[video] Landing an A320 in Paro, Bhutan

[mattx]

Reckoned to be among the most challenging airports to operate at, the runway sits in a bend of a river valley. No autopilot here, you're flying this by hand...

Remind me never to fly here as I would poo poo my pants.

 

 

6:59 - In addition to flying a difficult approach, the pilot has to deal with the electronic voice calling him a retard...

[crc-ict]

That's epic! Whoever thought that was a good place for a runway though!

 

Steel spheres certainly needed by the looks of it.

[BassTech]

Wow! Imagine living in one of the houses at 6:36! Very skilled pilot here, insane that they're even allowed to attempt such a landing in a plane of this size and weight, one slight mistake and you're in trouble!

[Oaktech]

Jeeeeesus wept...

[HallX]

You guys obviously don't remember Hong Kongs' Kai Tak airport (closed in 1998) and the "checkerboard mountain" approach. Do a search on youtube.

[Oaktech]

[computer_expert]

Wow! Imagine living in one of the houses at 6:36! Very skilled pilot here, insane that they're even allowed to attempt such a landing in a plane of this size and weight, one slight mistake and you're in trouble!

 

I think the houses are a navigational aid...

 

I also read somewhere that the A320 is the largest aircraft certified to land at that airport.

[mattx]

I've been to Gibraltar - [ this was back in 1999 ] I was part of a Y2K team and had to check out their systems. Anyhoo - it wasn't the landing that made me poo my pants, it was the taking off......over the sea.....

Also when you come into land, they shut the main road as that's part of the runway. I'm not a good person to fly with and this year I'm going to be really knocking up the Air Miles. So it's lots of stiff drinks for me before I get on the things.......

[Andrew_C]

That is pretty hairy! The view back up the flightpath makes it look near impossible for such a large plane.

[PiqueABoo]

Madeira in the late 90s, didn't have the slightest clue it would be anything other than mundane, but that turned out to be a fast captivating experience in a kind of seriously turbulent imminent collision with volcanic mountain averted at the last moment by a rapid lurch to the side followed by a somewhat wobbly slam down onto the short runway for some pretty heavy braking to avoid an imminent drop into the Atlantic accompanied by many passenger screams of genuine terror.. way. [by-and-by there was lots of applause]

 

I guess some of that might still apply but think they've added something like a km to the runway length since then, which feels like a loss.