General Info Photography and spotting at Edinburgh is quite good for the enthusiast, there are numerous places dotted round the airport, if taking photos then a few of the vantage points have a wire mesh fence in the way, most lenses deal with this no problem and it shouldn't show up too much on your photos if at all, if in doubt take some practice photos before and view them on your camera, it'll give you a good idea what your lense can deal with. WARNING The fence at Edinburgh has recently been repaired at the Ingliston Car Park area, there are CCTV cameras in this area as well, in the past the fence has had numerous holes cut in it, probably by someone wanting to use a larger than normal diameter lense, whatever the reason damaging the fence is a CRIMINAL ACT, anyone caught will to quote the police "Be nicked", also, if taking photos near any of the fencing I would personally not loiter right beside the fence, once the photo is taken then back away, the Airport Police and Security are there to do a job and "enthusiasts" damaging airport property will not be tolerated, I've taken photos for years and never had to cut any holes, good photos can be taken without resorting to criminal damage. Also, please don't park cars in front of crash gates, this is especially applicable at the Almondbank area, and finally again if parking your car park quite a distance away from any fence.

Probably the best and most popular spot, once the site of a large Sunday market, this place is north facing and so is ideal for taking photographs and spotting for most of the day. If you park away from the fence aircraft, if using RW24 can be photographed in a lot of detail without any danger of the fence getting in the way, landing aircraft on RW24 will normally taxy straight past you, landing aircraft on RW06 isn't as good but there are spots, aircraft leaving on RW06 will also taxy in front of you before departure. for taking photographs at Ingliston a zoom lense of about 75-300mm will be ok for everything, its what I use.

G-VMEG A340-600 of Virgin Atlantic

To get to Ingliston turn right when leaving the terminal, and follow the signs on lamp posts for "Secure Air Parks", about a 10 minute walk from the terminal altogether. Since 10th August 2007 security at Ingliston has been tightened, there is still limited access for cars but some barriers have been erected, the advice is not to leave your car unattended at all, but if you are on foot then photography is still permissable at the fence.

Boeing 767-300 of Delta Air Lines

Really only accessible by car, this spot is quite remote and is south-facing, so for most of the day the sun will be shining directly into your face, in the summer though the sun will have travelled far enough round by late afternoon to make this spot worthwhile for landing and taking off shots, best for landing shots when RW24 is being used, best for take-off when RW06 is being used. If the weather is quite grey and overcast then this spot can be used for most of the day. If it is quiet or the weather turns bad then the advantage is you will  be close to your car, also, the small town of Kirkliston nearby has some shops if you need food.

There is a crash gate at the Almondabnk site, so common sense means you shouldn't park in any of the designated "Keep clear" areas, the good thing about the Almondbank  is that it is raised up so that views are over the perimeter fence, best photographs are landing shots on RW24, if the sun is bright, then this area which is south facing should be avoided until late afternoon/early evening.

Boeing 747-400 of Air France

A lense of about 135mm or more is required here, anything up to 300mm will be sufficient for all but the very smallest aircraft. Almondbank isnt too easy to find at first, leave the airport by car and follow the signs for the Forth Road Bridge, look out for signs for Kirkliston, at the main set of trafffic lights at Kirkliston your not too far away from finding the Almondbank, about a 1 minute drive

Boeing 767 of Air China

Jet 2 Boeing 737
The cargo area is found by following signs for "Air Arago" on the main roads, it is the site of the old termial building which has since been demolished, there are a good selection of aircraft parked here for most of the day, but, there is also a lot of ground equipment, portakabins and vehicles in the way, not really recomended at all but worth stopping off if passing. Please be warned Security and the Police will take an intrest in you if you park in this area, personally dont hang around.

Sme of the cargo aircraft parked up at the cargo area
The cargo area at Turnhouse comes alive in the evening, in the summer it is possible to photograph most movements before the sun sets, in the winter only the aircraft parked up can be photographed.

Boeing 747-400 of Air France on approach 2006

This is one of the more remote spots for taking photographs and is located at the Runways lights for RW24. The spot is situated at the former RAF Turnhouse/Cargo side of the airport. If using a car then the road it is parked on is relatively narrow, so be careful. approach shots are excellent from this location, the sun is situated in a favourable position for most of the day. A radio scanner is a useful tool so that you get adequate warning of approaching aircraft. At this location it isn't too good for taking photos of departing aircraft, either from 06 or 24, probably best on a sunny day when 24 is being used.

Please note that a lot of the fields at this spot are used for agriculture so please dont upset any of the farmers by parking in front of entrances to fields etc. At the cargo area there is sometimes a mobile caravan selling food/drinks, if this isnt there then the nearest place for refreshment is a Sheel petrol station at Maybury. Most lenses can be used at this spot and it is one of the best area for even using point and shoot cameras.

Boeing 747-400 of Air France 2006

Accessible from the terminal, a short walk from Arrivals, the biggest drawback is that in the current security climate hanging about in this area will probably attract the attention of BAA Security and/or the Airport Police, probably should be used for a quick visit on your way to Ingliston, photography is through a wire mesh fence, good results are possible but Ingliston offers much more possibilities. NOTE This area appears to have continuous work being carried out, photography is normally not possible but worth a visit anyway.

Boeing 737-800 of KLM

To get to this area just turn right when you leave the terminal.

South African visitor ZS-PAJ Cessna 525A CitationJet
The General Avistion Terminal is signposted at the Hilton Hotel roundabout, a short distanc from the airport terminal, also, follow signs for the Long-Stay Car Park, I wouldn't recomend visiting this area by foot, if driving then there is an area to park at a food outlet called "Campsie Snacks", most of the business aircraft visiting can be viewed from this area there is also a hangar where the occaisional intresting visitor is parked outside. This area is good for a short visit, a lot of airport personell and police also use this area so try and be discrete, there appears to be no problems taking photos as long as you do not loiter at the fence, an added bonus is the food at Campsie Snacks is excellent. Not a good area for seeing other aircraft movements but Edinburghdoes attract some good Biz-Jet movements.

A good spot under the right conditions, especially good for taking shots from a foot-bridge at the roundabout, the view is straight down RW06, the disadvantages of this spot if driving is that you will need to park your car a fair distance away, also this spot can be very noisy because of the main road it is beside making it quite hard to listen to your scanner.

Probably the best feature of this spot is that there is a McDonalds not far away which can be handy for when it is quiet. worth a visit for a short period of time but it is difficult to spend a long time here. To get to this area follow the signs when you leave the airport for the M8 and Glasgow, at the first main junction called "Newbridge" I would head for McDonalds and try and park in this area.