We all love to travel and while most of our journeys are by air we
tend to enjoy that. True enough, landing and take off in a jet plane is
fun experience but if you have been to one of the following airports, I
am sure you beg to differ. This lists brings for you the ten most
dangerous airports to land in. The reasons include the length of the air
strip, the location, the winds etc. Believe me, that heavy thud when
the air plane touches the ground is nothing compared to what the pilot
and the passengers go through while landing on one of the following air
strips.
This is perhaps one of the busiest airports in the Caribbean. United
States Airline, KLM Royal Dutch and Corsairfly are usual users of the
airport. The air strip is about 7,152 feet long and was built for
smaller planes to land on but it still used by 747s and A340s. The air
strip is located right next to the beach, so if you are sun-bathing and
tall, make sure to not stand up. It can be very dangerous with the
strong gushes of wind. Also, you need to stay clear of the engine
exhaust. It can blow you away, literally.
American Airlines, Aerolineas Sosa, TACA, Copa Airlines, and Islena
Airlines usually land at this strip while on their way to Honduras. This
is a mountainous region, so the plane is really close to the mountain
tops when preparing to land but that’s not all. Right before touchdown,
the pilot has to bank towards the left at a 45 degree angel in order to
make it down safe and clear. A moment of hesitation can turn out to be
disaster. The landing strip is a total of 6,112 feet.
The landing strip is only 6,000 feet long and it lies between the
Mediterranean and the Bay of Gibraltar. If the pilot miscalculates while
landing the only place for you to end up in is the water and upon touch
down, the brakes must be pulled in full in order to stop in time
otherwise the strip finishes and its curtains. Imagine all this
precision landing in a really bad weather and you will understand why
Gibraltar made it to the eighth spot.
The pilot needs to fly the plane directly at the mountain and then
make a turn towards the right at the eleventh hour in order to line the
plane up with the air strip. The air strip is 9000 feet long and back in
the year 2000 it was even shorter. Most of the European airlines use
this air strip. The scary part is the mountains and the timing of the
turn. If the pilot is careless or loses focus for even a second, the
plane will hit the mountains and I’m sure you can imagine what happens
after that.
The scariest part about this run way is the length. At only 1,300
feet, a slight miscalculation and the plane is done for. It doesn’t
matter how big or small the plane is, 1,300 is a very small number when
you consider landing a plane. The strong winds also need to be
considered here since its practically an island and I’m sure you have
seen the videos where the plane is thrown off balance because of the
cross-winds. Fall short of the run way and the plane hits the cliffs, go
deep into the runaway and the plane will end up in the ocean. So the
pilot has to be really focused and in total control.
The only real danger when you consider the John F. Kennedy Airport is
the large amount of air traffic. The pilot needs to be very precise
with the route he takes and miscalculations is not an option. With so
many planes flying in from many directions a moment of hesitation can
drive not only your plane but also the ones around you to disaster.
Another problem is the visibility at only 5 miles. Considering the
amount of traffic, 5 miles is not enough so a close contact over the
radio is necessary. A moment of static and its all over.
This airport only allows daytime landings and the problem with that
is the strong gushes of wind blow from the Himalayas close by. The
runway for the landing is uphill while its the exact opposite for the
take off. The pilot cannot fall short of the runway and definitely not
go deep. Perfect control over the air plane is required for the pilot
land and there is no room for mistakes.
This air strip is only 1,722 feet long with a vertical drop as soon
as it ends. Landing at this airport is not every pilot’s cup of tea and
one needs special training to be eligible to land a plane at Courchevel.
But even with that training one cannot predict the winds and snow.
Folks, let me tell you once again how dangerous these crosswinds are –
very.
Tioman Island is a volcanic Island in the South China Sea. Before
landing the plane is pointing directly at mountains and the pilot needs
to do a ninety degree turn to come in line with the air strip. The
cherry on top is that the run way has a mountain at its end. So once
again, the pilot cannot possibly take it short or deep, instead the
plane has to hit the dot on the first attempt.
The air strip in this airport is only 1,312 feet long. Matekane air
strip is located at the edge of a 7,550 feet high mountainous corridor.
As soon as you take off this strip, you are over the edge and you’re
instantly about 7,600 feet high in the air. So you think the landing
might be easier? Consider this, if the speed of the plane is slowed down
before schedule, you’ll hit the couloir and if the pilot shoots ahead,
the strip is not long enough for the plane to stop. Heart stopping? I
think so.
10. PRINCESS JULIANA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, ST. MAARTEN
9. TONCONTIN AIRPORT, HONDURAS
8. GIBRALTAR AIRPORT, GIBRALTAR
7. MADEIRA AIRPORT, FUNCHAL
6. JUANCHO E. YRAUSQUIN AIRPORT, ANTILLES
5. JFK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, NEW YORK
4. TENZING-HILLARY AIRPORT, NEPAL
3. COURCHEVEL AIRPORT, FRANCE
2. TIOMAN ISLAND, MALAYSIA
1. MATEKANE AIR STRIP, LESOTHO