This runway makes for a harrowing takeoff, with the end 2,900 meters up in the air.īoeing 757s land and take off from this airport all the time. Only fit for the smallest of planes, and even they often come VERY close to falling over the edge. Old Mariscal Sucre International Airport, EcuadorĬlosed last year for being too dangerous, it was beset by mountainous terrain, active volcanoes, and a valley prone to fog.Wow.Īt 14,000 feet, the thin oxygen often plays extreme havoc with engines, leaving pilots and passengers scared out of their minds. With only eight pilots qualified to land at this Himalayan airport, it’s no wonder passengers take anti-anxiety meds before landing. One of the most difficult approaches in the world, it requires flying up a fjord with severe turbulence and wind shear even on the calmest days of the year. It’s pretty easy to see why it’s so dangerous with an elevated (and artificial) runway Los Angeles International has been ranked multiple times throughout the years as the most dangerous airport in the U.S. Large enough to be viewed from space, it faces earthquakes, cyclones, and an unstable seabed. Once called “the mother of all scary airports,” it was shut down in 1998 after pilots couldn’t stand it anymore. This airport is within the archipelago of the Svalbard which is a cluster of Norwegian islands that sits in the Arctic Ocean.
This was developed to allow passenger Boeing jets to land instead of taking up room on cargo planes. One of three major airstrips used to haul supplies and researchers to Antarctica’s McMurdo Station. This runway is so small that planes can only carry a maximum of 20 people. Unique because it has a regular freight train rolling through it every day! With a major road running through the middle, traffic has to stop for every plane that lands. Gibraltar International Airport, Gibraltar.King Fahd International is the largest airport in the world in terms of landmass, sprawling over three hundred square miles of desert. Dammam King Fahd International Airport, Saudi Arabia.Serving the uber rich who want to ski the Alps, this incredibly short runway has a ski mogul in the middle of it. Apparently pilots need strong doses of alcohol after their flight to calm themselves down. Located just 5 miles from the center of downtown São Paulo. Constantly up for a potential extension (it’s only 4,000 feet long), planes have to risk the short runway to serve the local 36 Indian tourist islands.īarra International Airport is the only airport on the planet where scheduled flights use a beach as the runway.