Hi,

I'll be doing some travel in October which will involve taking a very small plane from my hometown to Calgary, then to Vancouver, Victoria and back again in 3 days. This means that I'll be flying on an 18 seater to Calgary and back from Calgary to my hometown.

I did some digging, and I'm very good friends with a WJA flight attendant. He had some war stories about when he worked as an assistant to a Senator and he frequently flew on 8 seaters. He said one time, he was looking out the window and thought they were going to hit a major rail bridge. He also warned me that with such a small plane, there might be a significant amount of "Pitch, Roll and Yaw".

The plane is marginally larger than those 8 seaters but I'm really nervous. I can't take a chemical relaxant (I am not a drinker, even if booze was available at the airport or on the plane, which it isn't, and I take medication which interacts badly with OTC drugs or many regular prescription drugs) so I'm stuck with basically thinking good thoughts and not worrying.

He did tell me four things which are comforting, three of which are based on empirical evidence.

1. Planes that crash are big news. If an 18 seater was going to blow up or crash, or something, I would have heard about it on the news.
2. The people in charge of the whole operation are concerned enough to avoid lawsuits that they keep flying as safe as possible. If it was dangerous, every accident would eat into their budgets.
3. Flying is safer than driving. I don't even think I can drive in a big city (I get by in Calgary if I know exactly where I'm off to) let alone a cross country trip. So in this case, that statement makes sense.
4. According to my friend, I have a "ring of Jesus fire". That's not empirically verifiable, but I am a religious man.

Is anybody else nervous about smaller planes? I fly all the time (Greyhound bus to Calgary, Calgary flight to Montreal or Ottawa and back a few days later and never think about it. Probably 4-7 times a year.

I'm also flying AC, if that helps. There is a regional carrier called Integra Air, but I chose to fly AC so I wouldn't have to change carriers in Calgary or take a Greyhound.

Also, I'm flying out around noon on Friday and coming back at just past midnight on Sunday (Monday morning). Should I be worried about anything?

C.

Had a pleasure to fly on DHC-6 Twin Otter. It was fun. you will be fine.

I fly small planes, they can land in small places, and go down much slower than the big one...

Lot of Beach E 18 and 19 out there....flying cargo.and passengers...

I can be a white knuckle flyer on a jumbo but feel perfectly safe on a small plane.
You will be fine. Enjoy the ride and the view.

I fly on the 1900Ds not infrequently, usually on the east coast, however have been in and out of Cranbrook a few times.

Few things about it, there are no overhead bins, everything will have to be left on the sky check cart plane side, (small things like purses, camera bags etc can go under your seat).

The 1900Ds don't have Flight deck doors, just a curtain or perhaps a slide out panel, they tend to keep it shut below 10k feet or so, then open it up, leads to a gorgeous view, try sitting in the 2nd row (I find row 1 a bit cold).

1900Ds don't have flight attendants, so bring a bottle of water with you. Not all the 1900s have lavs (before they got painted Air Canada blue I could tell you which ones did and didn't) go before.

I've never noticed worse turbulence on them, perhaps it's just been luck?

Disclaimer I'm a Jazz Flight Attendant

Nothing to worry about. Though you may not want to listen to your friend's "war stories" anymore.

Whatever turbulence you will feel isn't going to cause the plane to crash or fall out of the sky. It's just a minor nuisance at worst and the pilots aren't even fazed by it. Size doesn't inherently make a plane any more or less safe.

Avoid caffeine beforehand, since it can make you jittery; get a good night's sleep which also helps you feel better.

How long are the flights? If possible try one on a shorter leg first to make your own determination of feasibility for you. To those saying just relax: that's not always practical. Others react less well to turbulence in smaller aircraft. But you will be as safe as in larger planes... just perhaps less comfortable.

If you're taking a Greyhound bus often, you ought to be frightened out of your gourd every time you step on board - do you know how many bus crashes there are in North America every year? Hint: Far, far more than small plane crashes.

Flying is by far safer than ground transportation. Plus, if it's a Beechcraft 1900, it's a two-engine aircraft - far safer than single engine planes.

I too am not a fan of turbulence, but always remind yourself that the pilot is experiencing what you're experiencing and they're trying to find smooth air for both you and them.

Sorry about the medication predicament - Dramamine might be helpful.

Probably the biggest issue with the Beechcraft is that it's LOUD. Make sure you have good ear buds or even foam plugs from the drug store - reducing the noise level can often fool your body into believing the plane is bigger and going slower.

I recently flew a Piper Meridian from Nova Scotia to the UK, via Labrador, Greenland, Iceland, and Ireland. As pilots say, 'the aircraft doesn't know it's small, or that it's over a huge stretch of water.'

I have flewn ERJ140/145s couple times, they are a bit bigger around 40-50 seats, but still "small planes". To be honest they felt much better then the bigger planes. It felt more like a sports car, but in a good way.

Like others have said no worries just enjoy. I was flying my uncle's Cessna 150 long before I saw the inside of a commercial jet.

One word -gin.

The only leg on the flight where I'll be on a small plane is when I go from Lethbridge to Calgary and Calgary to Lethbridge.

The rest of the flight will be on medium sized aircraft. I'm going from Calgary to Vancouver to Victoria. I figure Calgary to Vancouver will be a totally normal plane.

C.

In this case, I'd be a bit more concerned about unpleasant motion than any actual danger due to the small plane. Small planes are just as safe as larger ones but they DO tend to jump around more in unsettled weather conditions. I'd recommend checking with your pharmacist or doctor to verify whether or not OTC motion sickness preparations will really interact with your regular medications. I take several maintenance meds and can safely use Dramamine and others. You may be in a similar situation. If not and nothing is available for you, try some candied ginger and/or ginger ale before and during your flight. Ginger is a natural motion sickness preventative that for many people is as effective as the OTC stuff.

Gee, now I'm worried. Do they have barf bags on small planes? I know there are no FAs.

C.