Every time an event like this takes place, I struggle with the decision on whether to write an article or not. As someone that wants to help you with your fear of flying, it’s difficult to decide what to do.
However, I’ve always been of the opinion that honesty is the best policy. At least here you will only get the facts – rather than the media’s version of events.
Turkish Airlines Flight 1951 came down during final approach Runway 18R at Schiphol airport, Amsterdam. The flight originated from Istanbul. There are 9 confirmed fatalities – 3 of which appear to be the flight crew. There were a total of 126 passengers onboard, along with 7 crew (4 Flight Attendants and 3 Pilots).
The cause of the crash is unknown at present. There is no confirmation of any ‘Mayday’ call before the incident, and it has been confirmed that there were no maintenance issues.
It appears that all pilots were unfortunately killed in the incident, and therefore we must wait for the investigation to take place. The aircraft was a Boeing 737-800, one of the ‘next-generation’ 737 models – and a widely used aircraft type.
Tuncer Mutlucan – a surviving passenger – was quoted by Anatolian Agency as telling broadcaster NTV;
While landing in a normal fashion, a situation such as an air pocket occurred and the airplane went out of control and crashed. Everything took place in a matter of 3-5 seconds. We landed on a field
Ok, there is no such thing as an air pocket – so if you see this quote on TV, please ignore it as this passenger is simply making an uneducated guess.
The same passenger did state;
The pilot had announced that the plane would land at the Schiphol Airport in 15 minutes. We crashed about 7-8 minutes after the pilot’s announcement.
I will be keeping a close eye on proceedings, and keep you up to date on the investigation as it progresses.
Why Should I Not Be Scared After an Incident Like This?
It’s fair to say that my aim at Flying Fear is made much harder after incidents as the one in Amsterdam today. But, I’ve never been under the illusion that flying is 100% safe. Nothing is……..
Accidents do happen. I’m sorry to say it, but they do. But, in relative terms they are very rare. It’s very easy to forget the thousands of flights departing and arriving safely every day, and instead focus on one single incident.
Airline travel is such a highly regulated industry with incredible levels of safety and security. It is unfortunate that incidents such as Flight TK1951 cause such huge media attention – despite the fact that hundreds of people have been killed on our roads today, and will be tomorrow.
On a side note, 95% of people survived this accident. Stay with FlyingFear.net for updates – although I will only discuss facts – and will not speculate.
Did you witness the incident? Or have any factual knowledge? Contact Me…..
3 responses to “Amsterdam Plane Crash: Flight TK1951 – Schiphol Airport”
I’m getting quite a few emails asking me;
As a Flight Attendant, what goes through your mind when you see news reports about an incident such as Flight TK1951?
Ok, firstly I’ll usually feel anger at the way in which the media are reporting it……
When I’ve calmed down, I’ll analyse the event as much as possible to see if I can draw my own conclusions on what could have happened.
I feel sadness for all those affected by the incident. But, I do not fear getting up tomorrow morning, and going to work to fly.
Why?
Because I KNOW firsthand that flying is one of the safest things I could be doing. I see the level of safety awareness EVERY DAY, and I’m honoured to be part of a team that strives so hard to ensure a safe flight.
We are all trained for events that we all hope we never experience – but we all understand that there is a minimal risk that it could.
It’s all about evaluating risk. As a fearful flyer, your brain has placed flying in a much higher risk category than it deserves – and events like Flight TK1951 do not help at all.
I also understand that with every incident, flying becomes even safer. I hope that answers your questions, but if not – contact me……
Dear Kevin,
When you consider all the safety systems, backup systems, pilot training simulators, etc., we have now, it is very hard to see how an accident can take place.
And, when you consider that thousands upon thousands of plane fly each hour, it seems only rational to figure that every year or so, something happens which evades all the safety system and cause a crash in spite of them.
I doubt if we will ever have – I started to say – a perfect airliner. Actually, we do have perfect airliners, airliners which fly for twenty or thirty years and then are retired accident-free. And most of our airliners are, in that way, perfect.
In fact, it is only one flight in five-million that is not perfect. So, Kevin, when you start to write an article on fear of flying, consider that NOTHING WHATSOEVER is that safe.
The difficulty with flying is not the physical safety; it is the emotional issue of how to accept that one in five million flights fails to be perfect, and further, that one never knows in advance whether ones own flight will be one of the 4,999,999 perfectly safe flights or the one imperfect one.
But again, nothing else in like is that nearly perfect. We simply need a way to accept life that is not absolutely safe. Yes, we can accept that life is not absolutely safe when we feel we are in control. But when we are not, we have trouble with the emotions, as we start letting the mind get into imagination.
The key to solving the problem is – not to make flying safer – but to calm the mind as to imagination. That is, as you know, something we have been able to do with the SOAR program. We provide a way for people to automatically not over-react to thoughts that the plane might not be perfect, and even to not over-react to thoughts that the plane one is flying might not be one of the 4,999,999 in 5,000,000. But the odds are VERY good that it is.
Since statistics only inform, and do not control our emotions, the methods we do have to control emotions are important. They allow us to continue our day-to-day living and occasional flying AND maintain our emotional balance.
This comes after flying with the airlines a thousand or so flights a year for thirty-one years. And, knowing hundreds of other pilots who did the same. And knowing hundreds of flight attendants who did the same. And yet, I know no one ever hurt in an air accident.
That, I believe, can be very reassuring to a person who does a flight now and then.
But for anyone who needs more than reassurance, and must have some solid help in controlling the feelings, the video we have at http://www.fearofflying.com explains why the feelings arise and how they CAN be controlled.
Yours truly,
Tom
Thank you Tom for a very useful, and knowledgable response.
As a Flight Attendant I have never been under the illusion that I am 100% safe – as you say, nothing is.
For anyone who has not seen the excellent course Tom offers at SOAR, then I recommend you do. At FlyingFear.net I share as much free advice as I can offer, and try and share as much information on WHY you are so safe by informing you of all the procedures in place in the aviation industry.
BUT, I am NOT a therapist. Therefore offering advice on the emotional side of things is certainly not my expertise.
That is why I recommend the SOAR Course, and you can check it out by viewing the free video – click here to visit now.
P.S. When you are given the choice to enter your email address I recommend you do. Tom’s newsletter offers plenty of free advice on dealing with your fear of flying.