Flying phobia can be treated with flying courses and cognitive-behavioral therapy, but some people just can’t feel safe and calm on an airplane. That’s a big problem when you’re a celebrity and it’s part of your job to travel, and some A-listers have big issues caused by their aviophobia.
Check out the stories of a few celebrities who are afraid to fly, and find out which solution they’ve tried to use to get over their flight phobia.
Jennifer Aniston
Developing a fear of flying after a traumatic experience, Jennifer Aniston was afraid to go on an airplane for many years, but she’s managed to reduce her anxiety.
“What scares me is taking off, because I don’t understand how the plane gets up there. I’ve heard all about the aerodynamics, the speed, the engine. Of course, when your number’s up, it’s up. Maybe I’m just a control freak,” she told China Daily.
Megan Fox
Some celebrities who are afraid to fly found novel solutions to deal with the stress. Megan Fox turns to music to fight her flying phobia and prevent panic attacks. “I know for a fact it’s not in my destiny to die listening to a Britney Spears album, so I always put that on in my headphones when I’m flying because I know it won’t crash if I’ve got Britney on,” she told Perez Hilton.
Sandra Bullock
Filming “Gravity” was a difficult experience for Sandra Bullock, who survived a plane crash in 2000. “I’m petrified of flying. Plummeting out of the sky was not my idea of how I wanted to work with Alfonso Cuaron [on the movie ‘Gravity’]. But at one point I sat down and said, ‘What is it about this movie that is telling me to get off my a** and get over something that has paralyzed me?’” she explained to Vogue.
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Jennifer Connelly
Even though there are plenty of treatments for aviophobia, some celebrities who are afraid to fly just try to ride it out without any help. Jennifer Connely told Contact Music: “I’m a really horrible flyer. I’m not superstitious about anything; I’m pretty much a realist, but flying, I kiss the plane. I’m petrified. It could be classified a phobia.”
Colin Farrell
The actor’s flight phobia made him cause a scene more than once. “I hate it, man. It just seems highly unnatural to me. I’ve taken a few (pills) in my time. I’m trying not to ‘cause I’ve had a few messy affairs on planes. I’ve been lucky they haven’t leaked a few (stories) of when I went bonkers. They nearly had the handcuffs out at one stage on British Airways,” he confessed to Contact Music.
Kirsten Dunst
One of the celebrities who are afraid to fly, Kirsten Dunst found that the noise is ger biggest trigger. “I always get scared on planes. Whenever I fly I pack those Bose headphones that dull the noise of the plane. I always wear them on take-off and landing,” she told Med India.
Whoopi Goldberg
Sometimes flying phobia is triggered by a traumatic event, and Whoopi Goldberg has been scared of flying ever since witnessing a mid-air collision, but she’s worked through her issue. “Some people are meant to fly. I don’t know if I am, but I do it now,” she told Piers Morgan.
Kendra Wilkinson
Reality TV star Kendra Wilkinson is also among the celebrities who are afraid to fly. “I cannot stand it. Every time I fly, I grab on to the person next to me. People pray with me. The flight attendants give me ice packs,” she told CNN.
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Aretha Franklin
The music legend has been grounded for 32 years. “The last time I flew was in ‘82. I had such a bad flight. A two-engine plane. The flight was dipsy-doodling up and down all the way home. I said, ‘Oh my God, when I get to Detroit, that’s it. That is it.’ And I have not flown since,” she told Time magazine.
Sean Bean
Some celebrities who are afraid to fly inherit the phobia from their parents, and the “Game of Thrones” actor is still troubled by it: “I used to drive to all my film locations in Europe but I couldn’t when it came to filming ‘The Lord of the Rings’ in New Zealand. I wouldn’t get into a helicopter with the rest of the cast. They had to wait for me to walk up the mountain and join them before they could start filming.”