If you’re afraid of flying, help is an app away. Virgin Atlantic Airways has tailored its Flying Without Fear course for the iPhone and iPod Touch devices.
The app is based on Virgin Atlantic’s course designed to help people to overcome their fear of flying. It gives its success rate as 98 percent.
Fears can range from anxiety at takeoff to a complete inability to board an aircraft, the airline said.
Features include an video introduction by Virgin Atlantic’s Sir Richard Branson, explains flight from start to finish, answers common questions and gives relaxation and fear therapy. It also has a “fear attack button” that gives breathing exercises and quick tips.
The app was developed in partnership between the airline and Mental Workout, a company that designs, develops, and markets mobile applications to help people resolve issues and increase mental performance.
2 Comments
Would it were true, but this “app” is the same old stuff used at Pan Am in its course started in 1975. It didn’t work then – except for the mildest of cases – and it doesn’t work now.
One reason is the basis for the course, breathing exercises – though useful on the ground, are useless for fear of flying in the air. The people who put this app together didn’t even bother to check the research which is at: http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/42/13/25
There are programs that offer effective advanced help for fearful flyers. Unfortunately, this is not one.
We need an app to make us believe TSA is a worthwhile group and help us get through that process without a jump in blood pressure. That is the worst part of flying. Well, that and crashing. But then, that’s not really flying, is it.