I can remember flying a client and his business associates to Newcastle in a Seneca Five twin IFR from its south west base.
The air was silky smooth, not a ripple and on an IFR flight plan, gentle and few turns turns and no messing around.
Soon after takeoff the one male passenger projectile vomited the contents of his stomach over every surface back to front and the whole flight was a succession of vomiting sounds albeit with less and less content.
We landed and within minutes the guy was back to normal and having cleaned himself up they set off for a meeting
Luckily for us as the plane stank the handling agents located a cleaning company who cleaned the aircraft interior.
On the return the guy got out of the car cheerful and smiling and everyone loaded.
Again soon after takeoff the retching sounds started and again continued for the whole flight although in silky smooth air.
This time there was little or no content in his stomach to vomit and we landed with him returning to normal soon after.
What mechanism causes something like that is a complete loss for me to understand ? Or why he was as happy as Larry in the 30 minute car trip to the meeting ?
Apart from the few degrees deck angle in the climb and descent the ride in the aircraft was probably smoother than the bumps enroute in the car. How much is psychological ??? God knows! and if psychological how much these pills and anti sickness gizmos are placebo effect?
My guess is psychological is more the driving force and i will explain why? If you go 30 storeys up a block of flats and walk onto a flat balcony with good secure guards around the balcony you will look out and admire and enjoy the view.
Now take away the secure barriers so you are standing on the edge of the balcony with nothing to stop you falling off to your death 30 storeys down and you would probably get intense vertigo and dizziness yet in both situations the balcony platform is stable. the only difference between the two is psychological and real barrier protecting you from falling off with the one and no barrier with the other
I am always amazed at the mindset of dare devil tight rope walkers who can walk between buildings with no safety strap attached or free climbers who climb with no safeguards.
I remember an amazing picture of a free climber a woman in only a bikini and a belt holding chalk powder hanging with one hand vertically over a rock overhang and a 300 foot drop to the rocks below. she casually placed the free hand to get chalk from the belt knowing that one slip was immediate death. Her mindset and familiarity and lack of fear had a lot to do with it which lead to her confidence in her ability
Pace
Last edited by Pace; 1st Nov 2015 at 11:19.