Many people just love to travel around the world. It isn’t very hard task to plan a trip nowadays, but there are some things you must consider while scheduling your travel. One of these things is the following list of the world’s most dangerous airports.
10. Qamdo Bamda Airport, Tibet.
Tibet is a Chinese province located in the world’s highest mountains – Himalayas. So it will not be a surprise to find out that Qamdo Bamda Airport is considered as one of the highest airports in the world, positioned at altitude of 4334 meters. Another distinctive feature of this airport is its 5,5 km paved runway, considered to be the longest in the world. The lower concentration of oxygen at such altitude may cause some discomfort to the newcomers and it also lowers the aircraft engines performance.
9. Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport, Saba Island.
The island is ruled by Netherlands and is located in the Caribbean seas. It has just 400 meters long runways and the sea begins right after them. Steep hill slope descends at one side of the airport. The combination of these circumstances led to closing the airport and just single exceptions are allowed by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Netherlands Antilles.
8. Gustaf III Airport, Saint Barthelemy.
It is interesting that the runway of this airport utilizes hill slope to lower the speed of the landing aircraft. The airport maintains only small-sized airplanes with up to 20 passengers due to its relatively short runways. The island is also Caribbean and is under the administration of France.
7. Ice Runway, Antarctica.
The runway serves the United States Antarctic program. According to pilots that use it, the surface has the stability of cement and it could handle even comparatively big airplanes like Boeing 757. The trouble may occur while the aircraft is stopping as the wheels may break the ice crust and submerge in the ice.
6. Courchevel Airport, France.
The 525 m long runway is located in the French Alps. It follows the relief of the neighboring ski track which is located at an elevation of 6588 feet (2008 meters). It is obviously able to support small aircrafts and helicopters which are unable to land there during fogs because of the airport’s lack of instrumentation.
5. Barra International Airport, Scotland.
This is the only airport with a runways positioned directly on the beach. It is located at the Barra Island in Scotland and is also known as Barra Eoligarry Airport.
4. Toncontin International Airport, Honduras.
It has a single runway of 2163 meters and is located at an elevation of 1005 m. Its other name is Teniente Coronel Hernan Acosta Mejia Airport.
3. Tenzing Hillary Airport, Nepal.
It was called after the first people who climbed to the top of Mount Everest – Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary. The airport is surrounded by mountains and its runway is only 460 meters long.
2. Madeira Airport, Portugal.
The airport that is located at Madeira Island was infamous for its short track. Due to this the Portuguese authorities decided to extend it and after the last elongation the runway was almost doubled in size.
1. Gibraltar International Airport, Gibraltar.
Probably the only Airport in the world that crosses busy automotive road. When an airplane takes off the traffic along Winston Churchill Avenue has to be stopped in order to prevent heavy accidents.