Will flight attendant allow me off the plane first to prevent panic attack?

[perditax]

Not to be the thread police, but it's not a referendum on layovers.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Experience. I had my million-mile status on American before I was 30.

That's great about your experience but that's your experience for a reason. It doesn't matter what your status on American Airlines is before the age of 30 .

You have to consider many variables. What luggage do you have with you, what is your physical stamina , what are the other airline guests doing? Are they in your way, how long is your particular flight's deboarding process going (for example on one of my flights in September it took over 15 mins to get one passenger, just one passenger off the plane. It was because she was in a wheelchair and needed off first and she was in the first row), people have different gaits in walking and even in running (I can walk faster than my in-laws but my husband can outwalk and outrun us all).

Let's just agree to disagree and move on here.

 

[melk]

Try reading the book Soar and do the exercises in it. It's about conquering fear of flying but I have found that the techniques work in other panic situations as well.

 

[bumbershoot]

I wasn't saying it was...nowhere in my statement did I say "oh yeah missing your boarding position is the same thing as missing your flight".

I was pointing out that in reality a 40-45 min connection is tight. The other person didn't think a 40-45 min connection was tight.

Honestly I think that anyone talking about 40 minutes vs 15 isn't arguing with each other, but is just saying that the people with the 45 minute connection, if being held for a 15 minute connection, might very well NOT sit down. Might decide that their connection is about the same.

And that's why so many of us are saying that even if it *has* happened you truly cannot guarantee it's going to happen. The FAs on my recent United flight could have tried their hearts out to get the group in front of us to sit down, but it wouldn't have worked. The ONLY thing they stopped the group from doing was having 3 lap kids in ONE row (like I said, it was a big group, and they were passing babies around).

The group was so loud and disruptive that when I ordered a special drink and said "I feel like it's fitting for right now" because it was a Moscow Mule, he gave it to me for free and tossed in another bottle of liquor, because he said it's even better with more liquor. They couldn't even explain to the patriarch of the group that his "carryon" bag was MUCH too big, and they just stashed it somewhere for him.

They would never have let others get off.

Experience. I had my million-mile status on American before I was 30.

I've been through bunches of airports, and I don't know how fast you must go to get anywhere in 12 minutes, but that's not something I can do. At 18, gate change in O'Hare, it took nearly 30 minutes to get where I was going. At 28 running through ATL it took longer than that.

Of course a big issue would be knowledge of airports, wouldn't it? If you have to read signs that'll slow you down.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Honestly I think that anyone talking about 40 minutes vs 15 isn't arguing with each other, but is just saying that the people with the 45 minute connection, if being held for a 15 minute connection, might very well NOT sit down. Might decide that their connection is about the same.

My entire point was 40-45 mins is actually a tight connection and was in response to the poster calling it tight in quotations..now if your end goal every time you need to make a connection is to just make it onto the plane before it takes off then perhaps it is not considered tight but to most fliers they want to be there prior to boarding. How many times do people get coached on buying the EBCI with SWA in order to increase odds of sitting together, how many people discussed pre-board with children or pre-board in general or the boarding process with other airlines? They don't want to just get to the plane after all that has occurred and for SWA that's 30mins ahead and for Delta that's 40mins (they pre-board the kids there instead of SWA boarding between a and b).

I never said that 40-45 mins connection was of a higher priority than less time I was just explaining that 40-45mins is actually tight when you really break it down. I can't control other people but I know every time it's been clear there is a passenger(s) who has a quick turnaround I let them go before me even if my own connection is 45mins or under; it's not hard to see someone constantly looking at their phone or watch looking frantic and in my experience someone, many times the passenger themselves, will make a remark and the fellow passengers right around will say "hey go ahead in front of me"; that doesn't mean they don't necessarily make it off the plane with no other resistence though. Now that is my experience but isn't what I would count on if I were the one with an extrememly short connection. There have been times where that passenger has had the unfortunate business of trying to get from the back of the plane to the front but the FAs never made any sort of announcement.

And that's why so many of us are saying that even if it *has* happened you truly cannot guarantee it's going to happen.

I'm one of those people who said it was doubtful the request to get off the plane early would be granted and that it would be best to just distract yourself til others have left. It happened in one of the flights in all my lifetime that the majority of people complied with the FAs request but I never expect it to happen. That was the first post I put on this thread so I'm in total agreement with you there.


-It's really not worth though trying to go back and forth though regarding tight connection or not because the original intent of the thread was about anxiety but I did want to elaborate on what you posted-

 

[amberpi]

I took 57 domestic flights last year, which is pretty much my normal. I've heard all kinds of requests for accommodations, other than physical disabilities, which aren't a guarantee of anything except assistance getting onboarded, and there's really nothing they can do for you. That said, there's nothing wrong with getting medicine to help you deal with such situations - just consider, you'd treat diabetes, its just a displacement of chemicals in the brain, no big deal. Heck, you might want something in WDW just for that space between the stretching room and the ride in HM. I don't think that I've ever heard Xanax made anyone loopy, but I have no personal experience. Just thinking some assistance might be useful.

Good luck, and I'm often in the first 3 rows because airline loyalty, I sit window seat and don't get up until the first row is firmly moving. Makes for a much more pleasant experience regardless of anxiety level.

 

[keishashadow]

OP if you feel your anxiety will be out of control & you don't want to or can't pay for a seat upgrade/consult medical provider/self medicate via a few drinks (doesn't always work)...

Then, I suggest you call the airline's special services department and state your concerns. Perhaps you may be eligible for a medical pre-board You may find help on the disability board here.

Good luck

 

[SirDuff]

OP if you feel your anxiety will be out of control & you don't want to or can't pay for a seat upgrade/consult medical provider/self medicate via a few drinks (doesn't always work)...

Then, I suggest you call the airline's special services department and state your concerns. Perhaps you may be eligible for a medical pre-board You may find help on the disability board here.

Good luck

Checking the DISabilities board is a great idea. I'm curious though, how would medical pre-board help?

 

[keishashadow]

Checking the DISabilities board is a great idea. I'm curious though, how would medical pre-board help?

In her 2nd paragraph she mentions a trigger of being being stuck behind tall people and not being able to see, with anxiety following.

On SWA she could board and pick a seat near the front with a preboard, if deemed eligible.

I am not a medical provider or counselor, just offering some suggestions that may or may not work for the OP's situation.

Not entirely altruistic here. My last flight on Sunday was close to being diverted for an rowdy passenger. Well, that's what the FAs were telling him and his party to try and settle things down. Turned into a medical issue with call for Doctor on board being summoned when he started to vomit. Just glad to A) not be seated near him & B) get home as it was the last flight of day.

It's Certainly not the same situation but I've witnessed intense panic attacks (not on a plane), would think it could spiral into a major issue all the way around.

Know little about AA, believe assigned seats. perhaps they have some sort of other solution available to work in conjunction with the preboard. Never hurts to ask ahead of time to try and find a reasonable solution instead of getting even more anxious worrying about what will/could happen.

 

[SirDuff]

In her 2nd paragraph she mentions a trigger of being being stuck behind tall people and not being able to see, with anxiety following.

On SWA she could board and pick a seat near the front with a preboard, if deemed eligible.

I am not a medical provider or counselor, just offering some suggestions that may or may not work for the OP's situation.

Not entirely altruistic here. My last flight on Sunday was close to being diverted for an rowdy passenger. Well, that's what the FAs were telling him and his party to try and settle things down. Turned into a medical issue with call for Doctor on board being summoned when he started to vomit. Just glad to A) not be seated near him & B) get home as it was the last flight of day.

It's Certainly not the same situation but I've witnessed intense panic attacks (not on a plane), would think it could spiral into a major issue all the way around.

Know little about AA, believe assigned seats. perhaps they have some sort of other solution available to work in conjunction with the preboard. Never hurts to ask ahead of time to try and find a reasonable solution instead of getting even more anxious worrying about what will/could happen.

AA may have something that can help, definitely (though I'm not sure what it would be - or I'd suggest it ), and asking is a good idea.

But pre-boarding (other than on an airline like SW, where you can select your seat) isn't going to help when the problem is needing to get off quickly. Just extends the length of time she's on the plane (and crowded by people).