About 30-35 years ago, I was dealing with a salesman. He told me he had been in a plane that went down in Boston harbor and was one of the survivors. Since that time, he had never flown again. Since he had to travel a lot in his business, it made it kind of tough.

My older brother used to fly all over the country and Europe, and then one day he stopped. I guess it was something like realizing that Man Was Not Meant To Be At 30,000 Feet In An Aluminum Tube. So he quit. He drives everywhere and, if he has to go across the country, he takes the train.

For myself, I was on a People Express flight once when the pilot came sauntering out of the cockpit with his hands in his pocket and whistling. Not a good sign. He opened up a flap in the aisle (they flew 727's in those days) and went 'downstairs". He came up and announced we were going back to Newark. Something about the landing gear. So as we got into final approach, we all assumed the crash position, and I could see the runway lined with fire trucks, foam wagons, and ambulances. It was a little bumpy, but we landed safely. After that, they loaded us all (or most of us) on another plane and we continued on.

Obviously, I'm still flying.

So ... I was wondering:

1. Have you ever been in an actual crash? Not a bumpy landing but the real deal, with twisted metal and flames. Or...

2. Have you ever been in a situation where meeting the ground nose first at high speed was imminent, but pilot heroics or some other factor averted disaster at the last moment?

Has it changed your outlook at all? Do you often think about it?