Colorado is Home to the Most Dangerous Airports in the World

So far, 2023 hasn't been exactly kind to the famous Colorado ski towns of Aspen and Telluride. In fact, you may remember hearing about both of these towns losing a total of 19 businesses this year with 69 employees losing their jobs by the end of the ski season.

While this is an unfortunate statistic, another report shows that these two towns do not only have the most dangerous airports in Colorado but are among the 16 most dangerous in the entire world.

Keep scrolling to find out what makes them so dangerous and what the other 14 dangerous airports on the list are.

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Colorado's Most Dangerous Airports: Aspen/Pitkin County Airport

The Aspen/Pitkin County Airport is located at 233 Airport Rd, Aspen, CO 81611 and because of where it is located, is not suited for anything short of expert pilots to fly in or out of.

As you can see, the sole runway at the Aspen airport is uncomfortably close to large mountains:

Because of this, pilots that fly in or out of the airport must have special training.

Colorado's Most Dangerous Airports: Telluride Regional Airport

Another dangerous Colorado airport is Telluride Regional Airport, located at 1500 Last Dollar Rd, Telluride, CO 81435.

Telluride's airport is the highest in the nation and like Aspen, only has a single runway.

The biggest reason that Telluride Regional Airport is considered so dangerous is the fact that it's basically located in a valley with steep cliffs on either side, which isn't the most attractive for pilots. To boot, Telluride experiences strong winds that make a pilot's job even more difficult.

What Are the Other Most Dangerous Airports in the World?

According to a Readers Digest report, the only other airport in America to crack the top 16 most dangerous is Bert Mooney Airport in Butte, Montana.

The other airports that made the list include Lukla Airport in Nepal, Toncontin Airport in Honduras, Princess Juliana International Airport in St. Maarten, Paro Airport in Bhutan, Narsarsuaq Airport in Greenland, Madeira Airport in Portugal, Courchevel Airport in France, Gibraltar Airport, Gisborne Airport in New Zealand, MCAS Futenma in Japan, Saba Airport in the Caribbean, Congonhas Airport in Brazil, and Svalbard Airport in Norway.

[Readers Digest]