I recently had the pleasure of staying in the newly opened BLOC Hotel at London Gatwick Airport.

The hotel occupies part of the South Terminal at the airport, and is accessible pre-departures, making it an excellent place to stay before or after your flight without having to worry about transport to or from a hotel away from the airport itself.

But for enthusiasts the BLOC Hotel offers an even greater draw, and that’s fantastic views of the action at Gatwick itself.

Gatwick Airport has been notoriously difficult to spot from since the viewing terraces closed down in 2002. But for those who remember these terraces, the BLOC Hotel actually offers a similar view from many of its rooms, albeit with a further elevated perspective, meaning even more can be seen.

I was offered room 748 at the hotel, which is one of the best for spotting. It occupies a corner of the top floor of the hotel, with panoramic views from the runway to the left, round to the North Terminal and the South Terminal’s satellite to the right.

The view from the BLOC hotel is similar to that of the old viewing terraces at Gatwick.

No movements can be missed from this room, as everything using the runway is visible, as are most stands. Some South Terminal stands are not visible, however. The maintenance area is also not visible.

The old viewing terraces still exist, but will not be reopened.

BLOC’s concept is modern design, and the furniture and fittings in the room are really unique. In this particular room there was a large bed, TV, bathroom (with equally good views),  and a touch-screen control panel to handle the lights, blinds, temperature etc.

One feature that always goes down well with spotters is Wi-Fi, and at the BLOC hotel it’s free for all guests, regardless of which room you stay in. This is ideal for running Flightradar24 or similar flight tracking websites to tie up distant or night time movements. On my stay I also noticed some Heathrow departures flying overhead, which could be identified on the internet.

Be careful when booking at this hotel as some rooms have no windows. These are clearly labelled on the website, and naturally will not offer any views of movements. It is best to try and get a higher room facing the airport (west or south) to ensure you can see movements easily; the benefit of Gatwick only having one runway is that all aircraft will be in the same place at some point.

An example of the photographs possible from the BLOC Hotel at Gatwick

Photography through the windows was easy on my stay. The windows were clean, and with a 200mm lens I could photograph any aircraft within a reasonable distance. I found, however, that as the light started to fade the windows took on a slight tint which stopped the ability to take good photographs.

The room rates at the BLOC Hotel are pretty good, and in most cases less than £100 per night for all but the VIP rooms. The website handily lists the full standard rate, and the actual rate they are charging over a range of dates. So you can plan your trip well.

This is easily one of the best spotting hotels I’ve ever experienced. I had the benefit of probably the best room for views, but many others at the hotel offer a similar panorama of this notoriously difficult-to-spot-at airport where nothing will be missed. Add to that easy access, comfortable facilities, friendly staff, and good prices.

To find out more or book a room, visit the BLOC Hotel Gatwick website.

ANA All Nippon Airways will take delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 aircraft on 28th July direct from Everett.

The airline will be the first to operate the stretched model of the Dreamliner when it operates a special flight from Tokyo Haneda airport over Mount Fuji carrying Japanese and American elementary school children living in Japan. These, the airline says, are the “next generation of air passengers.”

ANA will initially operate the 787-9 on domestic routes within Japan.

International flights will follow from April 2015.

In addition to this new, fellow launch customer Air New Zealand plans to start commercial flights between Auckland and Sydney with their new 787-9s from August.

Find out all the Boeing 787 Routes here.

Flyvista is a new airline based in Tbilisi, Georgia.

It is set to launch low-cost flights in August, flying to destinations in Europe and the Middle East (Azerbaijan, Czech Republic, Turkey, Iran, Russia etc), although no definite schedules have been released.

The airline has taken delivery of its first aircraft, Boeing 737-300 4L-AJC,  and has also been operating two 737-500s from Khartoum on wet-leases to Badr Airlines.

The Farnborough Air Show is now over for another two years. But it has been a really significant show in terms of aircraft announcements and orders, breaking all previous records for the show. Here’s a summary of the proceedings…

Airbus

• Announced the A330neo aircraft at the show
• AerCap ordered 50 A320neo family aircraft
• AirAsia X ordered 50 A330neo
• Air Lease Corporation ordered 25 A330neo and 60 A321neo
• Air Mauritius ordered six A350XWB
• Avolon ordered 15 A330neo – launch customer
• BOC Aviation ordered 43 A320 family aircraft
• CIT ordered 15 A330neo and five A321ceo
• Hong Kong Aviation Capital ordered 70 A320neo family aircraft
• IAG (British Airways, Iberia, Vueling) ordered 20 A320neo
• SMBC Aviation Capital ordered 115 A320 family aircraft
• Transaero ordered 20 A330neo

ATR Aircraft

• Air Lease Corporation ordered seven ATR 72-600
• Myanma Airways ordered up to 12 ATR 72-600
• Nordic Aviation Capital ordered 75 ATR 42-600

Boeing

• Air Algerie ordered two 737-700C
• Air Lease Corporation ordered six 777-300ER and 20 737 MAX 8
• Avolon ordered five 737 MAX 9 and six 787-9
• CIT Group ordered ten 787-9
• Hainan Airlines ordered 50 737 MAX 8
• Intrepid Aviation ordered six 777-300ER
• MG Aviation ordered two 787-9
• Monarch Airlines ordered 30 737-MAX 8
• Okay Airways ordered six 737 MAX 8 and four 737-800
• Qatar Airways ordered 50 777X

Bombardier

• “Existing Customer” ordered seven CS300 with rights for six more
• “Existing African Customer” signed LOI for five CSeries aircraft
• Nok Air converts options on two Q400 aircraft into firm order

Embraer

• AZAL ordered two E190
• Azul signs LOI for 50 E195-E2 – launch customer
• Fuji Dream Airlines ordered up to six E175
  HNA Group ordered 20 E190 and 20 E190-E2
• Royal Air Maroc ordered four E190
• Trans States Airlines ordered up to 100 E175-E2

US Airways will retire its Boeing 737-400 fleet on 19th August 2014.

To mark the occasion the airline is putting on a special flight that will call at three cities on the final day of operation.

US flight number 0737 will leave Charlotte on a flight to Dallas Fort Worth. It will then fly to Philadelphia before returning to Charlotte. The flight times are expected to be:

Charlotte 0830 – Dallas Ft Worth 1016
Dallas Ft Worth 1245 – Philadelphia 1703
Philadelphia 2000 – Charlotte 2140

At each destination there will be a special farewell for the aircraft with staff and press.

The public are able to book on this flight, but it is expected to have sold out very quickly.

If you witness the final day of operation, why not send us your pictures!

Monarch Airlines is close to finalising a deal with Boeing to order 30 737 MAX 8 aircraft as part of its fleet upgrade.

Although it operates a couple of 757-200s, and in the past operated 737-300s, Monarch has been primarily an Airbus operator over recent years. It has a fleet of A320s and A321s, and recently retired its A300-600s. So this move is an interesting development for the UK holiday carrier.

The order is valued at $3.1 billion at current list prices.

“Today’s announcement is an important milestone in an exhaustive three year evaluation process, and a key part of The Monarch Group’s transformation and renewal,” said Iain Rawlinson, Executive Chairman, The Monarch Group. “Boeing truly understood our business and put together a complete package that fits extremely well with our ambitions for the Group.”

“We are delighted that Monarch intends to structure its future fleet around the 737 MAX,” said Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO Ray Conner. “We look forward to finalizing the order and can’t wait to see the Monarch livery on 737s once again. Today is a proud moment for everyone at Boeing, as we welcome back a prestigious U.K. operator. We are confident that the 737 MAX will play a significant role in Monarch’s continued success.”

Airbus has announced the anticipated A330neo (new engine option) variant of its popular twin-engined, widebody airliner at the Farnborough Air Show.

The European manufacturer is showing off its new A350XWB at the event, but has chosen the moment to also build on the popularity of its existing model with this announcement.

The A330-800neo and -900neo will offer greater fuel savings (around 14%), quieter engines (the latest Rolls-Royce Trent 7000) with larger fan blades, as well as more seats and improved cabin features. Much of the construction will be of composite material, based on the A350XWB.

As well as having operational commonality with other members of the Airbus Family – including the same pilot type rating as the A330, common type rating with the A350 XWB and the same “Code-E” gate category as the A330-200 and -300 – the NEO will also retain 95% airframe spares commonality with A330 and inherit its marketing-leading reliability.

The first deliveries of the newest A330 members are scheduled to start in Q4 2017.

Livingston, the Italian leisure and scheduled airline, will cease flying today after its Air Operators Certificate was revoked.

The airline said in a statement:

New Livingston resolved to apply for the above mentioned instrument, in order to overcome a temporary financial crisis ascribable to, inter alia, the bankruptcy of Aeradria S.p.A., significant delays in collecting certain credits and the recent revocation of the PSO route Alghero – Roma Fiumicino and vice versa (in connection with such measure, a claim against Regione Autonoma della Sardegna is still in progress). The above, in compliance with the so-called “par condicio creditorum”.

New Livingston has already provided to ENAC the documentation needed in order to immediately obtain the revocation of the suspension measure of its carries license starting from 00:01 of  July 14, 2014 or the issuance of a provisional carrier license, on the basis of article 9, paragraph 1, of the Regulation (EC) No. 1008/2008 and paragraph 4.6 of the Circular ENAC EAL-16 of 27 February 2008.

If you’re a frequent traveler, you’ve probably visited so many airport hotels that they’ve become something of a blur to you — difficult to distinguish from one another. In most cases, their most notable amenity — proximity to the airport and your next flight — is the only reason you’ve selected them.

However, among the world’s thousands of airport hotels, some offer spectacular views of flights arriving and departing from the airport, a welcome change from watching the TV to pass your time. And among these hotels with striking airport views, a select few are affordably priced, making them all the more desirable.

Here are three such properties. All combine memorable airport views with reasonable room rates ($200 per night or less), which sets them apart from run-of-the-mill airport hotels the world over.

As an added incentive for readers of this website, you can get an additional 10 percent discount on any reservations — for these or other hotels — booked through HotelsCheap.org on or before July 31, 2014. More about this later.

Narita Tobu Hotel Airport

Many rooms at Narita Tobu Hotel Airport offer excellent views of arriving and departing flights at Tokyo’s Narita International Airport.

In 2013, Narita International Airport, which serves Tokyo, ranked 13th among the world’s busiest airports in terms of passenger traffic, serving more than 30.5 million passengers. Located nearby, the 12-story Narita Tobu Hotel Airport offers excellent views of airport action from most guestrooms on its upper floors.

If watching the comings and goings at Narita is important to you, be sure to request a room with a good airport view when booking your reservations. If the view from your room is less than perfect, relax with a drink in the hotel’s top-floor cocktail lounge, where you can be sure to catch all the action.

With rates as low as $116 per night, the hotel is a real bargain. Each of its 484 units features a mini-refrigerator, coffee/tea maker, complimentary wired Internet connection, desk/work area, and an en-suite bathroom with combination shower/tub and complimentary toiletries.

Other hotel amenities include an indoor swimming pool, health club, sauna, conference/meeting rooms, airport shuttle (complimentary during limited hours), free parking, gift shop/newsstand, game room, and restaurant.

Renaissance Concourse Atlanta Airport Hotel

From your room in Renaissance Concourse Atlanta Airport Hotel, you can watch flights come and go at the busiest airport in the United States.

For a front-row seat to all the runway action at America’s busiest airport, book a room at Renaissance Concourse Atlanta Airport Hotel, where room rates start at less than $100 a night. Many of the guestrooms and suites at the 11-story hotel directly overlook the runways at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, which in 2012 handled nearly 46 million passengers.

The hotel’s 380 air-conditioned units have plenty of amenities, including cable/satellite TV with premium movie channels, room service, mini-refrigerators, Internet access (for surcharge), and en-suite bathrooms with shower/tub combinations, hair dryers, and designer toiletries.

Other hotel facilities and services include indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a sauna, business center, health club, meeting rooms, a gift shop, porter/bellhop service, safe deposit boxes, and complimentary airport shuttle service.

ibis London Heathrow Airport

The sleekly contemporary front desk at the ibis London Heathrow Airport belies the hotel’s cut-rate accommodations.

Part of an international chain of economy hotels, ibis London Heathrow Airport sits near the heart of the action at London’s Heathrow Airport, which in 2013 was the world’s busiest airport according to Airports Council International. From the hotel’s rooms you can see plenty of airport action. What makes a stay at ibis even more attractive are its affordable rates, which start as low as $80.

Each of the air-conditioned guestrooms in the six-story hotel offers cable TV with premium channels, coffee/tea maker, and complimentary Wi-Fi. Some handicap-accessible rooms are available.

Other amenities at ibis include a 24-hour snack bar, business services, 24-hour front desk, parking, and shuttle service to all terminals (added fee). The on-site Foggs restaurant and bar serves breakfast and dinner daily.

To take advantage of HotelsCheap.org’s limited-time discount coupon for followers of Airport Spotting, visit the Loyalty Coupon gateway of HotelsCheap.org. Enter discount code AIRPORTSPOTTING10 in the appropriate field to get 10 percent off the site’s already very-affordable rates on any reservations booked on or before July 31, 2014.

Don Amerman is a travel expert based in Florida and Pennsylvania. He has traveled widely across the United States and overseas as well.

UTair has signed an agreement with the regional government to develop Yermolino Aerodrome into another international airport for Moscow and the surrounding area.

The facility is currently under utilised and lacking any significant infrastructure. However, given investment which would adapt it into a fully fledged airport, UTair says it will introduce up to 20 based Airbus A321 aircraft and a significant network of routes.

Yermolino is around 90 miles to the south west of Moscow and has fairly good road links.

The regional government would provide support in attracting investors for the project, whilst additional funding would also be provided by the Ministry for Internal Affairs.

Construction is expected to start later in 2014, with the airport opening for airline flights in time for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which is to be held in Russia. A throughput of 6.5 million passengers would be expected by 2020.

The airport would not be limited to UTair flights, with other airlines being invited to begin services to Yermolino.