--- title: Christine Blasey Ford Said She Flew Despite Her Aviation Phobia description: For some conservatives, Christine Blasey Ford's admission that she frequently travels by airplane raised questions about her trustworthiness. canonical: https://time.com/5408885/christine-blasey-ford-flying/ author: Mahita Gajanan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-09-27T21:16:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T21:34:22.052Z article:section: Politics og:title: Christine Blasey Ford Said She Flew Despite Her Aviation Phobia. She's Far From Alone og:description: Experts say it's normal for people to fly despite their phobia og:url: https://time.com/5408885/christine-blasey-ford-flying/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt08d417f284aeb68e/69893b5786f68e29cf6ea481/christine-blasey-ford-gofundme.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 6000 og:image:height: 3375 og:image:alt: Dr. Christine Blasey Ford And Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh Testify To Senate Judiciary Committee og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Christine Blasey Ford Said She Flew Despite Her Aviation Phobia. She's Far From Alone twitter:description: Experts say it's normal for people to fly despite their phobia twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt08d417f284aeb68e/69893b5786f68e29cf6ea481/christine-blasey-ford-gofundme.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Christine Blasey Ford Said She Flew Despite Her Aviation Phobia. She's Far From Alone > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Sep 27, 2018 9:16 PM UTC  Christine Blasey Ford is sworn in prior to giving testimony before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill September 27, 2018 in Washington, DC. Christine Blasey Ford is sworn in prior to giving testimony before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill September 27, 2018 in Washington, DC. Pool—Getty Images by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Sep 27, 2018 9:16 PM UTC For some conservatives, Christine Blasey Ford’s admission that she frequently travels by airplane despite a professed fear of flying raised questions about her trustworthiness. But one expert on fear of flying said that is not an uncommon practice. The topic came up as Ford was being questioned by [Rachel Mitchell](http://time.com/5406859/kavanaugh-prosecutor-rachel-mitchell/), a prosecutor hired by Senate Republicans to question Ford. Ford, who alleges that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her while they were both in high school, had earlier sought to delay her testimony ostensibly due to her fear of flying. But she said Thursday that she ended up flying to Washington, D.C., to testify. She said she had initially hoped the hearings could take place in California, but realized that it was an “unrealistic request.” “I eventually was able to get up the gumption with the help of some friends and get on the plane,” said Ford. Kavanaugh denies Ford’s allegation against him, as well as those of several other women. Mitchell then asked about Ford’s other travel history, including trips to far-flung destinations like Hawaii and Costa Rica. Ford said she did travel to such locations by plane, adding that “it’s easier for me to travel going that direction when it’s a vacation.” It wasn’t long until those who continue to support Kavanaugh jumped on Ford’s testimony about her trips in an attempt to discredit her. Donald Trump Jr., the President’s son, said that “it does seem weird to me that someone could have a selective fear of flying.” > [](https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/1045350599166955520) But flying on an airplane despite having flight anxiety is a common practice, according to Tom Bunn, a former airline captain who’s now a licensed therapist. Bunn, who works with those afraid to fly through a program called [SOAR](http://www.fearofflying.com/about/about-welcome.shtml), said that one in three people have a fear of flying. Of that third, half are willing to fly, while half are not. Of the people who come to him for help, very few outright refuse to fly when doing so is clearly necessary, he says. “Most of the people who contact me to get help with fear of flying still occasionally fly or have to fly for business,” Bunn tells TIME. “It’s only a minority of people who contact me who have quit flying completely.” Fear of flying, Bunn says, often stems from a perceived lack of control. “I would imagine she had a tough time on the flight,” he says. “The issue people have with flying is they can’t get out of the plane. They can’t escape.” Bunn said traumatic episodes often serve as the root of a given person’s fear of flying, and can prevent them from getting on a plane. But when life events arise that necessitate flying — business trips, family reunions, vacations — some people are able to temporarily overcome their phobia through a variety of methods. For others, the panic induced by flying is too much to handle, and they avoid air travel at all costs. “There are lots of techniques people use,” Bunn says. “Some people take Xanax, Ativan or something like that to fly. Some people feel they’re going to have a panic attack and if they bring someone with them that gives confidence to them — that can help also.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5408885/christine-blasey-ford-flying/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5408885/christine-blasey-ford-flying/"},"headline":"Christine Blasey Ford Said She Flew Despite Her Aviation Phobia. 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