Los Angeles International Airport is one of those great places for planespotting, having several vantage points around the very large property. I'm not going to reveal all the best spots, but the most popular can be found by searching "Airplane Landing View Point, LAX" on Google Maps. Located at the northeast corner of the airport, it's where I took the first photo below. Also, some people appreciate that this spot is right next to an In-N-Out Burger location.
Another interesting spot is The Proud Bird restaurant, located near the southeast corner of the airport, on Aviation Blvd. It has an outdoor mini-museum, featuring both retired aircraft and mockups that time and the Southern California sun have been unkind to. During one memorable visit here, I chatted for a while with the only person I've ever met from the U.S. Space Force, filled up on BBQ, and took photos (including this one) during a chilly evening, while my beer buzz wore off:
One neat thing about this airport is that you never know what you'll see. Sometimes, there are unusual livery designs on the planes, advertising movies and sports teams or commemorating special events.
Military aircraft don't fly into this airport all that often, considering there are several bases in Southern California, but they sometimes do. In summer 2023, a planespotter told me a C-17 was flying in. That was odd, then we discovered it was there as transportation support for the Vice President. We didn't know the Air Force Two jet was at the opposite end of the airport. Soon, a motorcade drove by in front of us and, shortly, we saw AF2 take off.
And now, the LAX footage reel:
"Photo Gallery: Planespotting at LAX Airport, Los Angeles" (published in 2024) by Justin J. Kilmer
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