7 most unusual airports in the world

Move quickly from one point on the Earth todayto another is not difficult - just buy a plane ticket. Thousands of aircraft fly over our heads every day, at different heights and at different speeds. And so that each of them can successfully take off and land, tens of thousands of airports have been built on our planet. They consist of runways (runways), an air terminal and other structures necessary to provide a comfortable environment for passengers, as well as refueling and aircraft maintenance. They are all different and there are some very unusual structures among them. Some of them are very short and accessible only to experienced pilots, and some are designed so that planes fly 10 meters above people's heads. As part of this article, I suggest you consider the most unusual airports in the world. Believe me, there is something to see.

Some airports serve 100 million people daily

Content

• 1 Airport structure
• 2 How many planes are there in the sky?
• 3 Most unusual airports
  • 3.1 Largest airport
  • 3.2 Airport with railway
  • 3.3 Most dangerous airport
  • 3.4 Airport with shortest lane
  • 3.5 Airport with road
  • 3.6 The harshest airport
  • 3.7 Airport in Antarctica

Airport construction

As mentioned above, there are dozens ofthousands of airports. The largest number of runways is in the United States - there are more than 13 thousand of them. It should be borne in mind that this number includes both passenger airports and military bases. There are 1,218 runways in Russia, of which only 241 are civilian. These data were relevant in 2013, and during this time the number of airports could increase, because they are being built regularly. According to Kuban news, in August 2020, the construction of an airport in Krasnodar was to begin. The first stage will last until 2023 and within its framework, an airport terminal worth 11 billion rubles, a cargo terminal, a fire station and other facilities will be built.

The runways are usually paved with asphalt

Airports differ from each other, but all haveseveral structures that are impossible to do without. The most important object, of course, is the runway. The length of the runway is always different and amounts to from 300 to 5500 meters... There are also aprons where passengers sit downon and off planes. Also, do not forget about parking lots, warehouses and air traffic control complexes. In short, nearly every airport is a complex system that costs millions of dollars to build. And thousands of people work in them.

Airport aerial view

How many planes are there in the sky?

All airports in the world communicate with each other, becausethat otherwise the planes would run the risk of colliding with each other. Thanks to the communication of airports, we can always find out how many planes are in the sky at any given time. On average, 25 thousand planes fly into the sky every day. At the same time, there are usually about 12 thousand flying objects in the sky. According to statistics for 2017, airlines fly 60 million flights annually. You can see which plane is flying over you right now on the Flightradar24 website. Find your city and click on the aircraft icon, if there is one - you will see a photo of the aircraft and information about its route.

Flightradar24 website screenshot

The most unusual airports

Despite the fact that all airports are generally similaron top of each other, some of them are very different. Yes, they have almost everything that the others have, but the workload, location and other features of some make them stand out from the general background.

If you are interested in the news of science and technology, subscribe to our Telegram channel. There you will find announcements of the latest news from our site!

Largest airport

There are many large airports on our planet, you can count a dozen. But it stands out especially among them airport "Dubai"located in the United Arab Emirates. Sources indicate a different area, but in general we can say that its area exceeds 2 million square kilometers. The airport works with 90 airlines and flies to 40 destinations in six continents. It serves 90 million passengers annually and transports 2.5 million tons of cargo.

Dubai airport

Dubai Airport consists of three terminals,the last of which is unquestionably the largest in the world. The area of ​​the third terminal is over a million square kilometers and it consists of two buildings. On its territory there is everything you need to provide passengers with comfortable conditions. For example, the third terminal has a five-star hotel, entertainment centers and fitness rooms. But not everyone can get there, but only customers of Emirates. You can get around the huge terminal by free shuttles and a small metro.

Interior of the airport "Dubai"

Airport with railway

Now let's talk about the truly unusualairports. In the north of New Zealand there is a small city of Gisborne, which is equipped with an airport. Since there are no major settlements nearby, planes land at this airport very rarely. And if they land, then they are small, because the airport runway is very narrow. Perhaps, except for local residents, no one would have known about its existence, if not for one peculiarity. Across the runway where planes travel railway passes... And it has been working for a long time, so airplane pilots sometimes have to make circles and wait for a moving train to cross the lane.

Unusual airport in New Zealand

Most dangerous airport

And one of the most dangerous airports is located onterritory of the Caribbean island of St. Martin. Worldwide, it is best known as the Princess Juliana Airport. It was built during the Second World War. It was then that an airfield was built on the island, which eventually became the basis of a full-fledged airport. One end of the runway is located right next to Maho Beach. It turns out that during landing, planes fly over the heads of tourists at a distance only about 10 meters... In general, the island of St. Martin can be considereda great place for both relaxation and thrill. Surprisingly, no emergencies related to the dangerous airport were recorded.

Plane landing on St. Martin's Island

Airport with shortest lane

About 46 kilometers from the abovethe island of St. Martin is the island of Saba. The Khancho-Irauskin airport located on its territory also has one interesting feature. It lies in the fact that the length of the runway is only 300 meters... Pilots have very little time tobraking, so only experienced pilots of small aircraft sit on the island. Due to its peculiarity, it is also included in the list of the most dangerous airports.

Juancho Irauskin airport

Airport with road

In the small British territory of Gibraltar, there is another airport that can tickle your nerves. Its runway is crossed by a wide highway, which is considered the main one in this area. When an airplane takes off or prepares to land, the path is blocked and motorists have to wait several minutes to make way for the planes. Of course, the road is closed in advance so that there is no car left in the way of the huge aircraft. Most often, military aircraft take off from there, but sometimes civilian flights are also made.

Gibraltar airport

See also: Airports contribute to the spread of infections, but how to stop it?

The harshest airport

As we know, there is a ski resort in FranceCourchevel. It is also equipped with an airport, but it is very very harsh and only the most dangerous pilots can land on it. And all because the length of its runway is only 525 meters... Moreover, it is not even, but has an 18% slope... Passengers of airplanes who land inthis place is clearly not easy. But they have the opportunity to admire the Alpine beauty and visit the place where the film "Tomorrow Never Dies" about agent James Bond was filmed.

Courchevel airport

Airport in Antarctica

Well, you can complete the list with a story aboutIce Runway airport located in the cold Antarctic. There is no asphalt or sand on the runway - only ice with a layer of snow. If a plane is to land in Antarctica, the strip has to be cleared of the snow layer. Typically, aircraft are used to deliver cargo and passengers to McMurdo Station in Antarctica. Airplanes are always risk falling under the ice, but the runway managedeven large aircraft such as the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy can land successfully. The strip is always closed at the beginning of December, because it is at this time that the ice begins to break.

Lockheed C-5B Galaxy aircraft at Ice Runway Airport

Recently, my colleague Artem Sutyagin talked aboutthe most famous aircraft in the world. It is called Concorde, but its operation has long been stopped. You can read more about this aircraft in this article.