Why Do Planes Fly Over The Arctic But Not The Antarctic?

When tracking a long-haul flight on a map, it is common to see aircraft flying far north, sometimes appearing to pass close to the North Pole. Routes between North America, Europe, and Asia routinely cross Greenland, northern Canada, or the Arctic Ocean. At the same time, scheduled commercial flights almost never cross Antarctica, even when connecting cities in the Southern Hemisphere. While both regions are remote and extreme, only one has become a practical and economically viable corridor for modern commercial aviation. In this article, we will take a closer look at why aircraft do not fly over Antarctica, considering…