Gear for when you fly

[mercop]

There always seems to be posts around the forums about what you can carry on flights to protect yourself from terrorists. Although discussion on this topic is interesting since it leads to tools that you can carry in other non-permissive environments, the truth is that you are discussing means that you are of the mindset to use whatever you can get your hands on anyway. The more I fly the more I think about other threats.

For lack of a better example every time I leave the house I think about the old video game Frogger. Remember how he would try to get from place to place without getting killed? That is how I view the world, full of threats that if you don’t pay attention you are likely not to return home. As we have seen recently many more planes crash than are taken over by terrorists. Keeping with my mindset that no matter how many rounds I suck up gunfight I would keep going, I also have the mindset that even if I am on a plane that crashes I will survive. Just as it is with a shooting that means total survival, not just surviving the actual incident.

Now that I fly more and more it kills me when I see people travelers wearing flip-flops or even slip on shoes. Of course they will tell you that the reason is because of all the energy it takes to take your shoes on and off for security. I think of how often I manage to stub my toe or step on something in my own house and imagine kicking my toe into hard on an aircraft as I am trying to get off because it is in fire.

Whenever I fly I get a little OCD about getting all of the prohibited items out of my bag. One of the things that I always leave in my bag is a good pair of gloves. If the plane does crash there is a pretty good chance there will be hot, wet, or sharp surfaces.

Something else that I add to my bag when flying are ESS Striker Turbofan goggles. For those not familiar these goggles have fan that keeps the lens clear. The best part is that they fit over my prescription glasses. By wearing decent shoes and having these two other items in bay will allow met to protect my feet, hands and eyes. This protection is critical in any survival situations.

Adding a first aid kit to your bag should go a long way in giving you some piece of mind. For anyone who thinks that surviving a plane crash is far fetched…I say no more so that picturing yourself taking out hi-jackers with a Surefire. After all, it just comes down to mindset.