Tag Archives: London Heathrow Airport

Early Morning Arrivals

A work trip had me at Heathrow just as the sun was peaking above the horizon. It was very low and, as I drove along the perimeter road to the car park, it was right in my eyes. I suspect that wasn’t too much fun for the arrivals that were on the runway aligned to the east. It did mean that the light was right on the nose of the arriving planes. I had brought the camera along because – well when don’t I?

The traffic in had been quite light so I was a touch early arriving and had about ten minutes before I needed to head into the terminal. Consequently, I got a few shots of some of the jets arriving from locations around the world. The light was almost on my side of the planes which, given I was to the north, tells me that we are getting towards summer. Here are a few of the arriving planes.

Gear and Flaps

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Photographing at Heathrow means you get a steady stream of planes with barely a minute passing without another one landing. You can end up with a ton of similar shots. That got me thinking about other things I would like. A close up of the undercarriage and perhaps the flap system came to mind. For some reason – possibly the noise that the bursting vortices made after they landed – I decided that the 777-300ERs would be the ones I tried these shots with. However, an A380 did sneak in.

There is something about the mass of machinery that you get around the main landing gear and the inboard flaps that seems so complex. Of course, this is all under the wing so the lighting is less than ideal, but you get what you can. Just before sunset would be perfect but you don’t get to choose when the jets land. Here are a few of my favourite shots from that part of the afternoon shoot.

This Paint Job Would Have Been Quick

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This Brussels Airlines A320 came into Heathrow one weekend. I am not sure even now what the livery is supposed to represent. All I know is that I love it and am delighted that they went to the effort to paint the jet like this. I am assuming there are a ton of vinyls involved in this rather than having it all hand painted but, either way, it looks amazing. If it was painted, that is even better. What a great change from the average livery.

Cathay Pacific A350-1000

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If you are a regular reader, you will know I love an A350, you will also know I like late day light on planes. How about the combination of the light and the plane. In this case, it is Cathay Pacific – an airline that has a livery that works quite well with a warmer lighting set up. In this case it is an A350-1000 which has pleasing proportions although the -900 is not a bad looking jet either. I was happy to get this one.

Turning in on the Approach

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I have posted some previous shots looking up the approach at Heathrow as the jets are lined up for landing. The reason I have chosen to post this is that there is a bit more of a dynamic element to it. I like the jet crossing in the background before it turns back in to align with the approach path. The combination of the spaced out planes and the view of the turn in seemed pretty cool to me.

BEA Gets a Reprieve

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The British European Airways liveried Airbus that British Airways has been operating for a number of years was due to be disposed of. As new jets come into the fleet, the older jets are headed for parting out. However, the delivery rate from Airbus has apparently not been enough to meet the requirements of BA and they are having to send some older jets for major checks when they become due rather than park them. This will give them an extended life until the new jets can make it. This one was scheduled to go but has now been sent for a check. What I don’t know is whether it is due a repaint or not so we might or might not get to see it again.

The Etihad Livery is a Standout

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I posted a bunch of shots from Heathrow in an earlier post, but I saved this one for its own post. The A380 is a plane some love and some hate. If you have been a passenger on one, you probably love it. It really is a great experience on board. It does seem to make people feel better about themselves that it wasn’t a huge success. Not sure why that happens but people are strange.

I have seen a ton of them over the years, but Etihad was an operator whose fleet I had never photographed until I moved back to the UK. At first this was only from a distance too. When I saw one was coming in a little after the American Airlines special, I decided to wait for it. In an era of white planes, a colourful plane is so welcome, and I find Etihad’s livery very appealing. Here is a great looking jet.

A Few Quick Heathrow Departure Shots

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My weekend visit to Heathrow was focused on arrivals but, before I headed home, I did want to check out one more thing. This was not for a lot of photography, but I just wanted to see what the location offered. It was along the south side of the field and would give me a view of departing jets from the south runway. It doesn’t provide much in the way of variety of shot types, but it can provide a dynamic angle on jets just after they have rotated. In nice light, it was a few minutes well spent. Not sure I would spend too long there but it would be good for getting something specific. The fence is a nuisance immediately after getting airborne, but AI tools can do a good job of removing that since I wasn’t up high and the planes are soon clear of the fence line.

Winter Light on Heathrow Arrivals

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The arrival at Heathrow of the American Airlines retro 777 got me out to Heathrow on a sunny weekend. I got there early to make sure I was in a location that worked before the plane arrived and, since the spot I had hoped for worked out, I was there in plenty of time. I also saw that there were a few other interesting aircraft (to me) that were coming in. Consequently, I got to photograph a bunch of planes.

With it being Heathrow, I was going to get a load of British Airways’ A320 family jets. I would probably have not normally cared about A319s, but it won’t be long before you don’t see those again. However, the unusual liveries/airlines that came in were of more interest. My first encounter with an Air India A350 or a Middle Eastern Airlines A321 was great. Other airlines/types I have seen before but maybe not photographed in such nice light. Here is a selection of images from a delightful lunchtime as planes flew by. I did try to stop taking pictures and just enjoy the planes for a while too.

American’s Retro 777 Catches the Sun

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A friend of mine in Fort Worth had shared some images of the latest American Airlines plane to be painted in a special livery. This was a 777-300ER that was aiming to replicate their old paint scheme although it was grey rather than polished aluminium. It is a livery that seems to have divided opinion. I was kind of curious as to whether it would show up in the UK at some point and put a trace on the tail number in case it came to Heathrow.

I hadn’t anticipated that it would get a hit almost immediately. It was scheduled on the DFW to Heathrow run on Sunday. Add to that, the weather was looking great. The only downside is that they were due to be arriving on the north runway, and I had not ever shot there. However, I decided to give it a go. I went a bit early to find out if my plan for where to shoot would work. Parking was a bit of an adventure, but the location was a good one, so I waited and chatted to some guys from Gloucestershire that had turned up for the same reason.

I don’t think it is a great paint job. The red nose does have a bit of a Comic Relief feel about it and grey is fine in good light but will be dull on other days. Then again, I do complain about boring liveries, and this is something else. It also got me out and shooting on a day when otherwise I might not have done so glad it all worked out. I am also told this was its first commercial run post repaint so that is something I suppose!