YPPH Spotting Area

[Kirk C]

Finally something the perth boys can brag about, we may not have the best airport (infact 9th worst in the world http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/life/10-most-hated-airports-324645)

But we now have something the others dont

http://www.aviationwa.org.au/

[Sarah C]

Thanks for the link with the pics - very impressive, well done to all for organising it.

[Kirk C]

More pictures here

http://www.aviationwa.org.au/Enthusiasts/SpottingLoc_PER_ViewingArea.html

[Shayne G]

I like your idea Chris. It certainly wouldn't hurt to try.

[Ryan Hothersall]

well done to all for lobbying the airport, organising and having it built.

I hope to come over to Perth sometime next year and have a look.

[Maikha Ly]

I disagree about Perth being an underrated airport. I would be certain that there are other people out there, aside from myself, who are more interested in the regional turboprops and Dutch Fokkers than the heavy metal, which Perth and Adelaide have an abundance of! :)

This viewing area is definitely further incentive for me to head over for a visit in the near future.

[Lee G]

Putting a few (not just one!) positions like Perth's new spotting area around Sydney would make it heaven .... no fences, no light poles.....

Suggestions (before the redevelopment of the airport starts, and to keep them incorporated in the plan of the airport) would be -

Wishful Thinking

- Radar Mound (why there isn't something here already is a question many have already pondered)

- 07 Threshold Northern Side

- 25 Threshold Northern Side

- Beach

Given the restrictive nature with all the terminals to the Northern end of the field, viewing areas on top of the T3 and T2 terminals and a decent area on top of T1 (not that fool thing which is a throw over from the 70s and plexiglassed to the max!) closer to the runway would also be good.

Possible/Probable Reality

Entire Eastern side of the airport built up with no area to view or photograph from.

If the planned function centre for the beach area goes ahead, entire Western side of the airport built up with extremely restrictive views.

As the sun is east/west and best light is within 3-4 hours of sunrise/sunset, no area within the airport bounds would suffice to take any decent photos from.

Reality will start to occur within 3 years! :eek:

[Sarah C]

Good thinking Lee - it is difficult to find a perfect spot for it too.

But in saying that, if they wanted to go ahead with that 'spotters license' idea, I am sure they woul raise plenty of revenue to do something basic and I am sure a lot of us would put in some extra dough if it mean something like that was built.

[Lee G]

Agreed Sarah ... but I think it'll be one of those .. "Sounds too much like hard work and the cost wouldn't be reclaimable within 2 weeks, so it's easier to just lock 'em out - think of the shareholders...." type of arrangements.

[Mick F]

If I were the owner of Sydney Airport, I'm pretty sure my priorities would be to make money from the land, rather than make sure there's some spots for people to take photo's from.

Mick

[lloyd fox]

Mick it makes more sense to have a dedicated area rather than spotter's conglomerated around all the fences.It then would be a security nightmare for authorities.

I know where you are coming from and next year BNE will get a great facility but away from the Airport's millionaires row .

[Lee G]

Mick, Sam Chui just posted up some photos on Facebook of his trip to - Dhaka, Bangladesh - there are dedicated facilities there .... and it's a third world country! Frankfurt just opened their new runway - with dedicated facilities for observers. Perth - same. Brisbane - as pointed out by Lloyd, soon to be same.

Surely there is room and budget to provide something more friendly than we have now (although what we have is above average at the moment, it will be lost in the future) and most importantly, build in consultation with those who would utilise it, with adequate thought about photography and where the light would be advantageous.

That.... that would stop a considerable amount of fence hanging and grief on both sides of the fence.

[Nigel C]

No, I don't believe it would. Because the photographing spotter is always trying to out-do fellow spotters and get a 'different' shot than everyone elses. There will always be people exploring the options for different angles, and people 'fence hanging' as you put it.

[Lee G]

Nigel,

I don't think that would occur - let me rephrase that - I don't think it will be possible when the grand master plan is built ... access to anywhere on the eastern side of the field will be restricted area and not accessable.

Anyone who would be fence hanging on the eastern side would be arrested for being in an SRA by the AFP.

Your thoughts?

[Nigel C]

To be honest Lee, not being a spotter/photographer myself I hadn't given much or any real thought to the eastern side of the field and I haven't had a detailed look at what the proposed development will or will not take out. I do believe that what's been proposed and what actually transpires will differ, but by how much I don't know. Time will tell.

But from my own perspective from within the fence line, there are local considerations that Sydney probably has that Perth may or may not have. Unlike Sydney, I'm not intimately familiar with Perth so I can't really comment on what they've done over there, nor the considerations they took before constructing such a facility.

It's easy for people to broadly say there should be one in every port, and in an ideal world that would be great, but the operating realities of every port differ.

[Matthew Chisholm]

2 points:

Sydney has plenty of spotting areas, only one of them is official.

The spotting license idea has been around for at least 6 years that I'm aware off, in my opinion it will never happen.