Ah, you have reached the spotting page for my favorite airport to go spotting at!  The spots mentioned are all spots that are frequented by spotters in the New York City metro area and spotters from all over the globe.

The above map, with modifications, was provided by Google Earth.

About the Spots and What You Will See

Spot A:  Spot A is unanimously called "The Mounds", as you are standing on mounds of dirt to shoot pictures from.  The best way to get to the mounds is to follow Rockaway Boulevard past the airport (take the Belt Parkway to Rockaway Boulevard).  Make a left at the first light, which is Brookville Blvd.  Continue on Brookville to the next light (147 Avenue) and make another left onto it.  Proceed to 230th St. and make another left.  Go to the end where there is a soccer field and school.  On the left side of the soccer field you will see a mound of dirt about 10 feet high. Take up position on this mound and watch away!  You will see arrivals to Runway 22L, which, when active alongside 13L, will see the majority of the domestic flights going into 13L (your JetBlue, American and Delta 757s, and regional jets) with most of the international flights going into 22L.  For the last year so, the mounds were off-limits due to construction on a field adjacent to the mounds, but I have heard that it is open.

Spot B:  These are the parking lots at Burger King and Costco.  Follow Rockaway Boulevard past the traffic light for Spot A and turn right into either Burger King or Costco (Costco has its own traffic light).  You will get slightly different views of 31R arrivals from either location, and if you go to Costco, you might even get to see 31L arrivals as well, even though they'll be quite a distance away and the lighting will suck.  Costco provides the BEST lighting out of any of the Kennedy spots, but you will have to deal with the power lines at both Burger King and Costco as well as the lamp posts.  The sun will be behind you all day long, and the best place to park at Costco is by the water's edge, if the parking spots are available.  As a word of caution, DO NOT take pictures of the fuel tanks.

Please exercise caution when spotting at Burger King and Costco, as you have a higher chance of getting questioned by the Nassau County Police Department.  I was actually asked to leave Burger King once as a result of someone calling in regarding a suspicious person.

Spot C:  Welcome to Howard Beach.  Take the Cross Bay Boulevard SOUTH exit off the Belt Parkway (if going towards the Verrazano Narrows Bridge) or the Cross Bay Boulevard exit if going east on the Belt Parkway (in this case, turn right at the light after you get on the exit ramp).  Go through at least seven traffic lights and be in the right lane once you go past all the traffic lights.  Once you cross the bridge, make a right at that traffic light, circle around as if you're going to make a U-turn, but go straight through the light to get onto the other side of Howard Beach and park along the water.  You will see 31L departures and depending on where they rotate, you will get a nice left turn upon departure.  This is referred to as the Canarsie departure.  The lighting is decent in the morning and gets a little worse as the day progresses, and you will need at least 400mm to get some decent pictures.

Spot D:  Spot D covers Bayswater State Park.  Take Rockaway Boulevard to Nassau Expressway (the next light past the light for Costco/Spot B).  Turn right at the light and go to the second light and make another right onto Burnside Avenue.  Burnside Avenue will change to Sheridan Boulevard shortly thereafter.  Follow the road for about two miles to a light on the corner of Mott Avenue. Turn right and follow all the way to the end.  Park on the street (legally) and then walk through the gates to the park area.  Bayswater Park is open from sunrise to sunset and will offer great views of arrivals onto the 4s and departures from 22R, along with 13R departures and 31L arrivals.  You will need at least 400 mm to get some shots, especially for 22R departures and 31L arrivals.  You will see some people fishing at this spot as well, and don't forget to bring bug spray during the summer.  Also, after a rainstorm, remember that walk into the park can get a bit muddy!

Spot E:  The best place to describe Spot E is across from the Air India Cargo buildings.  Follow signs off the JFK Expressway or the Van Wyck Expressway to Cargo Areas A.  You will end up on 150 Avenue.  At the end of 150 Avenue, turn left.  Make another left into a gravel/semi-paved parking lot.  You have the best seat in the house for 13L arrivals, as they are within 200 feet above you!  You don't need a lot of zoom here - in fact, if you get an airplane larger than a 767 flying over you, you'll need about 40mm!  The threshold of 13L is about a ¼-mile from you.  The only downside to this spot is that you are practically unable to get side shots.  DO NOT go anywhere beyond the parking lot to get any pictures.  Since this is on airport property, you have a much higher chance of being asked to leave by PAPD and any private security firms.

02/24/2008 Update on Spot F

The Air India Cargo parking lot is currently off-limits to everyone.  I have gotten e-mails stating that the parking lot has been blocked off until further notice.

Spot F:  This is an alternate spot to view 31R arrivals.  It is closer to the threshold of 31R than Spot B.  Go on Rockaway Boulevard as if you were heading towards Spot A or B, but at the light where you'd turn left for Spot A, turn right.  Follow the road down into a residential section and park by the water.  You will get belly shots of the aircraft as they approach 31R as opposed to getting side shots at Spot B.

12/17/2006 Update on Spot F

IT IS CURRENTLY UNSAFE TO SPOT AT SPOT G BECAUSE OF CONSTRUCTION.  There are no places to pull off the street and watch or take pictures from.

Spot G:  This is an alternate spot to view 22L arrivals.  The best way to get to the mounds is to follow Rockaway Boulevard past the airport (take the Belt Parkway to Rockaway Boulevard).  Make a left at the first light, which is Brookville Blvd.  Continue on Brookville to the next light (147 Avenue) and make another left onto it.  You'll see a park to the right.  Find a parking spot and walk down the park to get any kind of vantage point you can think of.  Belly shots and side shots can be obtained here.  You can use any kind of lens here but be sure to carry at least a 200 mm lens on you.

As far as what you'll see at JFK, the best time to catch international arrivals is between 1:00 and 5:00 in the afternoon on ANY day.  If I was doing a JFK spotting day and the 31s were active, I'd spend the morning until noon at Spot C and then move to Spot B to catch the international (well, European) arrivals.  Depending on the day you're out spotting, you will see Thai, ANA, Saudi Arabian, and JAL heavies departing, along with United and American 777s going to Tokyo.  International departures usually start in the early evening.  JFK is the BEST airport on the east coast to catch international traffic, with LAX and San Francisco sharing the title for international traffic on the west coast.  Domestic airlines such as American, American Eagle, Comair, Delta, JetBlue, Northwest, and United have a lot of flights into Kennedy.  To name a few international carriers that operate out of Kennedy, you have Aer Lingus, Aeroflot, Aerosweet, Air China, Air France, Air India, Air Tahiti Nui, Alitalia, ANA, Austrian, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Egypt Air, El Al, Emirates, Finnair, Iberia, JAL, KLM, Korean Air, Kuwait Airways, LOT, Lufthansa, LTU (seasonally), Malev, Pakistan, Qantas, Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian, Saudi Arabian, Turkish Airways, Uzbekistan Airways, and Virgin Atlantic.

Security

Security around JFK is practically hit-or-miss, with the best spot being Spot C and the worst being Spot E.  I have heard of spotters (especially the locals) getting stopped at each of the locations, and with Spot D, with the need for a permit to photograph on Park property.  I personally have not had any problems with security at any of the locations (I have visited each location at least once).  The folks at NYCAviation.com know all about each of the spots mentioned and check out their forums for anything and everything on JFK, LGA, EWR, FRG, and ISP.

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© 2006-2008 Steven Holzinger