Fred Choate wrote:

I did just purchase a new headset that seals much better than the old set I
had, and this was my first flight with them, and the passenger was wearing a
set from the FBO that seals pretty well too. Could headsets have been a
factor, or is it more likely it was just a fluke situation.

I don't see how headsets could have caused these symptoms. If anything, the
increasing pressure would simply have clamped the headsets a bit more and you
would have had fewer ear problems.

Also, would it have been better to level off when we first started feeling
the pressure, and see if things would have equalized?

Perhaps. A better idea is to hold your nose, close your mouth, and exhale
slightly, forcing air through the eustachian tubes and equalizing the pressure.
A less drastic approach is to open your mouth like you're yawning and wiggle
your jaw back and forth -- that opens the tubes wider.

George Patterson
Drink is the curse of the land. It makes you quarrel with your neighbor.
It makes you shoot at your landlord. And it makes you miss him.