This pilot shared a hack to stop being so stressed about turbulence (Picture:TikTok/Instagram/Jimmy Nicholson)
Picture this: you’re enjoying your pack of Walkers crisps and coffee as you cruise at 38,000 feet looking forward to stepping off the plane into a wave of heat.
But then the plane hits some turbulence and your coffee and nerves go flying – that’s what happened on the Mallorca flight which made headlines this week.
Turbulence ,while a little terrifying, is not uncommon. In all, about 65,000 flights encounter moderate turbulence every year, and about 5,500 encounter severe turbulence, according to the National Centre for Atmospheric Research.
And for those of us nervous flyers out there, trying to remain calm while the aircraft is thrown about is pretty difficult.
But one pilot revealed a clever hack, involving just a water bottle, to help steady the nerves during rough turbulence after he filmed himself on a flight which was encountering that exact problem.
In a soothing voice Jimmy Nicholson, the off-duty pilot, said: ‘This is some of the worst turbulence I’ve ever felt. It’s a short flight but it’s not comfortable.’
Other passengers can be heard screaming in the background while Jimmy held his wife Holly’s hand and talked viewers on TikTok through the reasons why there was nothing to worry about.
He said: ‘Remind yourself it’s completely normal. The plane isn’t going to fall out of the sky’.
The pilot then held up a half drunk water bottle to prove that, while the plane felt like it was being thrown about, in reality the water in the bottle wasn’t moving that much.
This means the plane is a lot steadier than you think it is and by looking at the water this can help to steady the nerves.
His advice has garnered over 11.4 million views on the social media app and the tip is in a similar vein to the viral jelly hack a vlogger shared to demonstrate the impact of turbulence.
This flying hack will stop you being stressed about turbulence (Picture: TikTok/Jimmy Nicholson)
Essentially you imagine the plane is in jelly and it therefore can’t fall out of the sky due to turbulence because there is pressure coming from all sides.
Jimmy also said that fresh air and looking out the window can really help – although he didn’t have one.
He added: ‘We’re at the back of the plane, so it (the turbulence) is worse here. It’s not comfortable. It’s probably some of the worst I’ve been in.
‘It could be widespread storms, so they just have to pick the path of least resistance and go through it. But, also there’s nothing to worry about.
‘Planes are built to withstand way worse. It’s not fun evidently, but completely fine.’
TikTokers were grateful for the advice commenting ‘this was actually very reassuring to be honest’ and ‘this helps so much! We need more pilots to post about the stuff the rest of us think will be the last minutes of our lives’.
The pilot was well placed to offer advice since he actually flies that particular type of aircraft – an Airbus – and he even suggested where passengers should sit on the plane so the turbulence is less severe.
Jimmy said: ‘If you sit at the front of the aircraft you are going to experience less turbulence. If you’re at the back it’s going to be a little bit more bumpy.
‘If you do feel sick when flying, look for a visual reference, so look outside the window and stare at the horizon.’
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There have been some very bumpy plane rides recently.