London Heathrow Airport
| Continent: Europe | Country: United Kingdom | Region: England |
| London Heathrow Airport | |
| Location | London, England |
| IATA code | LHR |
| ICAO code | EGLL |
| Airport type | Commercial |
| Website | http://www.heathrowairport.com |
| Overview map | Google Maps |
| Communications | |
| Tower | 118.7, 118.5 |
| Ground | 121.9, 121.7 |
| Clearance | 121.975 |
| Approach | 120.4 |
| Departure | 118.5 |
| ATIS | |
Official Spotting Locations
The Queens Building
On top of terminal 2. Shut, indefinitely.
Other Spotting Locations
Rwy 23 threshold
Early in the morning, if traffic is coming down on 27R, you could get lucky and witness dual rwy ops/landings. In such cases most the BA heavies will opt for 27L whilst a lot of the T3 traffic will land on 27R.
Block 94 crash gate
A real no-no, the Police will see you off from here quicker than anything! If you dare to venture into here, as it is open, be aware it's not advisable to hang around for too long. Shots of a/c lining up at B94 (for 27L) can be had though, should you get lucky.
Or shots of landing a/c onto 27L also.
Almost as good a spot is across the dual carriageway, which is perfectly fine, where landing a/c can be shot over the fence.
09L Field
There's a field similar to that found at Myrtle Avenue, although this one is for 09L arrivals. Very nice in the mornings when light from the rising Sun hits the fans.
Hilton Hill
Either walk from Myrtle Av. or from terminal 4. Expect a 15 minute walk from Myrtle, 5 from T4. The hill is on the side of the road that leads into terminal 4 itself. Plenty of space to not bother anyone. Very hazy in the summer though. Only good for 27L arrival shots, with a different backdrop from the "normal" LHR ones.
Line ups on 27R
Shooting through the fence on the Northern Perimeter Road. Excellent spot on late summer evenings when the Sun is almost behind you.
Gate by Road Crossing
Only good for 27R ops. Better for landing traffic than departing. Spot is by the mini roundabout near the white huts. Where the a/c cross the road from the airport to the maintenance area there's a red and white gate. Excellent spot for touch downs on 27R.
Aircraft being tugged across the road are also easily shot here too.
Myrtle Avenue
A field at the end of Myrtle Avenue, by the approach lights for 27L. By foot, either walk from terminal 4 northbound alongside the dual carriageway or southbound from Hatton cross tube. The field can not be missed; it's about a 10 minute walk from either end.
- Airliners.net sample photo: medium large
- Airliners.net sample photo: medium large
- Airliners.net sample photo: medium large
09R banking/climbout shots:Tesco Dukes Green
Excellent spot just outside the airport perimeter,located on the A312.About a 10-15 minute southbound walk from Hatton Cross tube station.A good spot for shooting banking,heavy takeoffs when 09R is use(about 30% of the time)especially for heavy A340s.
27L climbouts:Former Essso garage alongside the southern perimeter road
Popular spot for capturing takeoffs from 27L.Hard to park the car here now as the slip lane as been coned off to prevent such activity!Possible to get a bus to the cargo centre but and walk westbound for about 10minutes.Brick bollards provide useful height for shooting aircraft climbing out slowly after a long takeoff run.
Perimeter road in north-west corner 27R climbouts
The perimeter road in the far north-west corner also provides some excellent opportunities for 27R climbout shots although the sun is not far round enough for this spot to be effective during the winter and autumn months.
27R final approaches from the mini trading estate
Given the road works and the imminent closing of the 'road crossing road' this area may not be around for too much longer.This spot is on a small trading estate,just off the perimeter road,comprising a series of mainly single tier buildings and is generally quiet at the weekend.Parking the car is not advised here as it is a private estate.Others prefer to shoot from the roundabout on the perimeter road and the little patch of land next to it but I personally find that you are a little too 'under' the aircraft compared to the trading estate spot.
Runway 27R touchdowns
Like the 27R climb outs spot,the light here is only good about 1/2 of the year as you are facing south but it is perfect for evening photography.A few different angles can be had from along the north perimeter road depending on where exactly you shoot from.
Airside Spotting Locations
Airside - Terminal 1; Gate 8 - bmi domestic Lounge
Glazed floor to Ceiling overlooking the eastern end of the Northern Runway (27R/09L). Touchdowns on 27R, and taxiing aircraft visible. Aircraft landing on 09L have mostly left the runway and those for Terminal 3 turned away before getting close.
Airside - Terminal 1; Gates 36-56
Gates 36-56 are located in a glass and steel building at the extreme eastern end of the central area with views over runway 23 and B pier of Terminal 1. There are plenty of windows that line up with gaps in the parked aircraft and photography is best in the afternoon. On the down side the northern most gate offering the best views can be closed off by moveable barriers if it is being used for flights to Israel. WARNING:If you don't know the gate your flight is departing from allow time to walk back to the main departure lounge (without a moving walkway)to check the monitors there.
Airside - Terminal 4
In addition to the windows behind the duty free shop the Gate 23 area has windows overlooking the southern taxiway and 27L holding point. WARNING:If you don't know the gate your flight is departing from allow time to walk back to the main departure lounge (without a moving walkway) to check the monitors there.