Some people get pretty stressed flying. Be it from lack of control of the aircraft, fear of heights, or just being overwhelmed trying to get on the plane. For others, boarding the plane is as easy as getting out of bed.
The former want to be like the latter. But a lot of them think you need a lot of money, or fancy credit card benefits. You don’t. Because, flying, is easy.
Note: This doesn't really cover fear of flying. Knowing how a plane works, can help with that, but is out of scope of this post. This is about the stress of getting on the plane.
This post also doesn't cover international flights, just domestic flights in the US 🇺🇸.
Have A Plan
Not knowing what to do, where to go, and what’s happening, is stressful. Having a rigid plan can help a lot. There are only five real steps to flying.
1. Check yourself, and your bags in
If your airline lets you check in before you get to the airport, do it. On some airlines, how early you check in, will effect when you board the plain. But with all airlines, it’s one less thing to deal with at the airport. Now is also a good time to look at the airport’s map. This will help you get an idea of where things are.
If you have bags to check, that’s the first thing you do when you get inside the airport. Don’t think about security, just check your bag.
Most airlines will have you start the bag check on a kiosk. These are pretty user friendly, but not everyone gets along with them. If that’s you, don’t be afraid to flag an employee down, that’s why they’re there.
After you check your bags (or you don’t have any to check), head to security, and get it over with.
2. Get through the checkpoint
This part gets people stressed. Just breathe, and follow the the instructions. Give them your ID when you get to the front of the line. Put your shoes, phone, wallet, and keys in the bin. The usual stuff. Where you might get lucky, is if you are at a newer airport. Normally, you have to take your laptop, and other large items, out of your bag. Some nicer airports have better X-Ray machines. You’ll know that when you’re told not to take anything out of your bag. Yep, just toss it through.
You might have seen a couple of other lines at security. TSA PreCheck, and CLEAR. Travelers in the PreCheck line, have been pre-cleared by DHS to enter the airport. They don’t have to take off their shoes, or take things out of their bags. CLEAR on the other hand, is for people who have paid money to skip the line. They still have have to go though the check point (be it standard, or PreCheck), they just don’t have to wait in line.
You don’t have to do anything fancy to get a CLEAR membership. It’s also pretty easy to have the fee covered (be it by a credit card, or a student discount).
TSA PreCheck on the other hand, takes more work to get. I have a whole blog post about how I got it. For only $70ish / five years, it might be worth it if you qualify.
An easy way to get a short security line, is just to have your flight be at stupid early o’clock.
3. Go to your gate
Once you get though security, go straight to your gate. If you’re short on time, this will get you where you need to be. If you have plenty of time, this will help you know, physically, where your gate is.
4. Get food
If you have time, don’t skip this step. Getting a bite to eat (something more than a bag of chips) can help you de-stress. Sop thinking about security, you’re on the other side of it. Just keep an eye on the time, and enjoy whatever food you go for. I like to get a pretzel.
5. Board the plane
This is the easy part. Be at your gate a little before the boarding time, and follow the instructions.
The main thing that causes issues here, is peoples carry on’s (the suitcase that goes in the overhead bin). If the gate agent says that you carry on is too big, have them check it. If they say that the overhead bins are full, don’t be a dick, have them check it.
Those five steps is how I fly. And let me tell you, step four is super important. Almost as important as getting on the flight you payed for.
But those five steps won’t fully dispel on their own. Yeah they’ll help a lot, but I have a few tips to take it a bit further.
If You Have Time, Take It
If you have two hours till your flight, and you’re already on the other side of security, then relax. Go to your gate, get some food, and relax. Getting to the airport early isn’t just for the security line, it’s so you aren’t rushing.
Taking your time will also let you see more of the airport. A lot of the large airports have a lot off cool things to look at. Be it cool art, cool planes, and cool architecture. My favorite airport find, is this statue of Jack Swigert, pilot of Apollo XIII.
Don’t run unless you have to.
Your Phone Is Your Friend
Your phone can do a lot for you. Most people already get their boarding pass on their phone, and that has a lot of information. Unlike a paper boarding pass that a number of people still go with, the one on your phone, does so much more.
When your gate number changes, your mobile boarding pass will reflect that. Same with if you get a delay. No need to check the flight boards. But your airline’s app isn’t the only tool for your phone, use a flight tracker.
A flight tracker, will show you where your plane is, before it gets to your airport. Potentially informing you of a delay, before the airline does. Flighty is my go to, and I swear by it.
Your Phone Is Not Your Friend
Your phone is your friend, except when keeping track of the time. Yes your phone will have the boarding time, and can give you a count down until then. But let’s be real, you’ll forget to check it.
Time will slip a way from you. Be a it a few minutes, or worse.
Get a watch. Be it a cheap Casio (looking at you Kev), a nice mechanical, or a smart watch. Get a watch.
A watch isn’t sitting in your pocket, forgetting to be checked. Its right there on your wrist. Always showing the time, just a glance away.
There Is Almost Nothing You Can Do
You are boarder line powerless when flying, accept that. When your plane is late, it is late. Nothing you do will make it show up faster.
Boarder line powerless, does not mean completely powerless. If your plane is extra late, it never hurts to ask a customer service agent if they can do anything. Just be polite and calm with them. Sometimes they can get you on a sooner flight, sometimes they can’t. If this kind of this worries you, check out this article from The Points Guy, or head over to FlightRights.gov.
If your gate jumped to the other side of the airport, get moving.
Fly Easy
Once you’re on the plane, there’s nothing to do but sit back, and enjoy the flight. Break out those noise canceling headphones, and put on some entertainment. My favorite is plane crash documentaries.
Happy flying!