During the Cold War, routes between Europe and East Asia were prohibited from flying over Soviet Union or China since both airspaces were previously heavily military-controlled. Virtually all flights between Europe and East Asia flew over Alaska, often with a tank stop in Anchorage. They flew near the North Pole with a very large distance to usable airports, for which only three- and four-engine wide-body aircraft were permitted. Some flights between Europe and Oceania still largely pass through stopovers in Asia (either in the Middle East or Southeast Asia) or North America given the current aircraft range restrictions.