India, June 20 -- A fter the tragic AI-171 crash in Ahmedabad, turbulence in the skies has taken on a whole new meaning. In just six days (June 12-17), 83 Air India flights were cancelled - 66 of them were Boeing 787 Dreamliners. On Wednesday, a Delhi-Bali flight turned back mid-air due to a volcanic eruption. A day later, a Leh-Delhi flight with 180 passengers made an emergency landing due to a technical snag. While airlines scramble, passengers are spiralling. From checking aircraft models to obsessing over weather apps, flyers are in a fresh wave of aerophobia - flight anxiety triggered by a fear of losing control, not just being in the air. "After so many incidents, it's uneasy even entering an airport," says Bengaluru-based digital creator Swati Chauhan, adding, "Reels now claim the crash was due to a numerologically unlucky flight number. Even that adds to the panic." Google Trends backs this up. Searches for "safest airline 2025" and "how to calm fear of flying" are climbing. Entrepreneur Gurbani Bhatia, who was scheduled to fly to New York this week, changed her carrier entirely. "I chose an international airline despite the longer route," she says, "just to feel a bit safer". Experts say this fear is real - and physical. "Hearing about a crash can trigger vicarious trauma," explains psychiatrist Dr Sneha Sharma, "Your brain stores it like a lived memory. It activates your fight-or-flight response, even if you're nowhere near a plane." The triggers vary: turbulence, claustrophobia, even in-flight announcements. And while the fear is internal, social pressure makes it harder. "People not only fear losing control, they fear being judged for it," adds Dr Sharma....