I don’t have triskaidekaphobia (fear of 13) or paraskavedekatriaphobia (fear of Friday the 13th). Seriously who comes out with such words! Personally,I believe both good and bad things happen every single day. But its undeniable that a lot of people are superstitious about 13. Did you know that Napoleon, Herbert Hoover, Mark Twain and Franklin Roosevelt all had triskaidekaphobia?
In fact Belgian carrier, Brussels Airlines, has been forced to change its logo following complaints from superstitious passenger. The 13 dots making up the stylised ‘b’ brought a flood of complaints about the “unlucky” design. It has now altered the design to incorporate an additional dot. The reactions of the passengers were so bad that some actually canceled their flight, forfeiting their deposits. They rather take another “luckier” airline.
The most famous unlucky incident of the number 13 is the Apollo 13 mission, launched on April 11, 1970 (the sum of 4, 11 and 70 equals 85 – which when added together comes to 13), from Pad 39 (three times 13) at 13:13 local time, and struck by an explosion on April 13.
If you are still not convinced, when I was in the states I came across a brochure that was advertising cure for this illness and it was from the Fear of 13 Clinic. I wonder if they rake in profits? I think for South East Asia we would most likely need a Fear of 4 Clinic instead.