Visiting South Africa this year? The country is fascinating for the aviation enthusiast, with busy international airports, historic heritage aircraft, and lots of stored airliners. Here are some tips on finding the best aviation experiences whilst there.

Johannesburg OR Tambo International Airport
Most people arrive into the country via Johannesburg Airport (although Cape Town is also popular). Both Terminals (A and B) have viewing decks to use, with B being the most useful for photography and catching all movements. The deck is indoors, with somewhat dirty windows, but you can always clean a patch.

The airport has a good mix of international and domestic flights coming throughout the day, so it’s rarely boring.

On the north and south sides of the airport are storage and maintenance areas. The north (Safair) can be mostly read from the viewing decks, but the south (Denel) can’t. Best bet is to hire a car and explore to make sure you catch as many aircraft as possible.

Rand
Another airport in Johannesburg, Rand is much smaller. It has a lot of stored airliners on site, plus the South African Airways Society Museum with types up to Boeing 747 in size. You have some views from inside the terminal, however it’s much more rewarding to organise a tour from the fire crews, which cost 20 Rand. These take in all ramps and areas of the airfield, so you won’t miss much.

Lanseria
This is a smaller airport to the northwest of Johannesburg. It has a number of airlines flying domestic routes, and is also a popular place to see bizjets flying  into the city. One the airfield are also a number of stored and withdrawn airliners.

You can spot from the viewing deck area which doubles as a food court. However, it’s also possible to arrange an airside tour from the security office if you contact them in advance.

Wonderboom
One of the airports in the Pretoria area, Wonderboom is an interesting little place. It is home to a variety of

aircraft, from safari aircraft to Boeing 737s; bizjets to historic flight DC-3′s. It’s possible to see quite a few aircraft from a circuit of the perimeter, however it’s often possible to arrange airside access from the security office.

Durban King Shaka Airport
The new international airport for Durban opened in 2010, replacing the existing facility. It is actually over 20 miles from the city, but is ultra modern and one to watch for the future. At the moment it handles close to 5million passengers per year, with a mix of domestic and international. There are viewing opportunities from within the terminal.

First and second generation jet airliners are getting rarer and rarer these days. It makes me incredibly sad, but at least for the time being we have these airports which are still great for catching old smokeys in action.

Memphis, TN
You’ve gotta love FedEx. They keep old birds flying. But they also have many new aircraft coming on line, such as the B777F which are replacing the older types.

For the time being, you can head to their Memphis, TN, base to catch quite a few classic B727 and DC/MD-10 aircraft coming and going each day. Depending on whether you consider A300-600 and A310-300 aircraft to be old or not, you can also see those. Also, as the airline is bringing in lots of second-hand B757 freighters, it’s another one I’ll leave you to decide on whether they’re an old jet or not!

Jakarta, Indonesia
Last time I visited Jakarta’s main CGK airport, it was still a hub for B727′s, B737-200′s, DC-9′s, DC-10′s and F-28′s. It was incredible, and great for filling lots of gaps in my log book from the 80′s and 90′s.

Today there are still a number of these types around, but it has dwindled significantly. More prevalent are MD-80′s and B737-300/400′s, which are becoming classics.

To mark the start of international scheduled services this week by ANA’s Boeing 787, I thought I’d mention a few other places you’ll be seeing the type this year. We’ll see a lot more Boeing 787 Dreamliners in our skies this year as more are delivered to airlines such as Air India, Japan Airlines and China Southern, so it’s time to start getting them in your logbooks!

Tokyo Haneda & Narita
With both ANA and JAL operating the Dreamliner this year, one of the best places to catch the type is at their Tokyo Narita and Haneda bases. This seems likely to be the place to catch the biggest concentration of Dreamliners outside of Seattle or Charleston this year.

Frankfurt International
For Europe, Frankfurt is the first place to see 787 operations with ANA from Tokyo. This was the type’s first international destination, and will be flying in every day.

Seattle
OK, so there are a few Seattle airports to see Deamliners. Most notably, Boeing’s Everett facility is the place where they’re put together. So you’ll see them quite regularly on flight test and out on the flight line. This includes the demonstrators, which is quite cool. However, ANA have also announced 787 flights to Seattle-Tacoma Airport from Tokyo, starting soon.

Boston
The US East Coast gets its first Dreamliner service from Japan Airlines in April, with non-stop service to Tokyo Narita.

Singapore
From September, Japan Airlines’ flights from Tokyo Narita will switch to 787s, increasing to 14x weekly by the end of October.

Melbourne
From October, Air India is expected to begin sending its 787s to Melbourne from its Indian bases. This will likely mark the first scheduled Dreamliner services to Australia.

Osaka Itami
Again, ANA sends its 787s to Itami. Maybe we’ll see more routes out of Osaka’s Kansai airport in the future, but for now the domestic one is the place to be.

New Delhi
Japan Airlines will start daily 787 flights to Delhi from Tokyo Narita later this year. However, if Air India receive their 787s on time, the airport is likely to get even more of the type in residence.

Moscow Domodedovo
Japan Airlines will send their Dreamliners to Moscow DME this year, replacing their 777 equipment. This sees the second known destination in Europe for the type.

Guangzhou
Despite heavy delays, China Southern are expected to take delivery of their first 787 before the Autumn. Therefore their home base of Guangzhou will become a hub for the type very soon.

There are of course more airports that the 787 flies to, such as domestic destinations within Japan. And as new frames arrive for Air India and China Southern, new routes will be announced. If you hear of any, let me know.

Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner World Tour continues, with new destinations and dates announced.

The aircraft used is ZA003, and is fitted out to best show off the interior possibilities to airline customers it visits.

The new dates are:

20-23 January – Wichita, KS
23-25 January – Rockford, IL
25-27 January – Dublin, Ireland
27-30 January – Huntsville, AL

Keep an eye out here for more dates as they become known!

Various enthusiasts sites exist for some of the airports in Scotland which can help in planning a trip to any of them, or in simply finding out what’s been happening up there. We have collated this information for some of the airports:

Glasgow Airport
EGPF.co.uk
Enthusiasts site for Glasgow Airport, with timetables, SBS list, spotting locations and charts, photos, live arrivals & departures, and logs of recent movements.

Prestwick Airport
Prestwick Airport Movements Site
Similar to the Glasgow enthusiasts site, with movements, photos, spotting information, airfield charts and live flight information.

Edinburgh Airport
EGPH.co.uk
A similar site for Edinburgh Airport enthusiasts. Lists frequencies, live flight arrivals & departures, airline information, photos and SBS information.

egphforum.co.uk
A forum for discussing Edinburgh Airport and its operations.

As the new airport at San Bernardino, CA nears its official opening, the locals are asking whether it will ever actually attract and airlines.

The San Bernardino International Airport is opening on the site of the former Norton Air Force Base, which closed in 1994. A new terminal has been built, and is already fitted with check-in kiosks, arrivals and departures screens, escalators, offices, and an automated voice which warns passengers not to leave baggage unattended. Coupled with 3000 new jobs being created in the surrounding areas recently, on paper the outlook seems rosy. But in these times of airlines cutting back routes or closing down, and recession hitting hard, does this part of California need another airport?

You can read the full story here.

If the airline does start to attract operators, you can be sure we’ll cover the opportunities for enthusiasts. If you’re a local, why not tell us what the new airport is like by leaving a comment?

Around the world, many airports have had the good thinking to provide eating and drinking facilities within their terminals which offer fantastic views of the aircraft action. In many cases, these count as the best places to watch aircraft at that particular airport.

In some examples, the facilities are not within the terminal, but a private establishment at a convenient location around the perimeter.

Below, we offer you five of the best cafes and restaurants around the world.

1. In ‘n’ Out Burger, Los Angeles LAX
In our eyes, this is one of the best fast food joints in the world. Situated conveniently a few metres from the end of runways 24L/R, you can enjoy a burger whilst snapping pictures of aircraft just before touchdown. You can find the In ‘n’ Out just off S. Sepulveda Blvd.

2. McDonalds, Terminal 2
One of the unofficial spotting locations at Frankfurt/Main is the McDonalds restaurant in Terminal 2. This is situated in the mezzanine food court, before proceeding to departures, making it ideal for those not flying. The views over the Terminal 2 gates, commuter ramp and runways is fantastic, although a lot of Terminal 1 traffic is missed if it uses runway 18.

3. Reef Club, St. Maarten
We’ve all seen the amazing close-action shots at St. Maarten in the Caribbean. Whilst enjoying the view on the famous Maho Beach, enjoy a drink at the Reef Club, which has excellent views of aircraft both on the ground and on approach.

4. Hotel Royal, Corfu
Situated alongside the runway at Corfu’s airport is the Hotel Royal. Non-guests can enjoy a meal or drink at the hotel’s cafe, with a terrace overlooking the action. The hotel is situated in the Kanoni district.

5. Arizona’s Bar & Grill, Toronto Pearson
Situated on the airport strip, just outside the perimeter, this Arizona’s Bar and Grill serves excellent food and has views of the action to match. In particular, you’ll see arrivals on runways 24L/R. Wandering out into the car park allows for some great photographs.

Where else would you suggest from your travels? Which terminal has a particularly good cafe or food court with a view?

The brand new, modern airport facility at Yangyang in South Korea cost $400m to build. Yet it now has no operators, with the last commercial flight having left in November 2008.

A really interesting video: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8055957.stm

It has been announced by the regulators that the British Airports Authority (BAA) must sell more airports.

It was already announced that London Gatwick will be sold. However, following this Stansted must be sold, and then either Edinburgh or Glasgow.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7951377.stm

If you plan on visiting Phoneix, or any of the nearby storage airports, then I can’t reccommend this link enough:

www.visitingphx.com

It is run by spotters at Phoneix and covers all the comings and goings, news, and latest photos.

What is also invaluable is the lists of aircraft currently stored at places like Goodyear, Chandler etc – often updated daily, so you’ll know how accurate it is when you plan on visiting.