Spread your wings

We all have fears – some rational, others not so much – and one of the big ones is a fear of flying.

Ballito’s Damon Beard, the popular East Coast Radio (ECR) presenter, suffered a paralysing fear of flying for years but today, years later, is the proud owner of a pilot’s licence after conquering his terror.

Now he is helping others overcome their fear through his Flying Without Fear course.

Beard told the Courier his fear was so overwhelming he could not even go to an airport.

“No one understood how I felt. I was laughed at and ridiculed and I missed out on family holidays and business trips,” he said.

“When friends would plan weekends away, I would come up with an excuse that I was busy when in fact I was not. It was easier to say that I had other plans than to put myself through the emotional trauma of booking a flight or to be ridiculed by my friends because I was scared to fly.”

After joining ECR in 1991, it became increasingly difficult for him to give excuses. He would even find himself driving through the night, spending hours upon hours on the road rather than get on a plane.

Eventually, Beard had no option but to fly and he found himself on a plane, sweating and shaking uncontrollably.

“As the air crew were about to close the doors, I grabbed my bag from the overhead bin and ran out the door. This happened three times.”

Beard said one morning he woke up and decided he had had enough. He drove to Virginia Airport where he signed up to do his pilot’s licence and face his fears.

Beard said he and three others started Flying Without Fear to help other sufferers. They have run three courses already and, according to Beard, have had unbelievable results.

“Together with three of the most highly experienced professionals in the business – two airline captains and a clinical psychologist – we guide our nervous passengers step by step so that before long, they too will be flying.

The course covers everything to do with flying, from unsettling noises passengers hear on taxi and take off, to the principles of flight.

“Our clinical psychologist conducts an in-depth workshop explaining what fears are and how to overcome them, so by the end of the course nervous passengers overcome their fear of flying and take their holiday or business trip.”

The ‘Damon Beard Flying Without Fear Course’ is run in association with Mango. The course is from 8am-1pm and costs R800. The next course will be held on November 18. Contact Beard at damon@ecr.co.za for more information.

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