It’s around 21.30 last Monday, and I’m flying to Copenhagen. Next to me is an empty seat (that’s the best isn’t it?), and on the aisle seat sits a women. During taxiing to the runway she gets a bit nervous and during takeoff she holds on tight to the armrests of her seat. Her face looks scared. We take off, and after about 5 minutes she starts to relax again. Luck wasn’t on her side though… about 15 minutes into our flight, turbulence hits. She now holds on tight to the seat in front of her. Long story short, and as you might have guessed by now, she was suffering from an intense fear of flying. After we landed, I started to think: aren’t there any apps that help passengers suffering from a fear of flying?
After a quick search online, I stumbled upon an app called SkyGuru. SkyGuru needs your flight details and it needs access to your phone’s microphone before you put your phone on airplane mode. Then the magic happens: based on the phone’s gyroscope and the microphone, the app helps the user with step-by-step remarks by a pilot or psychologist throughout the different stages of flight (Forbes.com, 2018). Apparently, SkyGuru also predicts turbulence, and if it hits it explains that there’s no need to worry (SkyGuru.com, 2018). The app has been released earlier this year, so there’s still a lot of room for improvement, but the future of passengers suffering from fear of flying looks good!
Do you have any other examples of apps that help with fear of flying? Even better, do you suffer from fear of flying? Then try out the app and please let us know here how it works.
References:
Forbes.com. (2018). [online] Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewbender/2016/12/13/10-great-gifts-for-travelers-2016-edition/#2a5cb96856ee [Accessed 22 Sep. 2018].
SkyGuru.com. (2018). [online] Available at: http://myskyguru.com/ [Accessed 22 Sep. 2018].
