A fear of flying's a fear of being on a plane while in flight. It's also sometimes referred to as aerophobia, aviatophobia, aviophobia or pteromechanophobia. Overview Fear of flying may be a distinct phobia in itself, or it may be an indirect manifestation of one or more other phobias, such as claustrophobia (a fear of enclosed spaces) or acrophobia (a fear of heights). It may have other causes as well. It's a symptom rather than a disease, and different causes may bring it about in different in… (More on Aviophobia)