Flying has become such an indispensable form of transport, that almost every country in the world has at least one airport. In fact, it is estimated there are over 40,000, a huge number that reflects the popularity and importance of air travel.
Global passenger volume reached a whopping 9.5 billion last year alone, a rise of 104% since 2019, as the industry recovers from the Covid slump. Among the collecation of airports around the globe, is one that is considered the most dangerous – a reputation it appears to have well-earned. Lukla Airport is located in a small town at the foot of Mount Everest – the world’s tallest mountain.
It was originally opened in 1971 and is extensively used by climbers hoping to conquer the mountain. The airport was renamed Tenzing Hillary Airport in 2008 in honour of the first two climbers to scale the heights of Mount Everest – Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. Sitting at 2,900 metres above sea level, it is surrounded by tall mountains on one side and steep cliff drops on the other.
The opening of the airport has made it simpler and quicker for climbers to get to their Everest base camp. Before it was opened, people had to drive to Jiri and then walk for about 18 days to reach their destination.
Nowadays, Lukla is just a quick hop on a plane from Nepal’s capital Kathmandu – to be more precise a 30 to 40 minute flight. But it is not for the faint-heartened.
The asphalt runway is only 527 metres long and 20 metres wide with a 12 degrees slope from north to south.
This makes it four times smaller than typical airport runways, meaning pilots get just one chance to safely take off and land their plane. The unpredictable weather – which can change ion a mater of minutes – can make things even more challenging for pilots, with cancellations frequent.
The airport lacks advanced equipment such as radar and air navigation systems. Also the high altitude can make the plane harder to handle due to low air pressure.
Unfortunately, the airport has seen its fair share of deadly plane crashes, that have claimed a n umber of lives. In 2008, a de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300 operated by Yeti Airlines crashed, with only the pilot emerging from the wreckage alive.