Queenstown spotting.

[Joseph Saragozza.]

im off to queenstown ZQN in the first week of july and i have some time to kill while i am waiting for some relative to arrive from brisbane.
so i was hoping to do some spotting in the meantime.
i have googled locations where to go but was unsuccessful.
i was hoping if there is anyone on here that could give me a heads up onto where to go.

thanks.

[Gareth Forwood]

Gday Joseph,

I was in Queenstown last winter, and after fracturing my wrist on the first day of snowboarding :o I suddenly had some free time on my hands (no pun intended...)

The airport itself is relatively easy to photograph at, but there are few movements, and the majority of those are sightseeing cessnas and helicopters. Kawarau Rd to the south of the airport is quite good, and from there you can see aircraft lining up (if taking off to the north) and climbing out over you to the south (it's kind of like the Qantas Drive of Queenstown). I was staying on Frankton Rd not far from the airport, and right on the water - if you walk back towards Queenstown along the water's edge, there are nice shots to be had of aircraft climbing out with (I think) the Remarkables in the background. Also, the walk provides amazing scenery photos too!

Also, the roads around the outside of the airport are close to the fenceline, and to the east of the airport there is a shopping centre where you can park and walk back to have a look around. I was up at the fenceline for some time with my camera and never had any problems with security.

Hope you enjoy the trip, and if you go snowboarding, invest in some wrist guards :p

[Mike_C]

From a locals point of view............Depending on how much time you have to kill and whether you have access to a vehicle here are a couple of options (check Google maps)

(1) Go out to the main highway State Highway 6 turn right at the roundabout and head back toward "Hendos hole" - this won't be on the map as it is a "locals" reference you can't miss it, there is a dirt road on the right which will take you down to the touchdown zone for R23, you can get right up to the fence.

You can continue down State Highway 6 until the next road on the Right (Glenda Drive) go to the end of this and you will be right on the threshold of R23 you'll get a great view from here.

Both options are within 5 minutes drive from the airport.

If they are using 05 (not that common) then a quick walk into the rental return carpark will see you right

Failing that the views from the bar area (new) are pretty good and you don't need to go anywhere.......

[Andrew P]

http://www.queenstownairport.com/facilities/webcam/

a good cam, as you can move it from the web

[Stephen Brown]

Its total P0rn for Chopper lovers...

http://www.jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=6048209

http://www.jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=6051011

http://www.jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=6051012

And one for the ATR lovers...

http://www.jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=6051052

[Torin Wilson]

You can also go onto the golf course. I got this from there

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Untitled-(Airwork-New/Boeing-737-219C-Adv/1205160/L/

:)

[Joseph Saragozza.]

thanks a million guys.
i have a 5hr wait for the ralos and im only 20 so i cant hire a car, so ill try and do the best i can by foot..
thanks again ;)

[Tim B]

Not really On Topic, but if you are heading south from Auckland along the main highway and fancy doing a bit of plane spotting, take the Ardmore turn-off and head out to Ardmore Aerodrome.
You won't have to worry about security fences blocking your view, because there aren't any. You could probably drive right on to the runway if you wanted to.
Go on a Sunday or Wednesday, and the NZ Warbirds hangar is open.

[David N]

Hi,

Queenstown is a great airport to spend a bit of time at, I was there in April and as Stephen said it's a great place for Chopper lovers.
The downwind leg for all the arriving helicopters was over the tower and they then turn base just past the terminal.

The car parking at all NZ regional airports is great, you can spend all day there for what it cost an hour at Melbourne

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj227/Impulse100/Queenstown.jpg

Can anyone tell me if there is access to the hill across from SH6? or is it private property?
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj227/Impulse100/Queenstown-1.jpg
It obviously looks closer to the airport than what it really is, but be interesting to see what can be photographed from there.