When spotting in the USA, it is generally a good idea to let the authorities know that you are there and what your intentions are. In most cases, if you speak to the right person, you’ll be thanked for the information and given permission to carry on.

Here are some contact details for various airports:

Washington Dulles – contact Ops on (703) 572-2730 and you’ll be fine from the car park.
Washington National – contact dispatch on (202) 610-7515

For spotting information on nearly 70 US airports, check out our new book – Airport Spotting Guides USA

Photo (c) www.plane-spotting-hotels

News has come through from a number of people over the past few days that spotting has once again been banned at one of the world’s best-known spotting hotels – the Sheraton Deira in Dubai.

The hotel has a roof-top pool area which is just underneath the approach/departure path of the runways at Dubai International Airport. Hundreds of spotters make use of the facilities every year, either for a purpose spotting trip to Dubai, or at the start or end of a journey further afield whilst transferring through Dubai.

Recent reports state that twitchy holidaymakers reported ‘suspicious’ activity by a spotter on the rooftop, who was then asked by security to stop. The police have now banned spotting there as a result.

Do you have any updates or recent experiences there to share? Please comment.

Spotters visiting the airports in Southern California (SoCal to the locals) now have a new web resource to help in their planning, which has been set up by Mark Ollier.

Mark moved to the area and has been inundated with requests for information from fellow enthusiasts, so has decided to set up this site to cover all of the information you’ll need when spotting at the various airports. To start with, he has covered Burbank,Van Nuys,Los Angeles and Long Beach but states “I will add more airports over the coming weeks.”

He adds: “On the site you will find spotting locations and daily movements for those airports. I will be adding SBS reports and a gallery. I have a forum which you need to sign up to access but on here I will keep everone updated with airport news, airline schedules, new build C-17′s and Gulfstream’s out of Long Beach, and the latest information on the storage areas of Mojave and Victorville.”

This site has fantastic potential as a lot of decent airports are situated close together and regularly make it onto the travel itineraries of spotters visiting the area.

The site can be found at http://www.socalspotters.net/

Shanghai’s Hongqiao airport opened its new official spectator facility on 16 March 2010 on top of the new Terminal 2 building. Interestingly, this is the first official spotting location to be opened at any Chinese airport, and many hope this will pave the way for other airports to have such facilities incorporated – especially when new terminals and upgrades are built.

Terminal 2 is home to all domestic flights at the airport (apart from Spring Airlines), with international flights remaining at the older Terminal 1.

The new open-air spotting facility is on the 4th floor of the building with great views over the apron and runway beyond. It is 60 metres long and has a security check on entry.

To reach the facility, escalators from the check-in area will whisk you up in no time.

If you have any photos from this new facility, or experience from using it, please comment below.

If you’re heading to Cleveland, Ohio, there are two main airports that are worth checking out. The first, naturally, is Cleveland Hopkins International – the main airport, and a major hub for Continental Airlines. It also has services by other major US airlines, plus FedEx and UPS. Air Canada also provide links across the border.

Spotting is best from the 100th Bomb Group Restaurant. Situated just to the north of runways 24L/R, it has a large car park. It is located off Brookpark Rd. Excellent views can be had of aircraft arriving on these runways, or use runway 10/28. Remember to buy something at the restaurant if you intend spending any time here.

The other Cleveland airport is Burke Lakefront Airport. This handles biz and general aviation movements. It is situated on Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland. You can spot from Voinovich Bicentennial Park close to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame.

A great website for all things to do with aviation in Cleveland is OPShots. They have movements lists, photography tips, and information on places to spot and what the local security is like at the moment.

Jaunted have posted another great report of where to spot – this time a beach alongside Sydney’s Kingsford Smith airport is the perfect location for watching the action, as heavies literally roll by your beach towel!

Take a Dip at This Beach Down Under for the Best Plane Spotting || Jaunted

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With a new year approaching, we’re looking for your suggestions on the must-have gadgets and items for the aviation spotter.

What pair of binoculars or pole has shown the most promise and reliability from the airport hotel or perimeter fence?

Are you using SBS or Radarbox?

Which books are perfect companions for your trips, or ideal for keeping track of the aircraft you’ve seen?

And finally, which camera gets your shots on Airliners.net every time?

We’ll take some of the better gadgets and give them a full feature in future posts here on the blog, so you can read all about them. We’ll also be featuring reviews of new items as and when we hear of them so you can be best informed.

The Best Plane Spotting Happens Just Outside Of DC’s Restricted Airspace || Jaunted

Jaunted has posted a nice piece about spotting at Washington Reagan National Airport in the USA. The Gravelly Point Park passes the end of the runway giving some spectacular views of departing aircraft at close range.

The park is popular with cyclists and walkers, and shouldn’t draw too much attention if you want to watch the movements – as that’s what most people are doing anyway!

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The Sheraton Deira hotel is well known amongst the spotting community for its roof terrace under the flight path to Dubai Airport. What better than spending time in the sun, by the pool, with exotic airliners flying overhead all day?

Well, it had to happen – eventually someone would find another hotel with decent spotting opportunities in Dubai. The Nojoum Hospitality luxury apartments may not be as cheap as the Sheraton, but if you’re in a group they could be superior. It is located on Abu Baker Al Siddique Road, only a couple of roads up from where the Sheraton Deira is situated.

Most of the apartments contain 2 twin ensuite bedrooms, however there are some with 3 rooms, however I don’t think these over look the airport. Each apartment has a massive living area with plenty of sitting space and a table to eat at and a TV, kitchen and utility area which is full stocked with plates, cutlery and glasses, a cooker and oven, microwave, washing machine, iron and board etc., along with a 3rd toilet in the living area. Most importantly, each apartment also has a balcony, and rooms over looking the airport can be requested. The hotel also has a roof top pool area with sun loungers, tables and chairs, but no bar!

When it comes to spotting, the Nojoum could be considered superior to the Sheraton as it is much better for photography when aircraft are landing over the hotel (despite the Sheraton being closer to the aircraft). However once aircraft change direction you lose the ability for photography, and for those without the help of an sbs box it can be very hard to read things off unless the reg is underneath the wings.

From the rooftop, there is an opportunity to look over the wall towards the airport. You have a clear view of the airport and by using a strong scope things parked on Terminal 2 to the left and Terminal 1 on the right can easily be read off, along with things taxiing along the edge of the airport.

A link to the Nojoum Hotel here: http://www.nojoumhospitality.com

If you have any inclination to visit Machu Picchu – one of the greatest archaeological sites in the world, and certainly the biggest tourist draw in Peru – you are almost guaranteed to pass through Cusco Airport.

Cusco was once the capital city of the Inca empire, of which Machu Picchu once belonged. The city is situated close to the Sacred Valley of the Incas, and is a taxi/bus journey, plus a train journey from the ruined city.

This shot is taken from the departure lounge.

The airport at Cusco is well set up to handle the amount of tourists it receives every year, but due to the demanding terrain and the fact that it is situated in a built up area, operations are limited to mainly mornings. Night flying is not permitted.Therefore, most flights operate until early afternoon and then the airport falls silent until the next morning.

Airlines using Cusco are LAN Peru (Airbus A319s), Star Peru (BAe 146 and Boeing 737-200), Los Andes (DHC-6 Twin Otter), Aerocondor (Fokker F-27 and F50), Aerosur (Boeing 737-200).

Spotting from within the terminal is only possible once you go through to the departure lounge, which is situated in the pier. Even then, it is quite limited as jetbridges get in the way.

Around the airport, you can follow the road running parallel to the runway to get some good shots of aircraft on the runway and parked at the terminal. Some of the best photographs are possible along this road – which heads to Pisac – as it passes the end of the runway.