2 HN users recommended this explainer2 months2022–2025score 2
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026
HN people point to it as a fun summary of how messy airport codes are, especially in threads on aviation falsehoods and code collisions.
CGP Grey explains why airport codes are inconsistent and sometimes confusing, from their origins in old weather station codes to the quirks that cause mistakes. He builds the story around a single typo that sent a flight to the wrong continent.
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