“Oh, we crashed.”
File those three words under the worst thing you can hear on a plane. But aviation expert Salim Hijazeen uttered them calmly when this masthead’s senior reporter Chris Zappone tried his hand at piloting an Airbus A320.
It wasn’t a big deal. The duo were practising at Swinburne University’s flight simulator facility. Students, staff and aviation industry professionals use it for research and training, but Hijazeen – who is an associate lecturer in aviation at the institution – has given it another life beyond Melbourne.
“I try and help people that have a fear of flying,” he explains in the video above. Hijazeen has grown a following of more than 36,000 users on TikTok, where he reassures nervous flyers from all corners of the globe of the aviation industry’s safety statistics and protocols, and answers their questions.
With war in the Middle East disrupting international flights, and plane-maker Boeing under heightened scrutiny following June’s Air India Dreamliner crash, those questions are coming in thick and fast.
The first thing he tells a nervous flyer? That at any given time, there are typically 13,000 to 15,000 aircraft in the air across the world. We do not see that number of aviation incident reports even in a decade. The chances of a catastrophe occurring are slim.
“Flying is statistically one of the safest forms of transport,” says Hijazeen.
Aviation expert Salim Hijazeen’s tips for nervous flyers
- Turbulence may make you feel unsettled (literally): rest assured, the aircraft is designed to handle a substantial amount of turbulence, far greater than what passengers would ever experience in most cases.
- Pilots are always in communication with air traffic controllers throughout their entire flight.
- Modern aircraft used throughout Australia are designed to help pilots with automation and advanced protection systems that ensure the aircraft is flown within the normal performance envelope.
- Pilots spend many hours in the simulator practising emergency scenarios to ensure they are always fully prepared, even though they may never need to use these skills in real flights.
- Before every flight, pilots thoroughly inspect their aircraft to ensure everything is in order, giving you confidence that your journey is well prepared.
- Sometimes, aircraft make sounds which are very normal, but for a first-timer, it may sound concerning when it could simply be the landing gear, flaps or hydraulic systems.
Former United States Federal Aviation Administration staffer Philip Mann agrees. He says the risk of dying on a commercial flight is so “astronomically low”, a passenger would need to fly daily for more than 103,000 years to experience a fatal accident.
In contrast, the national road fatality rate in Australia in the 12 months to January 2026 was 4.8 deaths per 100,000 people.
Should that fail to reassure a nervous flyer, then this reminder from Hijazeen might ease worries: “The pilots want to get home, the cabin crew are very well-trained.
“If you’re ever concerned during a flight from turbulence or anything else, look at the cabin crew,” says Hijazeen. “If they’re smiling, you have nothing to worry about!”
For more tips and tricks for nervous flyers, watch the video above, where Hijazeen and Zappone explain the importance of Australia’s high safety standards and critical systems.
Hear the story behind the headlines on The Morning Edition podcast, every weekday from 5am on Apple, Spotify or your favourite podcast platform.
Chris Zappone is a senior reporter covering aviation and business. He is former digital foreign editor.Connect via X, Facebook or email.From our partners
