read up on the science behind these forces if you want to take your knowledge to the next level. Jet engines are much simpler than the engines you'll find in a car or even in a lawnmower. In the extremely unlikely event that something goes wrong with one of the plane's engines, the plane will function just fine with its remaining engines. You can also curb any fears that a plane door can open during the flight. The doors are designed to open inward first so that the cabin pressure (typically greater than 11 psi) has to be overcome before the doors can be opened. Once you reach 30,000 feet (9,144.0m), there will be about 20,000 pounds of pressure holding the door shut, so that would be a tall order. Airplanes go through a ton of repair and upkeep procedures. For every hour that a plane flies in the air, it goes through 11 hours of maintenance. This means that, if your flight is three hours long, the plane has gone through 33 hours of maintenance to make sure everything is working smoothly!
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Know how safe airplanes are. Compare the safety of plane travel with other dangers. Expect movements and sensations during the flight. Know what to expect with turbulence. Learn more about how a plane works. Rest easy that the plane door won't open during flight. Know that airplanes are maintained regularly.