Summary
Las Vegas needs no introduction. The giant leisure metropolis in the Nevada desert attracts millions of visitors from around the globe each year. The huge Harry Reid International Airport is a fitting gateway, welcoming many daily flights, and it is also a great airport for plane spotting.
However, there is another airport in the city that often gets overlooked, but which can be an interesting diversion for plane spotters.
North Las Vegas Airport
This small airport opened in 1945 as an air terminal for the fledgling city. It was known originally as Sky Haven Airport, and later North Las Vegas Air Terminal.
Located much closer to Downtown in the original part of Las Vegas (way north of The Strip), it was convenient for the city and saw some airline service. However, as the city grew and then moved south, the newer airport being developed at what would become McCarran International (today’s Harry Reid International) saw massive expansion in airline service and facilities, with North Las Vegas left behind.
Today, it is still a busy general aviation airfield, and lots of scenic air tour flights operate from it.
Airport Layout
Airfield and aircraft. Photo (c) Tomás Del Coro
The airport is 3 miles from Downtown, and around 20 minutes by car or taxi from the main hotels along The Strip.
It has three runways of around 4,000-5,000ft / 1,400-1,500m in length, with a vast array of shelters and hangars housing light aircraft stretching along the western side of the field.
The original airport terminal is still in use, with its classic desert architecture.
What You’ll See
An Embraer Praetor landing at North Las Vegas. Photo (c)
Tomás Del Coro
As mentioned, this is the place to see light aircraft, helicopters, biz jets and air taxi aircraft in Las Vegas.
The airport sees up to 500 aircraft movements per day, nearly all of which are aircraft that would not be seen at Harry Reid International.
A quick check of our aircraft database suggests around 700 aircraft are based at the airport.
Where to Spot
Gus Sabo Memorial Park on North Decatur Blvd is an official plane spotting location which overlooks the north-west corner of the airfield. It has benches, drinking water and shade. The park is elevated over the fence line, so photography is possible. Beware of the heat!
There is also a balcony within the airport terminal, but this is not thought to be accessible.
The Sunshine & Tailwinds Cafe
You can, however, use the Sunshine & Tailwinds Café for food and drink, which has a window overlooking the airfield.
Is it Worth Visiting North Las Vegas Airport?
If you’re looking for something a bit different when visiting Las Vegas, then it’s worth a trip to see this smaller airport. You’ll only see smaller general aviation aircraft, helicopters, some biz jets and scenic tour aircraft. But this makes a difference to the steady stream of airliners at Harry Reid International.
The only spotting locations are outside, so you’ll need to factor in the extreme desert heat at most times of the year, and the need to have a car ideally.
Have you spotted at Las Vegas North? Leave a comment below!
Title image: Eddie Maloney from North Las Vegas, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
