Chat Wednesday 9 PM - 11 PM Eastern Time











     Free Group Phone Counseling With Capt Tom Wednesday 10 PM - 11 PM Eastern Time



    • dial (712) 432-3900


    • when asked, enter the conference ID 9352101 followed by the # sign





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    Southwest To Outsource

     


    Reversing an earlier decision, Southwest will outsource some heavy maintenance of its fleet of 737s to El Salvador. An article on this move is at this link.

     

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    Head Of The FAA On Needed Changes


     

    This is a name you are going to hear a lot about: Randy Babbitt. He was head of the Airline Pilots Association and now heads the FAA. Imagine that happening in the previous administration. He says change is needed to improve the training of regional pilots and the scheduling of pilots to prevent fatigue. See story at this link.





     

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    Rules To Limit Pilot Fatigue Proposed By Obama Administration

     

    For 19 years, the National Transportation Safety Board - which investigates accidents - has asked the FAA to strengthen regulations protecting pilots from fatigue. The FAA, being a political organization first, and a safety organization second, has not acted. On Monday, Randy Babbitt announced that changes will be made.


     

    See this link to read story.


     

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    New Protection Against Runway Incursions


     

    Honeywell has announced its is ready to begin selling a runway incursion prevention system.

     

    Story at this link.





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    Supporting Passenger Rights


     

    You may want to join the Association for Airline Passenger Rights, an organization supporting passenger rights. Their web site is as www.flyfriendlyskies.com/


     


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    Pilot Experience And Training 

     

    A few years ago, most airline pilots got their training in the military. The military accepted only extremely qualified applicants. Then a significant percentage were "washed out" during training. After flying for years with the military on, in some cases, very challenging planes (like Sullenberger flew), pilots went to work for the airlines.



    There are now fewer pilots leaving the military. Those who are reluctant to take a job has deteriorated. Thus, most pilots who apply to the major airlines are civilian-trained and regional airline flying has replaced military flying as the place where pilots get enough experience to land a job with a major airline.

     

    Unlike military training, civilian flying schools accept all applicants. Few "wash out" because flying schools want the income. The newly minted pilots then join a regional airline, a job no one wants permanently because of poor pay and extremely fatiguing schedules.

     

    Applicants at a major airline need 5,000 hours of flying experience. The commuter airlines have to accept pilots with 500 or less hours. Though ongoing training at any airline - commuter or major - is the same, pilots at the commuter airlines need more training because they have less experience and are not a highly select group.

     


    The good news is that by the time a pilot moves up in seniority enough to fly one of the regional jets, he or she has plenty of experience.

     

    Click here for an article about the life of a regional airline pilot.

     

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    USA Today On FAA's Failure To Provide Regional Airline Safety


     


     


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    "The Person I Care For The Most On This Plane Is Me" 

     

    When there is difficulty regulating emotions, the need to be in control increases. Meeting the captain helps, because if\t gives you direct contact with the person who is in control. Trust is also an issue. In many day-to-day situations, we know that people we depend on have a different agenda; they may not be as devoted to our best interest as we are.

     

    That isn't the case with flying. You and the captain are truly in the same boat. Here is something from an email that illustrates this point.


     


    "I told him I was an anxious flyer, and he said, "You have to understand that the person I care for the most on this plane is ME, and I won't let anything happen to me. You're second". This cracked me up, and put me at ease."



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    Huge Improvement


     


    Hi Tom,

     

    I wanted to let you know that I flew yesterday and had my best flight in years.  It definitely wasn't fear-free, as I didn't quite have enough time to practice the strengthening exercise, and I didn't do it quite right, as I discovered when I spoke to you--I needed to do much more detail in Phase 2.  But it was a HUGE improvement--my anxiety level was about a 2 on a scale of 1 to 10, at the worst, compared to a full-blown panic attack the week before.  We hit extended turbulence, and I slept through it. (!!)  All in all, a big success!!



    I'm flying again tomorrow (to Iceland, this time) and will practice some more tonight.  But I'm going into it with so much more confidence than I had a week ago--it's amazing.



    I was fairly skeptical going into this because I have a diagnosed anxiety/panic disorder that I get treatment for, and I've had extended mindfulness-based stress reduction training, but my usual coping tricks weren't working at all on planes.  So you definitely exceeded my expectations!!   Don't know if you know much about mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), but it is quite similar in some ways to some of the things you are talking about in your program--it's just that I got into such a panic on airplanes that I wasn't able to use the techniques to stabilize.  But I found that yesterday, I could--because your exercise focuses on preventing the panic in the first place.





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    SOAR Will Work For You Too



    SOAR was established in 1982 because no programs existed that could help people with moderate to severe difficulties. Even today, no other program offers help that is effective except for mild difficulties. No matter how difficult flying is for you, we can help.




    • Call me at 877 332-7359 between 10 AM and 6 PM Eastern time or

    • Set up a time online at http://soar.genbook.com

    • No Charge. No Obligation. Just get the information you want.



    Or Enroll Right Now And Get This Over With



    You will feel better as soon as you make the decision.





    • The full length SOAR Video Course on 11 DVDs provides the maximum help possible.

    • More info.



    Accelerated Courses

    Flying tomorrow or the day after? Be ready to fly in 90 minutes with Rapid Relief.


    Flying in three to ten days? Get comprehensive help with SOAR Complete Relief.



    • Accelerated courses give you the most help possible in the time you have available.

    • A twenty-minute private session and unlimited group counseling sessions are included.

    • What you pay is 100% transferable to the SOAR Video Course 11 DVDs.


    Start viewing on your computer screen in two minutes.




    • Get a compact version of the SOAR Course.

    • Load it on your laptop, iPod or other media player. More info.


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    Unsure Which To Choose


    If you are unsure which is best for you, please call me at 877 332-7359 so we can talk it over. You will feel better as soon as you decide to act.


    We are always here to help. As you go through the program, call or email whenever you have a question or a concern.


     


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    Remember The Old Twilight Zone Episode With A Gremlin On Wing?


     

    It's a classic episode played by John Lithgoe. He - but no one else - can see the gremlin. Is he nuts? Or is it "psychic equivalence?" If you want to see it, there is a clip on youtube.


     



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    Discuss Or Schedule An Individual Session -- Call 877 332-7359



    Call between 11 AM and 6 PM Eastern Time (same time zone as New York)



    You'll reach me easily. The toll-free number rings my cell phone.



    • find out how I can help you with flying

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