Commercial airplanes occasionally have to dump thousands of gallons of aviation fuel directly into the sky if they need to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff.

A closer look

Commercial airplanes occasionally have to dump thousands of gallons of aviation fuel directly into the sky if they need to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff. This highly dramatic maneuver is required because aircraft are strictly certified for a maximum landing weight, and hitting the tarmac while stuffed to the brim with highly flammable liquid tends to break the landing gear or cause a massive fireball. Don't worry though, because aviation authorities assure us that the toxic aerosolized kerosene evaporates before it hits the ground, which is definitely a comforting thought while you breathe in the crisp atmospheric air. It is just another fun quirk of global travel where we casually spray the upper troposphere with jet fuel to prevent a Boeing from snapping its own legs off. You pay hundreds of dollars for a cramped middle seat just to participate in a system that regularly vomits combustible dinosaur juice over the ocean whenever a warning light blinks on the dashboard!