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Commercial pilot Èric Besora: “Most people who fear flying have an irrational element to their fear”

From Clarín · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Interview Named sources Context piece
  • Commercial pilot Èric Besora says fear of flying often persists even when passengers understand that air travel is statistically very safe.
  • He explains that aircraft are designed with redundant systems and procedures that determine whether a fault prevents a flight from departing.
  • Besora says passengers commonly mistake turbulence and normal changes in engine noise for signs that an aircraft is falling or breaking apart.

Aviation may be statistically safe, but that does not make fear disappear. Èric Besora, a commercial pilot and commander, says many passengers continue to feel afraid even after learning how rarely serious accidents occur.

The article cites International Air Transport Association figures showing 38.7 million flights in 2025 and 51 accidents, eight of them fatal. That amounted to roughly one accident per 760,000 flights. IATA's calculations also put air travel at 200 times safer than traveling in a private car.

Besora says commercial aviation builds safety around the possibility that a component could fail. The Airbus A320 family, for example, has three independent hydraulic circuits, colored green, yellow and blue. Systems are distributed among them so the aircraft can remain under control if one circuit fails. Flight crews also check for active faults before every departure and use manuals to determine whether an aircraft can fly.

Every aircraft on the market has a manual stating whether a particular failure prevents it from flying or not: a burnt-out light may not matter for flight, but a failed control computer must be inspected and repaired before the aircraft can leave.

· Èric BesoraThe commercial commander explains how manuals guide decisions about aircraft faults before departure.

“Every aircraft on the market has a manual stating whether a particular failure prevents it from flying or not,” Besora tells La Vanguardia. “A burnt-out light may not matter for flight, but a failed control computer must be inspected and repaired before the aircraft can leave.”

Besora has flown commercial aircraft for more than 15 years and has served as a commander since 2019. He occupies the left-hand seat and holds ultimate responsibility for the flight, while the commander and first officer divide flying and monitoring duties. He also explains aviation on social media, arguing that fear often grows from not knowing what is happening or what can happen. “People do not know exactly what is happening and, above all, what can happen or cannot happen.”

People do not know exactly what is happening and, above all, what can happen or cannot happen.

· Èric BesoraBesora identifies passengers' lack of knowledge as a major source of fear.
About this summary

Originally published by Clarín in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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