I was terrifying of flying for 30 years but pilot’s sketch changed my life

A WOMAN revealed how a pilot’s drawing cured her fear of flying – 30 years after her pal died in a plane crash.

Julia Buckley, who lives in Italy, was left trembling at the thought of getting onto a plane until a captain’s sketch put her at ease.

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But British Airways Captain Del, singlehandedly managed to quash her fears when he gave her an incredible hand-drawn picture.

Julia was deeply afraid of flying for 30 years after her friend’s mum was killed in a plane crash.

She recalled having nightmares for over a week on the lead up to her dreaded flight to South America.

But luckily, Captain Del left her feeling “serene” as she described her touching experience on Twitter.

Julie said she had spent hours of her day scouring the internet for safety tips while flying before she arrived at the airport.

“(I) was a complete wreck by the time it came to boarding,” she said.

That was when Captain Del drew her an aerodynamics diagram which “single-handedly cured 80 per cent of my fear of flying” and was “potentially life-changing”, she said.

Julia also explained that the pilot drew a cross-section of the plane wing to show where the lift comes from to stay airborne.

He then went so far as to demonstrate how the plane stays up by blowing on the piece of paper to show how it lifts up not down – proving that “planes can’t just fall from the sky”.

“I learned a Dreamliner can glide for three hours with no engines, which is why at no point during our Rio flight were we more than three hours from a runway. Nuts! Also learned that the turbulence I hate off the Brazil coast is because it’s two Jetstreams meeting at the equator!” she said.

“He was incredible. Invited me into the flight deck once we landed to meet the other pilots and show me what they see too. Amazing,” she added.

British Airways were quick to reply to Julia’s post after she left her raving review of the “world-class” crew.

They wrote: “Thanks for your lovely Tweet, Julia. Glad to hear your fear of flying is getting better. If you’d like to send, Del, Kai, and Derek a personal thanks, just pop here: and they’ll get the recognition they deserve for their excellent customer service”.

Many Twitter users were also quick to flood the passengers comment section with praises for the pilot – while others shared their similar stories.

One wrote: “So pleased. I too am terrified after an awful experience (legit emergency landing – bangs etc etc ) but a pilot explained to me once just how things work and it really did wonders. I still make the sign of the cross and pray but that’s maybe a good thing”.

Another said: This is lovely to read – really glad it helped. I’m terrified every time (two v bad experiences), to the point that I’ve been trying to only take international trains and ferries, but this gives me hope”.

This comes after one pilot shared an easy way to conquer your fear of flying – and it involves jelly.

Pilot Tom Bunn explained that by imagining the air being like jelly, your fears of being in the sky can be reduced.

And one flight attendant revealed the three truths which mean you’ll never be scared of flying again.

Patricia Green told website Simple Flying how you can get over your fear of flying and why you should feel safe when up in the air.

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