1. Kai Tak Airport - Hong Kong

Although discontinued in 1998, Kai Tak was once the most dangerous airport in the world. With skyscrapers blocking runways and a harbor at the end of the runway, landings became hard to the extent that pilots could no longer see the runway clearly.

The nearby mountains caused winds that crossed area further complicating landings. Pilots had to not only be skilled, but also brave enough to land at the airport. 

2. Agatti Airport - India

This airport sits on an archipelago off India’s west coast and has a short runway that serves over 35 island destinations. In addition to the short runway, there is only narrow strips of land on both sides of the runway and pilots have to position planes careful at the center, in addition to landing and taking off the short runway. The runway is 98 feet wide and 3,950 feet long. Plans to expand the airport by erecting a bridge to the nearby island faced environmental challenges in 2010.

3. Barra Airport - Scotland

This airport is the only public beach runway in the world. The three runways are visible during low tides and submerged during high tides, even though the airport has an elevation of five feet above the sea level. Although rare, night landings are possible through the use of motor vehicle lights to enable pilots to see the runway. The three runways form a triangle and are marked using wooden poles at the corners to guide planes.

4. Damascus Airport - Syria

Unlike the other airports on this list, Damascus International Airport has no problematic terrain or weather, however, the never-ending civil war and occasional international incidences near this airport make it dangerous. There have been several fighting and killings near the area making the airport only occasionally operational. Surface to air missiles and fighter planes are common around the airport.

5. Juancho Airport - Saba island

This airport is in the Dutch territory of Saba Island in the Caribbean and has one of the shortest runways for commercial flights, measuring 1,312 feet long. Hills on two sides and cliffs dipping into the sea at both ends of the runway sandwich the runway. With the total island area being a mere five square miles, pilots must be careful to miss the hills, and on landing and taking off, avoid falling into the sea.

6. Narsarsuaq Airport - Greenland

Greenland has extreme weather and this airport has ice covering most part of the year. In addition to the ice, the area experiences low visibility, strong winds, and storms, making it a real challenge for pilots to land and take-off. There is an active volcanic feature near the airport that clouds the area in volcanic ash further causing visibility challenges and has a risk of damaging an aircraft. 

7. Futenma, Okinawa - Japan 

Marine Corps Air Station Futenma is a strategic US air station in Okinawa. The first thing that makes the station dangerous is that it is on a small island and the surrounding area has a dense population. In case of an emergency, the surrounding settlements would prove a challenge to evacuate, therefore, potentially leading to serious consequences. The runway is 8,990 feet long and 148 feet wide. Pilots have to land and take-off dangerously close to houses. This risk along with other factors contribute to the never-ending discussion on the station’s relocation.

8. Madeira Airport - Portugal

Also called Cristiano Ronaldo Madeira International Airport, this facility has a platform extension on an artificial island to increase its size. Close to 180 pillars hold the platform in place. This fourth biggest airport in also experiences strong winds that increase the risk of landing on the narrow platform. To land on this extreme airports, pilots must undergo extra training. The ocean and mountains surround this airport that engineers have extended twice since 1982.

9. McMurdo Air station - Antarctica

Although this airport has plenty of space and no obstructing structures, the ice surface that lasts most parts of the year requires perfect landing. The location has no electricity and also experiences darkness for most of the year due to the movement of the earth, therefore, pilots land using night vision glasses. In 1960, a US Navy plane crashed while landing leading to the injury of the crew, however, they were unable to recover the plane and it sank after the ice melted. 

10. Gibraltar International - Gibraltar

This airport is a military and civilian airport in the British Overseas territory of Gibraltar. Winston Churchill Avenue, the main road connecting Gibraltar to Spain, passes through the runway and usually closes when a plane lands or departs. Although there is a stop sign for cars, there have been several near collisions. Secondly, the runway experiences strong crosswinds that make landing more difficult during winters. To increase its length, part of the runway sits on land reclaimed from the sea.