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Travis Barker has been a force of nature in the music business since the 1990s. His band, Blink-182, made waves and rose to the top of the charts with hard-rocking songs that excited fans. However, the band split up for a time in 2005, and a few years later, in 2008, a deadly plane crash nearly claimed Barker’s life. In the years since the crash, Barker has avoided flying. However, after the recent announcement that Barker will once again be hitting the road with Blink-182 for a major tour, fans are crediting his new wife, Kourtney Kardashian, for helping him to overcome his fear of flying.

Travis Barker was involved in a traumatic plane crash

In 2008, Travis Barker, his longtime friend and collaborator DJ AM, and several members of Barker’s entourage were traveling from South Carolina on a private plane when tragedy struck. According to Reality Titbit, the plane crashed with Barker and his friends on board, leading to four deaths, including Barker’s security guard Charles ‘Che’ Still and Barker’s assistant, Chris Baker.

While Barker and DJ AM survived the crash, both were left with second and third-degree burns. DJ AM would go on to die of a drug overdose just one year after the crash. Barker suffered burns on 65%of his body and had to undergo weeks in the hospital as he recovered. In addition to the physical pain and trauma, Barker started to experience the crippling effects of PTSD as he grappled with his own pain and the loss of his friends in the crash.

Travis Barker avoided flying for years

Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker at the Boohoo X Kourtney Kardashian fashion show during New York Fashion Week
Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker | Gotham/WireImage via Getty Images

In a 2018 interview with Joe Rogan, Travis Barker opened up about the process of recovering from the crash. According to Life and Style Magazine, Barker said, “I did a lot of post-traumatic therapy when I was in the hospital to calm things down after my surgery. Over time, I started to feel better.” He also told Rogan that he hasn’t flown since the accident, telling Rogan that he hoped he could get to that point one day for the sake of his children. “I don’t want it to be a handicap for them, and I dread it,” Barker said. “You know, I lose sleep over it, but if and when they say they want to do it, I’m going to do it.”

In the summer of 2022, Barker shocked the world when he announced that he would hit the road with Blink-182 on the band’s first full-scale world tour in over a decade. The tour will undoubtedly require Barker to travel by plane to maintain the robust touring schedule – and fans were quick to give credit to a new force in Barker’s life, who might just have helped him to overcome his crippling anxiety around flying.

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In a recent Reddit thread, a fan posted a meme that read, “Who knew we’d all be thanking Kourtney Kardashian for helping Travis Barker overcome his flight anxiety and ultimately ENABLING the first Blink-182 ‘World Tour’ in 10+ years.” Fans were quick to react to the meme, with one writing, “People really sleep on what a huge huge huge deal this is. Travis was in a plane crash that killed one of his best friends and seriously injured him. No one would ever blame him for never flying again. Kourtney didn’t force or pressure him, she helped him heal major trauma.”

Another wrote, “This makes me really happy for both of them. They both deserve to heal in such a supportive way like this. I hope her other sisters find a similar type of love.” Many commented on how healthy and happy Barker and Kardashian seem, with one fan noting, “besides being annoying together with the excessive PDA, travis might be the healthiest karjenner relationship we’ve ever seen.”