Landing on water, a direct course to the mountain, a 45-degree hook during landing, 5.5 km of the runway in Tibet and a place where no more than ten people in the world can land are in our selection of airports wherever you are that they didn’t agree to land if they saw them in advance.
Courchevel (France)
Looking at the photos of the runway of this mountainous place, I want to immediately give the airport of Courchevel the title of the most terrible in the world. When you find out that the length of the strip is 525 meters, there are hollows on it and there is no course-glide path system that helps pilots during landing, the desire intensifies. But in fact, not everything is so scary: in Courchevel large planes do not land, and for small such a strip is more than enough. Although it all looks really scary.
Narsarsuaq (Greenland)
Narsarsuaq is the main international airport of Greenland, and all 160 residents of the settlement of the same name are somehow connected with the reception and departure of aircraft. To expect a comfortable and aesthetic airport from an island with a harsh climate and meager population is absurd. Everything is in order with the length of the strip, but the danger lies in the fjords surrounding the airport, flying close to which it is easy to get into strong turbulence. In addition, there is water in front of the runway, immediately after it is a mountain. In winter, everything seems even more dangerous.
Agatti (Lakshadwip, India)
Among the 36 coral islands of Lakshadwip (also known as Lakkadivy), only 11 are inhabited, and the airport was built on just one - on the island of Agatti. And even that, the length on it is clearly not enough, but inexperienced pilots are better off landing somewhere else. The runway is limited to a distance of 1219 meters, and further - the ocean. Local authorities are pondering projects to increase the length, but so far it’s really dangerous to sit here.
Paro (Bhutan)
There are only a dozen pilots in the world who have the necessary qualifications to land at Paro Airport with a runway length of less than 2 km. Around the city are piled up mountains up to five thousand meters high, on the slopes of which tall trees grow, and before landing the plane neatly maneuvers between these huge. It is not surprising that the vast majority of tourists go to Paro for local Buddhist temples - after such an extreme flight, you need to find a good place to meditate and calm your nerves.
Madeira (Portugal)
The popular Portuguese island among tourists off the coast of Africa meets tourists with a very dangerous landing. The runway on Madeira was extended to almost 3 km, but the main problem was not in it, or rather, not only in it, but also in the maneuver that pilots make when landing. For some time the plane goes straight up the mountain, and then abruptly leaves to the right in the direction of the strip. In order to avoid panic in the portholes when landing, it is recommended not to look.
Toncontin Airport (Tegucigalpa, Honduras)
Firstly, the airport is located in a valley among the mountains. Secondly, it stands in the middle of the city. Thirdly, the arrival and departure of aircraft goes through one side. Fourth, the strip length is less than 2 km. Fifth, before landing, pilots need to make a sharp hook at an angle of 45 degrees. All of the above clearly does not increase flight safety, but large aircraft like the 757th Boeing continue to fly regularly in Tegucigalpu.
When the territory of the state is only 6.5 km 2, you need to be prepared for non-standard solutions to standard problems. In the case of the airport, which is located in the middle of the city, I had to arrange the most ordinary move. A barrier and a traffic light are also used here, but it all looks more impressive than in the classic railway version. A highway in the middle of the runway adds work to the dispatchers and allows you to come up with a bunch of amazing scenarios with the appearance of a car under the wheels of an airplane.
Bamda (China)
The highest mountain airport in the world is located in Tibet at an altitude of 4334 meters above sea level. The main problem here is not even high mountains, but rarefied air, which causes discomfort for pilots and passengers and affects engine performance. Due to the latter factor, the runway had to be increased to 5.5 km. To make the landing pass without problems, pilots need to be as concentrated as possible and carefully monitor the readings of the sensors.
Barra (Scotland)
The airport of Barra Island on the Outer Hebrides is one of the most unusual in the world. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that airplanes land in a bay directly on the water, on which three runways in the shape of a triangle are marked using wooden poles. At the same time, the water level is constantly changing due to the tides.
Lukla (Nepal)
The main problem of the airport in Luke is the complex surrounding landscape. An abyss gapes on one side of the runway, on the other a mountain rises, and all this at an altitude of almost 2860 meters above sea level. The airport in Luke is one of the closest to Everest, therefore it is a popular starting point for climbers who decide to conquer the highest mountain on the planet. It seems that for those who decided on such a trip, a dangerous landing in Luke will become the lesser of problems.
The highest mountain airport in the world is Daochen Yadin, located in Sichuan. It is built at an altitude of 4411 meters above sea level. Prior to that, the title of record holder belonged to Quamdo Bamdo, erected in Tibet. The latter is lower than the current record holder by 77 meters.
Surprisingly, the highest mountain airport was built in just two years. Its construction cost $ 255 million. Currently, Air China's aircraft fly exclusively to Chengdu, the provincial capital where Daochen Yadin is located. Nevertheless, this can be called a major breakthrough for local Chinese. It used to take people two days to get to Chengdu. Today, 800 kilometers are covered in 65 minutes. Chengdu Daochen Yadin flights are operated daily, and the cost of the flight is only 1,600 yuan, which ranges from $ 262.
The highest airport is located 159 kilometers from world famous attractions. The Jaazhin Nature Reserve, also called Shangri-La, is an unofficial “last clean place on Earth.” The local landscapes are striking in their beauty. It can be assumed that after the construction of the airport, the flow of curious tourists will increase here. This forecast is also obvious because in the near future flights from Chongqing, Guangzhou, Xian and Shanghai will be sent here. According to experts, the flow of passengers to this region will be increased to half a million people.
The hundredth airport opened in India - in The Himalayas, in the northeastern state of Sikkim. Due to the difficult terrain and adverse weather conditions, only one runway was built for 9 years. But the result met all expectations - the airport is already called the most beautiful and picturesque in the world.
Sikkim is a former kingdom in the Himalayas, connected by eight high mountain passes with Bhutan, Nepal and Tibet. Now Sikkim is an Indian state in which there has never been an airport. But the authorities decided that it was time to correct the situation.
The airport was built on a mountainside in Pakyong County, 30 kilometers from the state capital Gangtok. The construction was so complicated that it is already called an engineering miracle.
By the way, in Sikkim is Mount Kanchenjunga, which occupies the third line in the ranking of the highest peaks in the world. And because of the extremely difficult landscape in the state, there is no railway connection.
If we talk about roads, they often suffer from landslides and flooding, and to the north of the Miang area there are no roads at all.
The airport is built on a hilltop with a height of 1371 meters above sea level, 60 kilometers from the border with China. From all sides the structure is surrounded by mountain valleys.
As for the runway, its length is only 1.75 kilometers, but it still took 9 years to build.
In addition to weather and landscape, construction was complicated by the fact that engineering equipment had to be delivered through narrow mountain roads. Sikkim also has a high seismicity, and from April to September there is a rainy season.
Land for the airport was literally cut out of the mountain - special geotechnical engineering installations were used. Specialists also built a support wall 80 meters high to protect the airport building - this is one of the highest such structures in the world.
The airport terminal can simultaneously serve about 100 passengers, the building also has parking for 50 cars.
The airport will begin its work on October 4 - it is assumed that this will increase the number of tourists visiting Sikkim. Moreover, this Indian state boasts the real beauties of the Himalayas: picturesque mountain peaks, ancient monasteries, alpine lakes and glaciers.
A large number of people are sincerely afraid of air travel, and everyone has their own reasons for this. People who are versed in air transport and the features of driving it are well aware that the most dangerous during flights is take-off and landing operations. Of course, we must not forget about natural factorsthat affect the calm during the trip, including the rocky terrain, mountains, sandy coasts and other features of the natural landscape that must be considered by the crew of airliners. Next, we will consider the most dangerous airports in the world, on which takeoff and landing maneuvers require special skill and utmost concentration from the crew.
Juancho E. Yrausquin
The first air gates on our list are located on one of the most beautiful islands of the Caribbean - Saba. Perhaps this is the most dangerous airport in the world, topping the top because of its disastrously short runway. Its length equals approximately 396 meters. However, if this fact can still be reconciled somehow, the picture is complemented by high cliffs surrounding the landing zone, and the nearby steep slope leading directly to the ocean.
Landing here requires absolute concentration from the crew - incorrect calculations can cost the lives of all passengers, since there is a high probability that the ship will fall into the abyss. Most pilots try to bypass this airport. Even professionals do not risk flying here. Takeoff and landing maneuvers are often difficult enough even for small aircraft. Weather conditions on the island are also sometimes unpredictable. Of course, this situation leads to a significant reduction in the flow of tourists who want to relax on this island, even despite the beauty and solitude of this paradise.
Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport
Qamdo bamda
The Qamdo Bamda Tibetan air complex has become a champion in height. His location at 4250 meters exceeds sea level. Takeoff and landing at such an altitude is very dangerous, so the airport is equipped with a fairly large takeoff and landing zone, the duration of which is 3,500 meters. But here it is still allowed to be served by both large and small aircraft.
Even at sea level, approach speed is 241 km / h. To ensure a safe landing and a complete stop, an average aircraft may need about 1,520 meters, but at a height at which the Tibetan airfield is located, this distance is doubled at least.
Qamdo Bamda Airport
Gustaf iii
The next air hub is located on the Caribbean island of Saint Barthelemy. For pilots there are quite stringent conditions:
- firstly, the take-off and landing here has a very narrow corridor, which threatens the catastrophically close approach of planes to the slopes of the elevation of the local landscape during landing;
- secondly, the length of the take-off and landing zone of the airport is only 640 meters, which is suitable exclusively for small aircraft (up to 20 passengers);
- thirdly, the lane begins at the road junction, and ends right at the local beach, which is why planes fly right over the heads of vacationers.
Gustaf III Air Gate
Ice runway
The features of the next runway can be guessed by its name alone. She made our list of the 10 most dangerous airports in the world because of her ice coveras well as due unpredictable weather conditionsreigning in this locality. This band, located in Antarctica, is mainly used to meet the needs of McMurdo Station. In order to somehow alleviate the task facing the crew, the strip is carefully looked after, turning it into a well-groomed landing ice and snow zone. Landing here is complicated by the fact that the pilot needs to calculate whether the ice breaks under the weight of the aircraft and if the ship gets stuck in the snow. If suddenly the ice begins to thaw a little here, the planes immediately redirect to other Antarctic airports.
Ice Runway Ice Runway
Courchevel
Probably everyone has heard of one of the best ski resorts Europe - Courchevel. It is located in the eponymous town of the French Alps. But this place was famous not only for its excellent conditions for a first-class sports vacation. The popular resort has its own airport, located right in the middle of the mountains.
Courchevel airdrome became the main location in one of the films of the legendary Bondiana “Tomorrow Never Dies”, in which the protagonist manages to expertly land the plane on a dangerous strip.
The air complex was forcedly built on a mountain slope, the slope of which is 18 degrees. But there are other difficulties for pilots:
- a hump on the territory of the runway;
- the length of the local landing zone is about 530 meters.
Needless to say, but the flight to Courchevel turns into a very exciting trip. Quite often flights are canceled here due to bad weather conditions.
Courchevel Airport - Famous and Dangerous
Barra
Unique beach airport located in Barra Island (Scotland). This is a unique air complex, the takeoff and landing area of \u200b\u200bwhich is beach. It is noteworthy that during high tide it is completely flooded with water, so it is necessary to plan flights taking into account these natural factors.
The only assistant to pilots during touchdowns during night tides is the light from the headlights of passing cars.
In order for vacationers to know about the arrival of airplanes, special warning signs. Landing here is breathtaking not only among the crew, but also among the locals.
Unique beach-airport Barra
Toncontin
Honduras Airport is notorious worldwide for several accidents. The airfield began to serve the aircraft yet in 1934. In those days, aircraft were not so powerful, and they did not need much space for acceleration and take-off. The runway of the complex has a length 2133 meters and is located in a valley surrounded on all sides by mountains. It is also worth noting that Toncontin has only one way to take off and land aircraft.
Toncontin Airport
Tenzing hillary
Tenzing Hillary Airfield is located in eastern Nepal. Climbers are mainly served here: someone wants to conquer Everest, and someone is simply interested in the region. All guests traveling by plane, already on the way, understand what the danger of flying and landing in these places is. In the region often rage strong winds and dominate thick cloud cover. It is quite difficult to carry out any maneuvers here. In addition, one end of the local runway ends with a sharp cliff.
Airfield Tenzing-Hillary
Madeira
The danger of the Portuguese airport of Madeira lies in the relatively small length of its runways. Cliffs and ocean literally squeezed between themselves the air complex. The crew of any aircraft during landing has a very difficult task - first to direct the car towards the mountains, and then make sharp turn before completing the maneuver.
The runway of the airport was built on high poles, and the structure itself resembles a bridge.
Famous Madeira Airport
Gibraltar
The Gibraltar air hub deservedly ended up in our top. He is considered not only one of the most dangerous, but also an extremely busy air complex in the world. The feature of this airfield was the location of its runway - it crosses one of the main streets of the city! Each time, when any airliner takes off or landing, it is necessary to completely stop all city transport.
According to most pilots, takeoff and landing are the most dangerous moments of flight. Nevertheless, some conditions are more risky than others, but it seems that no mountain peaks, cliffs, crowded beaches and main roads stop the brave pilots on this list who work in such conditions every day.
In this list we will describe the most extreme and dangerous airports from around the world. So fasten your seat belts:
10. Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport
Saba Island
Getting to this amazingly beautiful Caribbean island is not so easy, but all because of the runway, the length of which is only 396 meters - which is quite a bit longer than most airstrips on aircraft carriers. An incredibly short runway is surrounded by high cliffs, and is dangerously close to a steep slope that leads directly into the ocean.
For these reasons, this airport is considered one of the most dangerous airports in the world. An incorrect assessment of the pilot during take-off can send the plane straight into the abyss. Large airplanes avoid this airport for obvious reasons, but even for very small airplanes such as the Cessna, landing is a difficult task, especially in bad weather conditions. Well, at least everyone knows what is to blame for the constant decline in tourism on the island.
9. Qando Bamda Airport
Tibet
Chandu Banda Airport is the highest airport in the world, located more than 4330 meters above sea level. In addition to the height of the location of this airport, it is also struck by an almost 5.5-kilometer runway.
A runway of sixty football fields may seem overkill, but obviously, the length of the runway is crucial in order to make a safe landing at high altitudes. When the plane begins to descend to an area located at sea level, at a speed of 241 kilometers per hour, in order for it to stop completely, it needs a runway of at least 1,524 meters in length. But when he lands in an area located at an altitude of more than 4330 meters above sea level, the length of the runway necessary for its full stop should be twice as long.
Traveling at high altitudes can actually be extremely dangerous and travelers must know in advance about the danger before they even fly to such places.
8. Gustaf III Airport
Saint Barthélemy
The small airport of Gustav III, on the Caribbean island of Saint Barthélemy, exposes quite serious dangers to both pilots and passengers. The track on which the runway was built is incredibly narrow, and the planes approaching frighteningly close to the hillsides of the adjacent territory during landing, which creates a risk of the aircraft falling into the ocean at each landing.
This YouTube video perfectly illustrates what you have to go through if something goes wrong while landing. It is good that at least in this case no one received even minor injuries.
7. Icy runway (Ice Runway)
Antarctica (Antarctica)
The dangers of the Icy runway are more likely to be associated with extreme weather conditions that the pilot has to deal with than with the layout or location of the airport itself. The icy runway is one of the three largest runways used to transport scientists and food to the McMurdo Station Antarctic Station. As its name suggests, there are no tarmacs here - just long strips of carefully cleared ice and snow.
There is no shortage of space on the Icy Runway, so even a huge aircraft can land relatively easily here. The difficulty is to land the plane so that its weight, together with the weight of its cargo, does not break the ice and that the plane does not get stuck in soft snow. As soon as the ice on this runway begins to crack, the planes are redirected to Pegasus Field and William Field, two other runways serving the station.
6. Courchevel Airport
France
The city of Courchevel in the French Alps is one of the most famous ski resorts in Europe, but, apparently, the city owes much of its fame to its airport, which is located in the mountains. Courchevel Airport is famous not only for its incredibly high and strange location, but also for its important role in the James Bond film, “Tomorrow Never Dies,” in which Mr. Bond successfully landed a plane at an extremely dangerous airport.
5. Barra International Airport
Scotland
It is quite possibly the only airport in the world that also serves as a beach. Take-offs and landings at Barra Airport take place on the same sand that people walk around during the airport’s non-working hours. And that's not all: at high tide in the evening, the headlights of all passing cars help the pilot land the plane. For those who just want to enjoy a romantic walk along the beach, warning signs have been put informing people about all the expected landings in the near future.
Believe it or not, Barra is still an officially recognized international airport by the Air Traffic Organization, and it seems that any logical or rational proposals are not taken into account by the authorities. We can only hope that they are better aware of us about the intricacies of such an airport location!
4. Toncontin International Airport
Honduras
In Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras, you can land at one of the most dangerous and notorious airports in the world. He served as the subject of proceedings after several accidents, including a plane crash that occurred in 2008 and claimed the lives of five passengers. This airport was opened back in 1934, when the aircraft were less powerful and did not need such long runways.
The length of the Tonkotin runway is a little more than 2133 meters, and it is located in a valley surrounded by mountains. And even more incredible - at the moment, the danger of this airport is that it has only one take-off and one landing strip for airplanes, which significantly increases the risk of accidents. Despite all these high-risk factors, large planes such as the Boeing 757 land on this daily basis.
3. Tenzing-Hillary Airport
Nepal
Initially, this airport was called Lukla Airport, but then it was renamed the Tenzing and Hillary Airport to honor the memory of the first people who reached the summit of Mount Everest. Located in Lukla, Nepal, the airport serves thousands of climbers hoping to "conquer" Everest, as well as mountaineers who want to explore the Everest region.
Among the dangers of this airport, one can list strong winds and heavy clouds - but these are not the worst factors. As in the case of Gustav III Airport, one of the ends of the runway of the Tenzing and Hillary Airport ends with high terrain, but instead of a beautiful sandy beach at the other end, you will fall down 609 meters.
There have already been several accidents at this airport, and the last of them occurred on October 12, 2010.
2. Madeira International Airport (Madeira Airport)
Portugal
When Madeira International Airport was first opened in 1964, the length of each of its two main runways did not exceed 1,600 meters.
After a terrifying accident in 1977, during which the landing Boeing 727 crashed on a stone bridge and ended up on the beach, one of the runways was extended by 200 meters. In the early 2000s, the runway was lengthened even more, and now it passes through the beach, and rests on columns.
Even taking into account the fact that the runway was extended, the most common landing is still not easy for even the most experienced pilots. Contrary to all their instincts, and in order to set the plane on the right course for landing, pilots must first direct the plane towards the vague outlines of the mountain top and then quickly deviate to the left to avoid a collision with the mountain.
1. Gibraltar Airport
Gibraltar
Gibraltar Airport is not only one of the most dangerous airports in the world, but also one of the busiest (especially compared to other dangerous airports included in this list). No matter how incredible it may sound, the route of this airport actually passes through the main street of the city.
Vehicles are forced to stop every time the plane lands or takes off. Even more surprising is that there has never been a single major accident - and we hope that here they will not happen.