Why are flights so relaxing?

It's All About Pressure The reason it's so easy to fall asleep when flying is because the air pressure inside of an airplane's cabin — when the airplane has reached cruising altitude — is lower than that of which our bodies are used to experiencing. Airplanes do, in fact, have pressurized cabins.



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Therefore, cabins are still pressurized, more so than the air outside of airplanes, but they are less pressurized than the air on the ground. Experts believe that exposure to this low-pressure cabin air makes passengers feel sleepy.

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In the United States, there are 0.07 fatalities per billion passenger miles, which translates like this: If you fly 500 miles every day for a year, you have a fatality risk of one in 85,000. In short, flying is, by far, the safest mode of transit.

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Just like a bag of peanuts mid-flight, air pressure changes will cause you to inflate. A build-up of gas can lead to bloating, constipation and stomach pains. Lack of movement leads to fluid build-up around the body, increasing the risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

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If you don't shower and bacteria and fungi do catch a ride back to your hotel with you, Tetro says you may end up depositing germs that aren't your own into your new space—particularly your bed.

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While many love the experience of travelling by flight, it can be a nightmare for others who often complain of experiencing jet lag, nausea, memory loss, or brain fog post their journey. Some studies show that even relatively mild levels of hypoxia (deficiency in oxygen) can alter our ability to think clearly.

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“If you're landing when people are awake in the middle of the day, that's what you want to do, too. Sleep as much as you can on the plane,” she says. “If you're going to be landing at night, do your best to stay awake on the plane and sleep at your destination.”

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Simply add the strength of the headwind (30 mph) to your best glide speed (78 mph) and you've got the most efficient speed to fly—here, 108 mph. To determine an airplane's Carson speed, multiply its best glide speed by 1.32. This will get the best result in terms of true airspeed and fuel consumption.

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Aircraft with fixed wings cannot stand still in the air, unless we are talking about VTOL (Vertical Take Off and Landing) aircraft. Lift is created by air flowing around the wing. Too little forward speed, and the wing will stall (loose lift).

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Pilots are trained to handle all sorts of nerve-racking situations, but that doesn't mean that they don't get scared—especially in these real instances, told by the pilots who experienced them, of serious in-flight fear.

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You are scared of all those “what ifs” which we encounter when we are nervous. There is more risk in a take-off than landing. The aircraft is heavy with fuel & has no speed or altitude, whereas, in landing the aircraft is light, has tons of speed & is already flying.

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Will flight attendants wake you up for lunch and dinner if you fall asleep in the middle of the day on a long flight? Yes. Unless you ask them beforehand to let you sleep.

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Get into the habit of sleeping eight hours per night. When needed, and if possible, nap during the day, but limit the nap to less than 30 minutes.

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“If you're landing when people are awake in the middle of the day, that's what you want to do, too. Sleep as much as you can on the plane,” she says. “If you're going to be landing at night, do your best to stay awake on the plane and sleep at your destination.”

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According to the AirAdvisor Airline Safety Score, Alaska Airlines, Allegiant Air, American Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines, and United Airlines are all the safest. Each had a perfect accident record in 2022 and had no reported incidents based on data from IATA.

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In a nutshell, the size of an airplane is not in any way linked to safety, explains Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at StretegivAero Research.

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According to FlightAware, a flight-tracking software company, the short answer is: a lot. Since planes are constantly landing and taking off, the exact number fluctuates but in 2017, FlightAware calculated there were, on average, 9,729 commercial aeroplanes in the sky at any time.

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Common ways pilots avoid jetlag is staying hydrated, good rest, avoiding caffeine and alcohol, exercising, or sleeping on the airplane. For long-haul flights airlines use multiple pilots for the flight to allow each pilot to get some rest. The more time zones that are crossed, the worse the jet lag.

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Our top tips for sleeping on a plane
  1. Bring your own pillow and/or blanket.
  2. Wear comfortable clothes.
  3. Use a sleep mask.
  4. Follow your usual bedtime routine as close as possible when you're on the plane.
  5. Invest in a pair of noise-canceling headphones or earplugs.


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Most people find that jet lag is worse when traveling east than it is when traveling west. View Source . Jet lag differs based on the direction of travel because it's generally easier to delay your internal clock than advance it. Jet lag does not occur on north-south flights that do not cross multiple time zones.

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The rate of change in oxygen levels can affect physiological response. There is individual variation in physiological response to increasing altitude and in how people feel with reduced oxygen levels. Symptoms of altitude sickness include headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, fatigue and insomnia.

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Shortly after takeoff you may feel a sinking sensation, that happens when the flaps are retracted, allowing the plane to accelerate. You may also hear the engines throttle back, sometimes ATC asks us to level off because traffic is above us.

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