Another way of measuring the frequency of fearful flying:  how often is it declared a medical emergency? 

 A journal article in Critical Care published January 20, 2009 gives some clues as to how often fear of flying presents as a situation requiring medical intervention.

If you've been travelling of late and have been a frequent traveller over the last 10 years, you'll know the world of commercial aviation has changed.

A post-9/11 world, changes in economy circumstances, and the development of new aircraft types have seen commercial aviation go from a rather exotic and fun means of getting from A to B, to a much more stressful less pleasant way to go. Fortunately, what hasn't changed is commercial aviation's emphasis on safety, and it remains after elevators and escalators the safest form of mass transport.

What has also changed is the demographic of the flying public. With the advent of no-frills airlines resulting in much cheaper flights, and an aging population, the likelihood of onboard medical incidents has also increased.

To assess this, a group of medical researchers sought information from many of Europe's leading airlines as to incidents on record between 2002 and 2007.

Not all the airlines co-operated unfortunately, but of those who did, more than 10,000 incidents were recorded along with the likely diagnoses.

Here's the title of the article from the actual journal, below:

disorders were responsible for 8.9% of all emergencies (926 cases). The third most common medical emergency was cardiac conditions (509 cases, 4.9%), followed by fear of flying (460 cases, 4.3%), and generalized pain (432 cases, 4.1%)."

What's interesting from an airline's perspective (the cost of diversion is mentioned in the article as being anywhere between $25,000 and $750,000) was that the figures didn't include fear of flying incidents before or during boarding, which can be a "peak experience" time for fearful flyers.

This is when they can baulk and end up being no-shows, requiring time-consuming luggage removal. Or for those feeling overwhelmed by closed doors, can cause the occasional return to the gate after taxiing in order to be let out.

(A former patient who regularly flew domestically and internationally would baulk half the time. So in order not to delay the aircraft he only ever flew with onboard luggage, never checked luggage).

What's also interesting is the total number of incidents - over 10,000 - which were turned over for study by the two out of thirty two airlines who returned data to the researchers, for the five year period under investigation. And that fear of flying was so high up on the list, especially since the conditions labelled as such were serious enough to require medical intervention! Meaning there must have been many many more subclinical cases which did not attract medical attention where the flyer struggled to get through their flight without assistance.

These data suggest airlines need to take onboard medical emergencies seriously, equipping their aircraft with appropriate equipment - particularly oxygen if one carefully reads the report and those of other researchers - and they deserve to reinstall their fear of flying courses, many of which were cut back in cost cutting efforts in recent years.

It may turn out this was a false economy, and airlines might wish to re-instate their courses, not just for the public relations value, for the likely return business it will generate, but because it may well save them money in the long run.

Full report in PDF form here:cc7690.pdf