If you are in the Hampton Roads area and you love military aviation, you will love to be around several of the military bases in the area. In fact, there are three prestigious military bases that are home to the finest fighters in the Air Force and Navy's inventory. Langley AFB, which is covered here, is one of the best places to spot at, in terms of action, variety, and time/quantity - that's if you happen to be there at the right time of day.

Aerial shot provided by Google Earth with textual modifications to show the spots and the roads around Langley AFB.

About the Spots

Spot A:  I have only spotted at this location as of recently and between this spot and Spot B, you are pretty much at the best locations (well, the only locations) to spot at Langley AFB.  At the traffic light for Sweeney Boulevard, turn left (if coming directly from I-64) into a dirt and gravel road.  The road leads to an junkyard and auto parts lot.  Park just outside of their gates and as far off the dirt road as you can and you will have a clear and unobstructed view of the runway past the road (except for when taller vehicles pass by you).  You can't get good shots of aircraft departing from Runway 8 (but you can watch and HEAR them), but you can get some very nice shots of them departing 26, as they will pass almost overhead.  Approaches into 8 come very close to you, and you don't really need a lot of zoom for when they pass your position.  Catching 26 departures as they appear over the fence will require at least 300 mm of lens, as will more distant 8 arrival pictures (don't bother getting arrivals onto 8 as you might run into a considerable amount of heat haze).

You can also see the main ramp pretty well, but you're not able to pick out the airplanes parked other than seeing a sea of tail fins.  Sunlight at this spot is excellent, with the sun at your back until mid-afternoon, when it will be in front of you.  When that happens, switch to Spot B.  Use extreme caution at Spot A, as vehicles that travel the road tend to speed down at more than 30 miles an hour, kicking up sand, dust, and gravel everywhere and into your eyes.  It's not fun.  There is a camera mounted on the traffic light post for Sweeney Boulevard that is facing the junkyard and is monitored by the Air Force law enforcement as well as Hampton Police.

Lighting at this spot is perfect until about mid-afternoon, when the sun will be traveling to your nine o'clock position (as you look down Runway 8).  After that, you are going to have the sun in your face as you watch any arrivals to 8 or departures from 26.  I recommend Spot A for watching nighttime operations utilizing Runway 26.

Spot B:  I have parked at this spot several times, but each time, I did not catch any activity.  The best route to access Spot B from I-64 or the Hampton Roads Center Parkway is to follow Armistead till it ends at VA Route 172 and take a U-turn at the light and make a right turn onto Tidewater Drive.  The view at Spot B is practically reversed from Spot A, as you still have a good view of departures from Runway 8 and 26 and are able to get good shots of approaches to 8, but you won't be able to get decent pictures of the planes turning from base to final because of the trees.  The ramp view is not quite as good as it is on Spot A and the aircraft seem to fly a little further away from you at Spot B than at Spot A.

Lighting at this spot is terrible in the morning until mid-afternoon, and the sun will move somewhat on top of you to behind you as the day progresses.  Take note that there is a camera set up on the fence facing Tidewater Drive.  The best time of day to spot from here is mid-afternoon onwards.

The best way to access either spot is through Armistead Avenue, which runs over the approach to Runway 8. If you're on Interstate 64 heading east, you'll want to take Exit 261for the Hampton Roads Center Parkway (I believe you want Exit 261B) and follow that all the way to the end, which is Armistead Avenue. Take a left onto Armistead and take that to the light for Sweeney Blvd/Langley AFB West Gate. If you turned left at that light, that will put you at Spot A.  If you want Spot B, my best recommendation is to take Armistead Avenue past the base where it will fork to the right. That road is Commander Shepard Blvd (Virginia Route 172).  Stay left and be in the left lane so you can make a U-turn and turn right onto Tidewater Drive.

If you're on Interstate 64 heading west, take the Armistead Avenue/Langley AFB exit, which I believe is 265B. Follow Armistead Avenue all the way to Langley AFB and use the above directions to get to both spotting locations.  When you do get to the locations, park on the right side of either road and get over as far as you can possibly go. Be especially careful at Spot A, since there is a barbed wire fence on either side of the dirt road for Spot A (I would assume the same for Spot B as well).

What You'll See at Langley AFB

The best days for spotting at Langley AFB happen to be on weekdays, as there is very little to nothing happening on any weekend, except for airshow weekend.  As far as what you will see, variety is not something you should expect when you are spotting at Langley. I will guarantee that you will see F-15 Eagles and F-22A Raptors, now that there are two full squadrons of Raptors permanently assigned to Langley AFB.  The F-15 numbers have dwindled as a result, but you will still get to see the Eagle flying around, as there is still one squadron flying F-15s, and they will continue to do so for at least another several years.  If you play your cards right, you might get there and get to see a large number of aircraft launching, and those aircraft will return in about an hour or so.  Outside of F-15s and F-22s, you may see other Air Force aircraft flying into and out of Langley AFB, and if you're lucky, the NASA aircraft (including their 757!) do make uncommon operations at the base.

Below are some common callsigns you will hear from Langley-based aircraft and transients from the immediate area.
The list does not include every callsign Langley F-15s and F-22s use, as there are nearly 100 different callsigns.

If you are driving between Langley AFB and NAS Oceana, the drive will take approximately 35 miles and 45-55 minutes, with traffic moving at a decent pace on Interstates 64 and 264 and smoothly through the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel.  I have gotten between both bases in under 40 minutes, driving at 75 mph on I-64 in Norfolk and on I-264 (both of which have a lot of speed traps).

Security

Since Langley AFB is an Air Force Base, you might have more problems spotting there than at NAS Oceana mainly because the Air Force is more strict on spotters than the Navy is.  I have spotted at Langley on three different occasions and have yet to be stopped and/or questioned by either Air Force personnel or Hampton Police.  A friend of mine, however, was not as lucky, as he was thrown out of Spot A by Hampton Police because of orders handed to them by the USAF.  Hampton Police have on file a record of his whereabouts and information on him and his vehicle, which pretty much kills his chances of Langley spotting anytime in the future.  Also, even though it isn't much of a security issue, don't park inside the gates of the impound lot at Spot A, since you will have to go through the trouble of moving your vehicle when they close.  Also, in regards to Spot A, do not park on the side of road closest to the landing lights, as that makes your whereabouts more suspicious.

I have heard that the police (military and civillian) are cracking down on spotters and photographers at both locations, possibly because of the increased F-22 Raptor presence at Langley AFB.  Several Fence Checkers were told to leave Spot A on March 8 and March 9 of 2006 by Air Force and Hampton police, while I spent over three hours at Spot A on March 13th and never had any law enforcement officers come up to me - and I saw at least ten F-22s!  It must be my luck...

Do remember that Langley is an Air Force Base, and they have a much more strict enforcement on spotting than if you were to go spotting at Oceana.

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