Despite the fact that air travel is widely touted as one of the safest modes of transportation,

statistically speaking, 40% of Americans still have a fear of flying.

But even for the remaining 60%, there are some places on our planet that strike fear and unease into the hearts of anyone who flies over them.

From copter-sucking craters to the riskiest runways on Earth,

fasten your seatbelts as we take a trip to some of the most dangerous

and forbidden places planes don't want to fly over.

You're listening. You're listening. You're listening to be amazed.

It's estimated that there are around 9,728 commercial planes flying in the air at any given time.

And if, including military, cargo, and private airplanes, too, that number could be as high as 17,500.

In fact, if you look at an online flight tracker, you'll be able to see exactly where every commercial

plane is in the sky right now. Pretty crazy, right? However, you might notice that there are a few spots where there are absolutely zero planes at all.

One such place is to bet where not only are there no planes, but you can regularly sleep planes

actively flying out of their way to avoid it. But why?

Well, commercial aircrafts generally travel between 31,000 and 38,000

feet above sea level. However, in certain emergency scenarios, this can change. In the event of cabin

depressurization or engine failure, the protocol for commercial flights is to descend to just 10,000 feet.

But here's the problem.

Dubbed the roof of the world, the Tibetan Plateau, has an average terrain elevation of 14,370 feet,

which means that any passing plane with a cabin-based emergency couldn't descend to a safe height without,

well, risking meeting a very

mountainous end. The area features seven large mountain ranges, including the Himalayas, which is home

to the tallest mountain in the world. Reaching a height of 29,032 feet, Mount Everest is almost

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