This British Airways Perk Might Help You Get Over Your Fear of Flying

VR is taking to the skies, people

British Airways VR Headsets

The last four flights I’ve been on, the person directly in front of me has tilted his or her seat way back. I didn’t have a protractor handy, but let’s call it somewhere in the neighborhood of a 120 degree angle. As I already can’t fall asleep on planes, this has made for some tough hours in the sky.

A new initiative from British Airways, though, might mean help is on the way. The flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom recently unveiled VR headsets for select flights on its well-trodden Heathrow-to-JFK route. The SkyLights headsets, which are only available on First Class, and will be offered seemingly at random through the end of 2019, give passengers the opportunity to watch films, documentaries and travel programs in 2D, 3D and 360° formats.

More entertainment is great, so long as people don’t start flailing their arms around while watching Avengers: Endgame. I’m more interested, though, in some of the therapeutic programs on these headsets. British Airways worked with a number of experts to develop guided meditation and sound therapy programs. If they actually help people fall asleep (or at least calm down), that’s a massive improvement on the current blindfold/earphones method.

Unfortunately, this perk is limited to First Class fliers on British Airways for now (who barely need it, they’ve already got beds and 15-inch flatscreens). But you can buy your own VR headset for far less than a British Airways ticket. Just steal their idea, and start bringing it on your own flights. We recommend going with the standalone Oculus Go, which is the best VR headset to watch movies and download programs not called “Halo Skyrim Zombie Survival.” Or something.

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