Countries with the Most Airports

Interesting quiz. Very hard to believe that Paraguay has more airports than China, India, Japan, Germany, etc.

I'm aware of the small airports all over South America. Product of the incredibly mountainous and difficult terrain and the lack of roads and other infrastructure... which is why almost every country on the continent is on here. But still... China and India are huge. I guess I shouldn't have said it's hard to believe but just that it's surprising.

I live in South America. It is not that mountainous in the majority of the continent.

Certainly not a limited Railway Capacity. You can go to almost anywhere in India in Train. IR serves every states of India and almost every union Territories except for some like Lakshadweep and Andaman and Ladakh though the Railway line to Ladakh is under construction. Indian Railways is vast and not really in a poor condition. Most trains run on electric except for some in the mountains and isolated villages. IR runs low cost trains because most Indians can't afford travelling in an Air conditioned train on a daily basis though IR has many Air conditioned trains too. High Speed Railway is under construction and will probably finish before California High Speed Rail. IR also possess one of the world's most powerful locomotives WAG 12 with a power of 12000 hp.

19 cities are served by a Rapid Transit with 12 distinct systems. Delhi Metro is bigger than London Underground. Do we still need that many Airports?

The reason is probably that India has a good railway system unlike Paraguay, Ecuador etc., so the need for many airports does not arise.

Why are so many SA countries on here?

Because they have a lot of airports.

With 58 likes and counting, looks like many agree.

Great response mate

So true

84 likes now, you're becoming famous :D

Ooh... That comment has just overtaken another for second place in most-liked jetpunk comments I've ever seen. Number one is on the Elements Mentioned in the Bible Quiz.

Six away from overtaking that one ... can we beat it?

Dear God how did this reply get so popular

@brandybuck96 Is this the most like comment on Jetpunk? Is there a way to find out which comment is the most liked on this website?

rg1227 has a blog on it. It's the second most, after the Elements Mentioned Most in the Bible.

Shoot, 185 likes!

Pandora49 their are quizzes on it too

I'm like number 300 to the comment!

1st place!!! Congrats! I was waiting for this moment!!

403, wow!

Lots of little airfields due to poor road infrastructure

The fact that the countries are so mountainous probably helps.

But no Peru.

A lot of places in SA are very difficult to access by train or car so they built airports.

Not much, definitely not the reason

Is there any reason that the airports/airfields per capita is so high in South America?

Like Bolivia has 1 airport/airfield in 12.7k population while China has 1 airport/airfield in 2.56m population. That difference is about 200 times. But of course, if comparing to India or Bangladesh, the number would be even more astonishing.

It depends what you call an airport. Most South American 'airports' are virtually landing strips where you can land and take off and that's about it. It also depends who uses the airport and for what purpose. Many light aircraft fly from South America to USA carrying cargo. The passenger aircraft only use a few of the major airports.

! don't think this is per-capita. I think it's the actual number of airports in the whole country. The South American countries probably have many more (but smaller) landing strips, as many places are very remote and much more accessible by air.

Very remote villages, accessible only by air (in terms of practicality). The Andes Mountains and the Amazon rain forest are incredible obstacles to road or rail construction. Kind of reminds me how it is very difficult and expensive to string traditional wired phone service - cellular towers are much more efficient and far cheaper than pulling wire. One airstrip versus a mountain road with tunnels....In a way, it is a blessing because the beautiful cultures in the deep interior of South America are much more likely to remain relatively intact with less encroachment from outside. That said, being cut off from the world has the effect of keeping these areas poor, and puts a tremendous limit on access to healthcare and education.

I planned to travel in Bolivia from La Paz to another destination (can't remember exactly what it was called, as it wasn't a city), and my travel options were a 40-minute flight or a 23-hour drive. That is not an exaggeration. The mountains, the rain forest, and the poverty make road travel over long distances very difficult. I took the flight, by the way.

Because the terrain is so difficult. In China you would just take a train or a highway. In Paraguay that is often not really an option; you need to use the tiny airstrip.

Rainforest again i would think

right. same answer. Difficult terrain, poor roads, no infrastructure like railroads etc.

Because it has enough airports to make the list.

Because it has a lot of airports

islands as well

Lots of islands. You need a way to get to them...

Very surprised the Vatican didn't make the list

Because the Vatican is a microstate (with smallest area and population), and actually has no airports in it (unsurprisingly).

I wonder if one could fit in it.

Around 3,000 acres minimum is required for an airport, and the Vatican is only 121 acres in size.

it was a joke...

Who knew?

Not me.

As kalbahamut has been pointing out, difficult terrain and poor roads means a lot more short distance air travel. Also in the case of PNG specifically I would expect a lot of it is left over infrastructure from WWII.

The proliferation of cargo cults!

Guessed them all but Papua New Guinea.

As about 90% of the test takers (me including). In hindsight it makes sense that it's on the list, but I still wouldn't have told about it.

Well, I'm surprised I got them all! PNG was one of my first guesses. So many valleys and mountains that air is the only access route for many.

Casually got all of them except for the UK...

Are you serious?

So many people baffled about South America, but what's the deal with USA having 13,5K airports?

Whole lotta shipping planes. Plus, it's wealthy, populous, and huge. So...

There better be 100% guessed USA..

Don’t worry... there is

got the south american nations but would have NEVER guessed papua new guinea

I too didn't think of Indonesia or png. Spaced that area of the world out I guess. Makes sense now.

Papua New Guinea, eh? I guess World War II really left a mark on such a remote and relatively small country.

Because they have a lot of airports. (sorry brandybuck96!)

*crickets*

South America loves their airports!

USA - wtf??

You're the only one shocked.

Interesting. Very surprising list. These airports probably mostly in very remote areas

Why is everybody talking about PNG images.

I was baffled at first by all of the South American countries on the list, but after reading the explanations it makes more sense. Still have two questions though: 1. Why is Mexico so high? From what I can tell, Mexico doesn't have terrain nearly as difficult to navigate as South America. 2. Why isn't Peru on here when other smaller countries with similar terrain (like Ecuador) make it?

I made the opposite quiz without knowing this existed! Countries with no airports.

I'm feeling quite sad now because I made this same quiz in 2020 :/

Mostly big countries (Paraguay is a small country for SA and still has 4/5 the size of Spain), most people wouldn't travel by roads for huge distances. Rio-Brasilia, for instance, is a 3 hours flight, or 14 hours by car, or 20 hours (at least) by bus, which would you choose?

Moreover, railroads infrastructure is terrible for a few reasons (terrain, history, politics).

Therefore, the preferential transport is by air.

Surprised by all the comments about PNG. It is not a small country. It is incredibly mountainous to the extent that tribes in adjoining valleys had no knowledge of each other. There's a reason why it has so may distinct languages. Light aircraft and helicopters are used to ferry goods and livestock as well as people. It is amazing to see people in traditional garb, who have no electricity or piped water queueing to board a plane only one or two generations after they first made contact with the outside world.

The reason I was surprised by PNG is because Indonesia is very much like PNG, but much bigger and only has 100 airports difference.

Why are so many SA countries on here?

Because they have a lot of airports.

Ecuador...total suprise

12% People Got Papua New Guinea???

I almost typed png but then I was like "no, there's no way" so i am mad