The huge part of the world where planes don't fly over for terrifying reason - not Russia
Planes never fly over this huge part of Asia - for a very practical reason.
The Tibetan Plateau, sometimes referred to as “the Roof of the World”, is located at the intersection of Central, South and East Asia and is the world’s highest and largest plateau above sea level.
It has an average elevation of over 4,500 metres and an area of 2,500,000 square kilometres, covering most of the Tibet Autonomous Region. The size of it makes it bigger than Saudi Arabia and over 10 times bigger than the UK.
Planes avoid flying over the Tibetan Plateau for various reasons most of them having to do with safety precautions.
Don't miss... Planes avoid this remote area of the world for three chilling reasons [LATEST]
First, the area is home to some of the world’s highest mountains, including Mount Everest, which is over 8,880 metres high.
Aircraft usually fly at an elevation of 10,000 metres, but in case of emergencies, they must descend to 3,000 metres, which would be impossible since the highest mountain in the area is over double that height.
Additionally, the Plateau experiences unpredictable weather conditions, including strong winds and turbulence, which makes it extremely unsafe to fly over. The area has tens of thousands of glaciers, even being named the “Third Pole” because its ice fields have the largest reserve of fresh water outside the polar regions.
Don't miss...
Inside the world's 'most dangerous airport' where one error would mean disaster [REVEAL]
Overcrowding and 'traffic jams' at 8k above sea level hit world's highest peak [INSIGHT]
The beautiful mountain that sits in one of China's mysterious 'forbidden' zones [MAPPED]
Tibet, where the plateau covers, only has five airports meaning the area is unsuitable for emergency landing. Emergency landings involve forced diversion to the nearest or most suitable airport or airbase; therefore, doing this would be challenging.
While it is not completely impossible to fly over the region, its features make it extremely risky, especially if an emergency were to occur during the flight, which is the terrifying reason why plenty of planes decide to make a detour.
