Why Do Planes Over China Use Zigzagging Routes?

When we get on the plane and look at the sky through the window, we can see that the route occasionally changes direction, but these are usually It is not at a level that would attract our attention. But if you take an intercity flight in China, you may feel dizzy!

If you are ready for this situation The reason behind it being exclusive to China is Let’s look at the reason that you will not think of even if you think about it for 40 years.

First, let’s take a look at how flight routes are set.

When we get on a plane, it is as if the pilots follow the straightest route from the air to get from one place to another. This is the shortest way We think like. In fact, even though we do not see it, it is in the air, There are roads just like highways. and when planes submit their planned route to air traffic controllers, that route includes many intermediate points that will be passed through or near while navigating.

From these points around the world there are thousands of them and even some of them that we don’t know about. “UTOOB (YouTube), EBAYE (Ebay), WIKID PAHTI (Wikipedia)” They have fun 5-letter names like.

These points are often brought together in long, criss-crossing airways.

Although there are certain points, it is not mandatory for planes to always follow these routes. Pilots; direction, speed, altitude change They can use these waypoints at the beginning and end of the flight for factors such as Then, they continue to go to the target by choosing the shortest possible route.

So zigzag paths may arise for this reason but Complex routes emerging in China, It is not just caused by points. There is a reason that is much more strange and probably one that none of us have ever heard of before.

Governments own the sky!

Every government owns a part of the sky. This “possession” ranges from 30 to 160 km above sea level, but there is no real legal limit. Most governments, for aircraft For a fraction of the cost of Wi-Fi Even if they agree to open their skies to commercial use, there may still be places where they don’t want to fly anyone.

However, these portions are generally limited to amounts such as 10%. Although small restrictions do not seem to have a big impact on the routes, sometimes It can fill a straight route with zigzags.

This is where China’s real problem stems from.

Only 20% to 30% of China’s airspace allows civil aviation. The remaining 70%-80% belongs to the Chinese army. That’s why planes instead of going a straight route They constantly have to draw chaotic routes.

As a result, not only flight times are extended, but also It also brings delays and cancellations. In fact, ⅓ of the scheduled flights every day are delayed. However, it is said that the Chinese government is trying to reserve some of the sky for civil aviation.

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