I was SLF in the late 70's on a late evening/night Monarch B720, LTN - BLQ. Bologna was fogbound (it was February and common) so we diverted to VCE. Very bumpy approach, followed by a - what seemed to be a very low level - go around. Got down on the 2nd approach - again very bumpy and a hard landing. The ashen faces of the CC and the heavy wind and rain as we decended the steps said it all. I have to admit, the experience put me off flying for many years.
Fast forward to the early 90's. As a joke I was bought a trial flying lesson as a birthday present, my other half thinking it would be very amusing having a video of the event of me pooing my pants, knowing my fear of flying had not allowed us to go on "decent" holidays and this was payback
. With great fear, and not wanting to look a complete wimp (even though I felt it at the time) I went through with the lesson. I didn't realise that it's so different looking out of the front window! My other half was totally dismayed that I didn't jump out and kiss the ground when we taxied in. She felt even worse when I booked another lesson
.
Nine months later I was the proud owner of a PPL. A month later we had the family holiday she wanted in Florida
. I carried on and got my night and IMC ratings, and she got her holidays.
The moral?
I learnt that those guys up front on that night in Northern Italy had far more training than I. They were good at their jobs (or they wouldn't be there) and whilst it wasn't an easy landing, we were never in as much danger as I thought. I've now done landings which were bumpy, sideways, in need of a go around etc, some on my own and some with passengers. It always seems worse to passengers be it in a 400+ seat 747 or a 4 seat Cessna 172. I have the luxury of briefing passengers individually before, during and after the event. Commercial crews don't have that luxury.
I also learnt that weather can be a fickle partner. Fog (and therefore mainly still air) as was in Bologna, followed by heavy wind and rain 20 minutes away.