Abstract: Aeroplanes are the proof that humans have mastered the laws of physics. Despite such knowledge, however, modern humans cannot do without mystery: superstitions, urban legends, but also literature and cinema nourish fantasies about aviation which privilege the supernatural. Richard Matheson illustrates these dreams in Cauchemar à six mille mètres (1962), a psychological tale which resuscitates the nightmares of the modern human who can fly, but who can also be afraid.
