With the help of Reddit, an anxious traveler found a way to mitigate the stress of flying.
In a post on the platform’s r/flightradar24 forum, a nervous flyer shared her flight information in the hopes that other users would send updates for her to view after the plane landed and so she felt that someone was keeping an eye on her. “I can think about how much fun it’ll be to read this, rather than worrying if I’ll make it,” she wrote.
In response, a community of Reddit users rallied around her and shared fun, informative and detailed updates for her to return to.
The traveler’s flight began in Liverpool and was destined for Budapest, as she was on her way to see her long distance boyfriend, she wrote in the post.
One user from the United States posted six updates in total — detailing everything from the cities the flight was passing over in real time to the exact altitude and wind conditions. The updates contained little fun facts, too — as the flyer passed over Nijmegen, Netherlands, the user added that they have a friend living there.
Others in the comments focused on offering reassurance. One user noted that flights are statistically safer than the car ride to the airport.
“Hey friend, I’ve got you,” one comment began. “You’re climbing east passing Manchester just now, heading towards Sheffield. I’ll keep checking in on you this evening.”
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The flyer returned to the post after her plane safely landed and expressed deep gratitude for those looking out for her.
A few users had also asked questions about why others tracking her flight helped with her anxiety.
“Flying makes me anxious because I feel disconnected from Earth — very much a ‘we took off but we might not land’ feeling,” she explained. “Having people make comments on my flight helps in two ways, 1. I know I have people ‘looking out’ for me, [and] 2. Reading the comments after the flight helps me overcome my fear in general because I can see that everything was perfectly fine despite my worrying!! Thank you again!!!”
The r/flightradar24 forum is a community of users who track flights or ask for flights to be tracked, for a range of reasons, but primarily to demystify flying and the anxiety that often comes with it.
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