Just read this article which details some very awkward places to land at.
I’ve wandered across the runway at Gibraltar,but that’s the nearest I’ve been to a scary airport ( apart from thinking I could reach out and touch washing on balconies near the old Kai Tak ).
Has anyone had experience of landing at these places,or have any other airports to add to the list ?
I must say I’ve been pretty relieved to get my feet on the ground again at Queenstown in New Zealand:)
By: Levsha - 20th March 2011 at 14:32
I’ve been to Madeira 3 times and never had even a slightly weird landing, although the conditions haven’t been particularly bad when we’ve landed. My home airport is Leeds Bradford; it’s the highest commercial airport in the UK and has, shall we say, the odd crosswind. I think almost all the worst landings I’ve ever had have been there!
I’d have to agree with you there about Leeds-Bradford.
I went to university in Leeds and one day returning from Ireland: DUB – LBA on a Ryanscare B737-200 (around 1999-2000) I made possibly the weirdest landing. It was the first time I’d ever heard “revving” noises coming from a plane and we could feel the plane yawing from left to right, followed by a massive bang when the pilot put it down in the heaviest landing I’ve ever been in.
I could barely walk down the open steps and cross the tarmac with the wind…
By: PMN - 20th March 2011 at 13:05
To be honest I’d rather see a golfer than see grass growing through cracks in the runway like there is at Murmansk in Russia, that was an interesting sight! Incredibly smooth landing though. 😀
By: T5 - 20th March 2011 at 12:55
I have been to Gibraltar, Madeira and Don Muang in Bangkok and can’t say that any of my experiences have been out of the ordinary. In Bangkok, however, it was always pretty strange flying in and seeing a handful of golfers staring up at you as the aircraft taxied off of the runway.
By: Firebex - 19th March 2011 at 19:06
there was a facinating programme on the box around christmas that listed the top 20 most dangerous airports.Gibraltar was one of them as was about three in the carabean but the most scary airport in the world is the airport used by backpackers and climbers going to mount everest.It has something like a 3,000 FOOT DROP ON FINALS AND IT STOPS ABRUPTLY AT A ROCK FACE OH AND i FORGOT IT GOES UP HILL AT A CRAZY ANGLE.:diablo:
You land going up hill and have to stop in time so you dont run into the wall and taking off you turn around and go down hill at a great rate of knots,if you dont get airbourne then it is definately down hill all the way !!!!!
By: Pacific flyer - 19th March 2011 at 09:53
Pussies. Try landing on a short sloping strip 7,000 feet above sea level (where the thin air robs performance) and dodging tropical weather on the way.
These guys know what they are doing – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYY9s8KKDDs
By: ThreeSpool - 19th March 2011 at 07:55
I am surprised Toncontin isn’t on that list. Arguably, the most dangerous airport in the world.
By: PMN - 18th March 2011 at 22:44
I’ve been to Madeira 3 times and never had even a slightly weird landing, although the conditions haven’t been particularly bad when we’ve landed. My home airport is Leeds Bradford; it’s the highest commercial airport in the UK and has, shall we say, the odd crosswind. I think almost all the worst landings I’ve ever had have been there!
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March 18, 2011 at 10:25 pm