The highest airport. Rating of the most dangerous and extreme airports in the world Courchevel Airport in France
A water landing, a direct course towards a mountain, a 45-degree landing detour, a 5.5 km runway in Tibet and a place where no more than ten people in the world can land - in our selection of airports where you would never that they would not have agreed to land if they had seen them in advance.
Courchevel (France)
Looking at the photo of the runway of this mountainous place, I would like to immediately give Courchevel airport the title of the most terrible in the world. When you find out that the length of the runway is 525 meters, there are depressions on it and there is no course and glide path system to help pilots when landing, the desire intensifies. But in fact, not everything is so scary: large planes do not land in Courchevel, and for small ones such a runway is more than enough. Although it all looks really scary.
Narsarsuaq (Greenland)
Narsarsuaq - Chief international Airport Greenland, and all 160 residents of the settlement of the same name are in one way or another connected with the reception and dispatch of aircraft. Expecting a comfortable and aesthetic airport from an island with a harsh climate and a sparse population is absurd. The length of the runway here is fine, but the danger lies in the fjords surrounding the airport, flying next to which it is easy to get into severe turbulence. In addition, there is water in front of the runway, and a mountain right behind it. In winter everything seems even more dangerous.
Agatti (Lakshadweep, India)
Among the 36 coral islands of Lakshadweep (another name is the Laccadives), only 11 are inhabited, and an airport was built on one - on Agatti Island. And even then, it is clearly not long enough, and inexperienced pilots are better off landing somewhere else. The runway is limited to a distance of 1219 meters, and beyond that is the ocean. Local authorities are considering projects to increase the length, but for now it is really very dangerous to land here.
Paro (Bhutan)
There are only a dozen pilots in the world who have the required level of skill to land at Paro Airport, which has a runway less than 2 km long. Around the city there are mountains up to five thousand meters high, on the slopes of which tall trees grow, and before landing the plane carefully maneuvers between these hulks. It's no surprise that the vast majority of tourists go to Paro for the locals. Buddhist temples- after such an extreme flight you need to find a good place for meditation and calming the nerves.
Madeira (Portugal)
A popular Portuguese island off the coast of Africa greets tourists with a very dangerous landing. The runway on Madeira was extended to almost 3 km, but the main problem was not it, or rather not only it, but also the maneuver that the pilots perform when landing. For some time the plane goes straight up the mountain, and then sharply goes to the right in the direction of the runway. To avoid panic, it is recommended not to look out of the windows when landing.
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, aircraft arrivals and departures go through one side. Fourthly, the length of the strip is less than 2 km. Fifth, before landing, pilots need to make a sharp detour at an angle of 45 degrees. All of the above clearly does not improve flight safety, but large aircraft like the Boeing 757 continue to fly regularly to Tegucigalpa.
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, we had to arrange a very ordinary transfer. Here, too, a barrier and a traffic light are used, but it all looks more impressive than in the classic railway version. A highway in the middle of the runway adds more work to dispatchers and allows you to come up with a bunch of amazing scenarios with a car appearing under the wheels of an airplane.
Bamda (China)
Most high mountain airport of the world is located in Tibet at an altitude of 4334 meters above sea level. the main problem there are not even tall mountains here, but thin 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. In order for the landing to go smoothly, pilots need to be extremely concentrated and carefully monitor the sensor readings.
Barra (Scotland)
The Isle of Barra Airport in the Outer Hebrides is one of the most unusual in the world. Its uniqueness is that planes land in the 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 ebb and flow of the tides.
Lukla (Nepal)
The main problem of the airport in Lukla is the difficult surrounding landscape. On one side of the runway there is a gaping abyss, on the other there is a towering mountain, and all this at an altitude of almost 2860 meters above sea level. The airport in Lukla is one of the closest to Everest, therefore it is a popular starting point for climbers who decide to conquer the most high mountain planets. It seems that for those who decide to make such a journey, a dangerous landing in Lukla will be the least of their problems.
According to most pilots, takeoff and landing are the most dangerous moments of flight. However, some conditions are riskier than others, but it seems that no amount of mountaintops, cliffsides, crowded beaches or major roads can stop the brave pilots featured on this list who work in these conditions every day.
In this list we will describe the most extreme and dangerous airports from all over the world. So, fasten your seat belts:
10. Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport
Saba Island
Getting to this stunningly beautiful Caribbean island is not easy, thanks to the runway, which is only 396 meters long - which is just a little longer than most aircraft carrier runways. The 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. A pilot's misjudgment during takeoff can send the plane straight into the abyss. Large planes avoid the airport for obvious reasons, but even very small planes such as Cessnas find landing difficult, especially in poor weather conditions. Well, at least everyone knows what is to blame for the constant decline in tourism on the island.
9. Qamdo 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 this airport, it also has an almost 5.5-kilometer runway.
A runway sixty football fields long may seem like overkill, but obviously the length of the runway is critical to landing safely at high altitudes. When a plane begins descending into an area at sea level at 241 kilometers per hour, it requires a runway of at least 1,524 meters to come to a complete stop. But when it lands on terrain more than 4,330 meters above sea level, the length of the runway required to bring it to a complete stop must be twice as long.
Traveling at high altitudes can actually be extremely dangerous and travelers should be aware of the dangers before they even fly to such places.
8. Gustaf III Airport
Saint Barthélemy
The small Gustav III airport, on the Caribbean island of Saint Barthelemy, exposes both pilots and passengers to quite serious dangers. The route on which the runway was built is incredibly narrow, and planes land alarmingly close to the surrounding area's high slopes, creating the risk of the plane crashing into the ocean with each landing.
This YouTube video does a great job of illustrating what you'll go through if something goes wrong during landing. It’s good that at least in this case no one was even slightly injured.
7. Ice Runway
Antarctica
The dangers of the Icy Runway have more to do with the extreme weather conditions that the pilot must contend with than with the layout or location of the airport itself. The ice runway is one of the three largest airstrips used to transport scientists and supplies to McMurdo Station in Antarctica. As its name suggests, there are no tarmac roads here - just long strips of carefully cleared ice and snow.
There is no shortage of space on the Ice Runway, so even a huge aircraft can land here with relative ease. The difficulty is to land the plane so that its weight, combined with the weight of its cargo, does not break through the ice and so that the plane does not get stuck in soft snow. Once the ice on that runway begins to break up, planes are diverted to Pegasus Field and Williams Field, the other two 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 place location, but also because he played an 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. Takeoffs and landings at Barra Airport take place on the same sand that people walk on during off-hours. And that's not all: during high tide in the evening, the illumination from the headlights of all passing cars helps the pilot to land the plane. For those who just want to enjoy romantic walk along the beach, warning signs have been placed informing people about all aircraft landings expected in the near future.
Believe it or not, Barra is still officially recognized by the Organization Air Traffic(Air Traffic Organization) international airport and it seems that any logical or rational suggestions are not taken into account by the authorities. We can only hope that they are more aware of all the intricacies of this airport location than we are!
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. It has been the subject of several accidents, including a plane crash in 2008 that killed five passengers. This airport was opened back in 1934, when planes were less powerful and did not need such long runways.
The Tonkotin runway is just over 2,133 meters long and is located in a valley surrounded by mountains. And what’s even more incredible - on this moment The danger of this airport is that it only has one runway and one landing strip for aircraft, which greatly increases the risk of accidents. Despite all these high risk factors, the following airports land at this airport on a daily basis. large planes, like Boeing 757.
3. Tenzing-Hillary Airport
Nepal
The airport was originally called Lukla Airport, but was later renamed Tenzing and Hillary Airport to honor the memory of the first people to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Located in the city of Lukla, Nepal, the airport serves thousands of rock climbers hoping to "conquer" Everest, as well as recreational mountaineers wishing to explore the Everest region.
Among the dangers of this airport are strong winds and heavy clouds - but these are not the worst factors. As with Gustavus III Airport, one end of the Tenzing-Hillary Airport runway ends high terrain, only instead of 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 one occurred on October 12, 2010.
2. Madeira Airport
Portugal
When Madeira International Airport first opened in 1964, each of its two main runways was no more than 1,600 meters long.
After a horrific accident in 1977, in which a Boeing 727 crashed on a rock bridge while landing and ended up on a beach, one of the runways was extended by 200 meters. In the early 2000s, the runway was extended even further and now runs across the beach and is supported by columns.
Even taking into account that the runway has been extended, the most ordinary landing still seems difficult even for the most experienced pilots. Against all their instincts, and in order to set the plane on the correct course for landing, pilots must first point the plane at the vague outline of a mountain top, and then quickly veer to the left to avoid colliding with the mountain.
1. Gibraltar Airport
Gibraltar
Not only is Gibraltar Airport one of the most dangerous airports in the world, but it is also one of the busiest (especially compared to the other dangerous airports on this list). No matter how incredible it may sound, the route of this airport actually passes through main street cities.
Vehicles forced to stop every time a plane lands or takes off. Even more surprising is that there has never been a single major accident here - and we hope that none will happen here.
A large number of people are sincerely afraid of air travel, and everyone has their own reasons for this. People who understand air transport and the features of its management understand perfectly well that the most dangerous thing during flights is performing takeoff and landing operations. Of course, we must not forget about natural factors factors that affect peace of mind during travel, including rocky terrain, mountains, sandy coasts and other features natural landscape, which must be taken into account by the airline crew. Next, the most dangerous airports in the world will be considered, where takeoff and landing maneuvers require special skill and extreme concentration from the crew.
Juancho E. Yrausquin
First on our list air gate are on one of the most beautiful islands Caribbean – Saba. This is perhaps the most dangerous airport in the world, topping the list due to its catastrophically short runway. Its length is equal to approximately 396 meters. However, if this fact can still be somehow reconciled, then the picture is complemented by high cliffs surrounding the landing zone and a 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 of pilots try to avoid this airport. Even professionals don’t risk flying here. Takeoff and landing maneuvers are often quite difficult even for small aircraft. Weather conditions on the island are also sometimes unpredictable. Of course, this situation leads to a significant decrease in the flow of tourists wanting to relax on this island, even despite the beauty and privacy of this paradise.
Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport
Qamdo Bamda
The Tibetan air complex Qamdo Bamda became the height record holder. Its location at 4250 meters exceeds sea level. Taking off and landing at such an altitude is very dangerous, so the airport is equipped with a fairly large runway and landing zone, the duration of which is 3,500 meters. But both large and small aircraft are still allowed to serve here.
Even at sea level, approach speed is 241 km/h. To ensure a safe landing and a complete stop, the average aircraft may need about 1520 meters, but at the altitude at which the Tibetan airfield is located, this distance is at least doubled.
Qamdo Bamda Airport
Gustaf III
The next air hub is located on the Caribbean island of Saint Barthelemy. The conditions here are quite strict for pilots:
- firstly, the takeoff and landing area here has a very narrow corridor, which threatens the planes getting catastrophically close to the hillsides of the local landscape during landing;
- secondly, the length of the airport’s runway is only 640 meters, which is only suitable for small aircraft (up to 20 passengers);
- thirdly, the lane starts at the road junction and ends right at local beach, because of which planes fly directly over the heads of vacationers.
Gustaf III air gate
Ice Runway
You can guess the features of the next runway just by its name alone. It made it onto our list of the 10 most dangerous airports in the world because of its ice cover, and also because unpredictable weather conditions reigning in this area. This strip, located in Antarctica, is used primarily to meet the needs of McMurdo Station. In order to somehow facilitate the task facing the crew, the runway is carefully looked after, turning it into a well-groomed landing area. area of ice and snow. Landing here is complicated by the fact that the pilot needs to calculate whether the ice will break under the weight of the aircraft, and whether the ship will get stuck in the snow. If suddenly the ice here begins to thaw a little, planes are immediately redirected to other Antarctic air hubs.
Ice Runway
Courchevel
Probably everyone has heard about one of the the best ski resorts Europe - Courchevel. It is located in the town of the same name in the French Alps. But this place became famous not only for its excellent conditions for first-class sports recreation. Popular resort has its own airport, located right in the middle of the mountains.
The Courchevel airfield became the main location in one of the legendary Bond films “Tomorrow Never Dies”, in which main character manages to skillfully land the plane on the most dangerous runway.
The air complex was forced to be built on a mountain slope, the slope of which is 18 degrees. But there are other difficulties for pilots:
- hump on the runway;
- The length of the local landing zone is about 530 meters.
Needless to say, flying to Courchevel turns into a very exciting journey. Quite often flights here are canceled due to bad weather conditions.
Courchevel Airport - famous and dangerous
Barra
The unique beach-airport is located in Barra Island (Scotland). This is a unique air complex, the runway of which is beach. It is noteworthy that during high tide it is completely filled with water, so flights must be planned taking into account these natural factors.
The only aid pilots have when landing during night tides is the light from the headlights of passing cars.
In order for vacationers to know about the arrival of planes, special warning signs. The landing here is breathtaking not only for the crew, but also for the local residents.
Unique beach-airport of Barra
Toncontin
The Honduran airport is notorious around the world due to several accidents. The airfield began to serve aircraft in 1934. In those days, aircraft were not so powerful, and they did not require much space to accelerate and take off. The take-off and landing zone of the complex extends 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 for aircraft to take off and land.
Toncontin airport
Tenzing-Hillary
Tenzing-Hillary Airfield is located in eastern Nepal. It caters mainly to climbers: some dream of conquering Everest, while others are simply interested in the region. All guests traveling by plane already on approach understand the dangers of flying and landing in these places. Riots quite often occur in the region strong wind currents and dominate thick cloud cover. It is quite difficult to perform any maneuvers here. In addition, one end of the local runway ends in a sharp drop-off.
Tenzing-Hillary Airfield
Madeira
The danger of the Portuguese airport of Madeira lies in the relatively short length of its runways. Rocks and ocean they literally squeezed the air complex together. The crew of any aircraft during landing faces a very difficult task - first to direct the car towards the mountains, and then to make flip flop before completing the maneuver.
The airport's runway is built on high pillars, and the structure itself resembles a bridge.
The famous Madeira airport
Gibraltar
The Gibraltar air hub deservedly found itself in our top. It is considered not only one of the most dangerous, but also an extremely busy airport in the world. The highlight of this airfield is the location of its runway - it crosses one of the main streets of the city! Every time an airliner takes off or lands, all city traffic has to be completely stopped.
Many pilots believe that the most dangerous stages of a flight are takeoff and landing. But there are airports in the world where lifting a plane into the air and landing it can be scary even for highly professional pilots - they are forced to perform real miracles of maneuvering! Below is a selection highlighting the most dangerous airports in the world.
13. Airport on the island of Madeira in Portugal
It was classified as a dangerous air harbor in the world in 1977, after terrible plane crash, which claimed the lives of 131 people. The runway was too short, and the pilot began landing 300 m beyond the designated point, causing the plane to crash into a mountain.
Work to increase the runway lasted 8 years, and now it has a length of 2777 m. Most of it is an overpass located on reinforced concrete pillars. There are 180 such pillars, all with a diameter of 3 m, some reaching 50 m in height.
Thanks to this engineering solution, it was possible to some extent reduce the danger of landing at the air harbor on the island of Madeira. Although the airfield still continues to be one of the most extreme on the planet, occupying the last, 13th place among them.
In 12th place on this list is Narsarsuaq Airport, standing north of the city Narsaka. It is the most important transport hub in South Greenland and Greenland's only international airfield.
In addition, Narsarsuaq is also a real historical landmark: it appeared in 1941 as an American property. military base Blue West One. Currently, flights are made from this airfield around Greenland, to Copenhagen, and to summer time also to Reykjavik, that is, the path of combat aircraft transported during the Second World War is repeated.
The airfield has one runway, made of concrete slabs - its length is 1830 m and its width is 45 m.
The short length of the runway and the many fjords located very close are not the whole danger. There is increased turbulence in this area, even when there is no usual strong and gusty wind. Only well-trained and experienced professionals are allowed to fly in this region with such extreme climatic conditions.
Bamda is the highest airfield in the world, it is located among the mountains of Tibet, at an altitude of 4334 m above sea level.
The runway is no less shocking than the height: it is the longest in the world among civil airports - 5500 m. This length of the runway may seem excessive, but given the increased rarefaction of the air, this indicator is extremely important. Due to the increased rarefaction of air, which is observed high in the mountains, the operation of the engines becomes significantly more difficult and the thrust force decreases, and this, in turn, does not allow the aircraft to quickly take off. This is the main reason why Bamda is ranked 11th in the ranking of the most difficult airports in the world to land and take off.
10. Ice runway at Novolazarevskaya station in Antarctica
In 1961, the Soviet Antarctic station Novolazarevskaya was established on the coast of Dronning Maud Land, approximately 80 km from the Lazarev Sea.
In 1979, 12 km south of it, an airfield was built to receive the Il-76. The airfield is one of the largest in Antarctica; it is equipped with concrete parking lots and routes for takeoffs and landings.
It is the 10th most dangerous and terrible on our planet. Particularly dangerous are mainly extreme climatic conditions, not the location of the airport. A real and truly scary problem can be the weight of the plane - a huge machine can break through ice or load in soft snow cover.
9. Princess Juliana Airport on the island of St. Martin in the Netherlands
Another one of the most terrible airfields in the world is Princess Juliana International Airport. The end of its runway is located close to Maho Beach, popular among vacationers.
When landing, planes fly low over the beach (10-20 m), almost hitting the tourists vacationing there. Magnificent photos of one of the most dangerous airports in the world and vivid impressions from the sight of huge colossuses flying overhead are guaranteed.
Takeoffs here are just as extreme and difficult: the pilot is forced to make a sharp U-shaped turn to avoid a collision with a rock facing the direction.
The shock wave from the engines is so powerful that it literally knocks down many curious extreme sports enthusiasts watching the flights from Maho Beach.
The next, 8th on the list, of the most terrible airports in the world is Toncontin, operating in Honduras, in the capital city of Tegucigalpa.
The airfield was built in a valley surrounded by mountains. The runways are located at an altitude of 1005 m above sea level, their length does not exceed 2163 m. Since these routes are very short and laid close to the mountains, aircraft have to overcome the mountains at an angle of 45°. An additional difficulty is created by the winds, which force adjustments to be made literally at the last moments.
In the spring of 2008, a TACA aircraft failed to stay on the runway and crashed into cars standing on the embankment, destroying several of them. At the same time, 65 people were injured, 5 died. And this is not the first terrible disaster at Toncontin airport: in the fall of 1989, a TAN-SAHSA Boeing crashed into a rock during landing. There were a lot of victims in this disaster - out of 146 people on board, 131 died.
Despite such dire risk factors, this extreme airfield receives many flights every day.
7. Kansai Airport in Japan
Kansai International Airport is an ensemble of buildings built right in the sea, on an artificially constructed island in Osaka Bay not far from the city of Osaka. The length of the island is 4 km, width 2.5 km.
Unfortunately, even Japanese engineers failed to calculate the terrible rate at which Kansai would sink under water: in 1994 alone, the island sank by 50 cm. Now this rate has decreased significantly, but for this it was necessary to resort to active actions and additionally spend billions of dollars .
Kansai, a true masterpiece of engineering, ranks 7th among the most dangerous airports in the world.
Gustaf III Airport, also known as Saint Barthelemy, is located in the waters Caribbean Sea, on the island of Saint Barthélemy.
The runway is only 650 m long, and it is built in an incredibly narrow corridor, limited on the sides by rocks. During landing, aircraft approach the mountain slopes extremely close, which poses the risk of falling straight into the ocean.
Gustaf III is a well-deserved 6th place among airports with terrible landing conditions.
5. Courchevel Airport in France
The next airport recognized worldwide as scary and dangerous is Courchevel, serving the French resort of the same name.
The airport is located among the mountains, at an altitude of 2000 m above sea level. This air harbor has an extremely short runway - its length is 525 m, and the slope is 18.5°.
The functionality of the airport is also limited by technical conditions due to the lack of an approach scheme using navigation instruments. This leads to the fact that landing during fog or low clouds is completely impossible here.
By the way, extreme Courchevel became famous all over the world thanks to the film “Tomorrow Never Dies.” There is a scene in the film when James Bond lands a plane on a dangerous and even scary landing strip of this small airport in France.
4. Tenzing and Hillary Airport in Nepal
In eastern Nepal there is a dangerous and extreme airport, occupying the 4th position in the ranking - this is the airport named after Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary, who gained world fame as the first conquerors of Everest. Until 2008, the airfield was known as Lukla Airport.
The runway, which is only 527 m long, is located at a slope of 12° - because of this, its ends have a 60 m difference in height. The difficult terrain is the reason that one end of the runway, located on the edge of a cliff 700 m deep, is used for landings, and another, located at the foot of a ridge 4000 m high, is used for takeoffs.
An additional and very terrible danger here is created by thick clouds and strong winds.
This air port earned the title of “the most extreme airport in the world” for one more reason: takeoffs and landings are carried out only using VFR, since of all the known navigation systems only a radio station is used here.
Matekane Airstrip is the name given to the airport in the Kingdom of Lesotho. In principle, this is not an airport at all in the sense that people around the world are familiar with: on a mountain plateau there is a 400 m long runway ending in a cliff 600 m deep.
It is rare that a flying vehicle can accelerate and rise to altitude before this streak ends. During the development of the project, engineers assumed that in order to gain the required altitude during takeoff, the planes would go into free fall.
In 2009, local and international air travel was prohibited at this extreme airport. But this dangerous and extreme airport continues to be used today for private small aviation flights.
Its place among the world's airports with the most terrible conditions for flights – 3.
2. Juancho Irausquin Airport on Saba Island in the Netherlands
Juancho Irauskin, intended for international flights, is the most dangerous airport in the world near the sea and 2nd in the ranking of the most extreme. It is located among the waters of the Caribbean Sea, on the island of Saba, and is designed to land only three types of aircraft.
Windward Islands Airways This airfield has the world’s shortest runway (about 400 m), surrounded by steep cliffs and the sea. Adding to the difficulty is a very strong wind, which also constantly changes its direction.
Flights are performed only by the crews of the local airline Windward Islands Airways, who have undergone special training. Juancho-Irausquin is closed for private flights, because the slightest mistake during takeoff or landing will lead to dire consequences!
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1. Paro Airport in the Kingdom of Bhutan
Paro Airport is located 6 km from the city of Paro, in a small valley of the Paro river, surrounded by mountain peaks The Himalayas are 5 km high.
The location was the reason why this Harbour Air recognized as the most extreme in the world for landings, because the crew has to make incredible turns among the mountains. The take-off is no less scary and dangerous: the plane flies in a spiral directly above the airport, gradually gaining altitude and rising above the Himalayas. Such tricks are only possible during the day and only in good weather conditions.
Around the world, only a few pilots (according to various sources, this ranges from 8 to 25 professionals) are licensed and permitted to perform such fast and extreme maneuvers in dangerous conditions.
Paro Airport in Bhutan is a leader in the list of “most dangerous airports in the world.”
What does landing at the world's scariest airports look like through the eyes of a pilot? Watch the video if you are not afraid of shaking your nervous system.
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Juancho Irausquin Airport is located on the island of Saba, which is part of the Lesser Antilles archipelago. Geographically, Saba is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands with broad autonomous powers. The geography and topography of the island are such that there are no convenient bays for mooring ships, and the shores are steep and inaccessible. Therefore alternatives aviation transport actually not here. The airport's runway is quite narrow; it is built on a tiny flat area near the coast. The overhanging rocks close to the forest on one side and the open sea on the other make it difficult to land and take off. The length of the strip does not exceed three hundred meters. Only light aircraft, flown exclusively by experienced pilots, can take off and land here.
Qamdo Bamda Airport is located in Chamdo County in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It is the highest airport in the world, its altitude above sea level is 4334 meters. The highlands of Tibet are a rather inaccessible place, and getting here other than by plane is almost impossible. The airport's runway is approximately 3,500 meters. For an ordinary airport, this is more than enough, but for Kamdo Banda, located in the highlands, this is a minuscule amount, which is unlikely to allow the plane to slow down during landing in thin air conditions. That’s why they fly here exclusively small planes with a small number of passengers.
Gustav III Airport is located on French island Saint Barthelemy (Saint Barth) is part of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. The whole danger of the airport is that the corridor with the runway is very narrow, and when landing, planes have to approach dangerously close to the hillsides, at the risk of falling into the ocean on the other side.
This airport located in this picturesque French mountain resort. The danger of Courchevel airport is that its runway is surrounded on all sides by the mountain spurs of the Alps, which allows small aircraft to fly here with highly qualified pilots.
This airport is located on the island of the same name as part of the archipelago of the same name in the Northeast Atlantic, which is a territorial component of Portugal. Madeira Airport's two main runways are only 860 meters long. The airport and its stripes are sandwiched between the waters of the Atlantic and the mountains. Airplane pilots must approach the landing, first pointing their aircraft at the mountains, and then turn sharply to the right at the very last moment.
Our review did not include airports in Nepal, Gibraltar and Honduras, where the main components of their danger are either the high altitude or mountainous terrain, or the limited area on which their runways are located.