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Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2001 4:18 pm
by AWspicious
Was at my favorite location for spotting at YYZ this evening - the Boeing parking lot - and noticed they're putting up a fence! Now, it was bad enough when they blocked off half the lot to vehicles which forced us to either watch activity from futher away, or, get out and walk to get a closer look. Now, with this fence, it's going to hamper or view even more. I'm curious to know if we'll still be able to get a closer look on foot. Also, what will happen when they start filling that area with the snow ploughed from the runways. I wonder if this might even be part of increased security measures being taken by the GTAA. Hmmmm......
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2001 10:51 pm
by AWspicious
...but wait, it gets worse! The area being fenced in is where they usually store the snow removed from the runways, etc. The snow gets quite high obstructing your view from the normal parking area, but, one could still get in around the mountian of snow to see activity. Matter of fact, you could stand on top the mountain of snow and get a bird's eye view of things. Now, I suspect this newly fenced in area may become part of the "restricted access area" which will prevent you from seeing past the snow mountain obstacle.
This is truly sad news... for me, at least.
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2001 3:58 am
by gmonney
Hey buddy,
I know what you mean....I love that spot and I spend a lot of time there in the summer and winter. Like on some nice days last winter standing on the snow pile watching all of the aircrafts land a take off was wonderful. I was there yesterday and it was all fenced in. I think what they are doing is putting that roadway in so the snow plows don't have to go onto airport rd. They will still dump the snow there but never leave the property.
We must do something to about this, I really don't like rwy 24 for departures, but arrivals on 24R are OK, if you know what i mean.
Keep me posted on where you are going now that the boeing area sucks!!
Grant
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2001 6:00 am
by Jean Leloup
woe to us, the spotters... Our activity is not valued, I guess because we are not a source of revenue... that was the best spot to spot at YYZ.. in fact, I don't even nkow of any others, personally!
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2001 6:15 am
by gmonney
There are some others, rwy24R is a good spot, let me know if you need directions.
I think they should do a pay thing where you can go and pay to get in. I would, it would be worth a few bucks to get to some better places in the airport.
Grant
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2001 8:37 am
by captaingomes
Personally, I like going to a little plot of land off Dixie road, basically the opposite end of that same runway by the Boeing plant. When they are landing by there, you get great views. Other than that, it really is getting more and more difficult to watch the airplanes take off and land.
It used to be great when I worked at Threshold Aviation, and we had a beautiful view of the runways, but they've since moved, and the view is gone.
Oh, and with T1 going down too, there's another great place that is going to disappear. I guess the days of airplane spotting at YYZ are coming to an end
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2001 2:28 pm
by redngold
Awwww darn...
I feel for you guys. I was up there last summer (at least one of you said you'd meet me, I was stood up!) on 1 July and got a lobster sunburn standing at the Boeing lot for approximately six hours. But the AC A340 taking off on the crosswind and an AF A340, Alitalia 767, and AC 747-400 plus numerous other small fry landing on 23 were wonderful!
And of course, I've never seen so many Dash-8s in my life...
redngold
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 1:35 am
by ba777-236
But there is one website that has a petition going on about making a spot for us spotters to take pictures.... Here it is,
http://www.canairradio.com/petition.aspI think that everyone that goes to Pearson should sign it.
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 1:49 am
by gmonney
Hey Captain...grant here....
Anyways, I go to spot at rwy 5 but its not the same really, I like the fact that you are at the side not below the aircrafts. Plus its like maybe 10% of the time, maybe 30 days a year that they use that rwy!!
Oh well, I will support what ever I have to to get a proper viewing area!!
Grant
AN 225 In Mirabel?
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 2:11 am
by captaingomes
Hey Grant
Apparantly the other day I saw you at the store, and didn't know it was you, until after you left. I asked Slawko "who is that guy?" because you were there for a bit, and chatting quite a bit. I figured you might have been a pilot who flies with Bill or something. Anyways, it was nice to sort of meet you the other day. hehehe. Nice to put a face to the names here on airliners.net.
Getting back to the question at hand though, it's getting more and more difficult and less interesting to go airplane spotting at YYZ. Let's hope that something will be done, because I too am willing to spend some money to go once in a while to see what is going on at the airport.
In related news, I heard that the AN 225 is going to Mirabel!?!?!? I wonder if it's true!!! If anybody knows (ahem, Slawko), could you please inform the rest of us?
Take care,
Nuno.
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 2:34 am
by gmonney
I think with all of the development in the infield they could do something for spotters??? Have a secure area for us, put if fences give us passes, do back ground checks and charge a fee? I'm sure if the price was right we could quite a few people to join.
Just a thought.....but i know that the cargo area is not really close to very active rwy's except in the winter when they are using 33R and L because of the cold north winds!!
Any other idea's guys?
Grant
P.S. I might be heading out there soon, anyone going? Its 12:30pm on sunday the 9th of dec?
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 4:32 am
by Guest
This kind of security is a joke!
Why dont they concentrate on the terminals where it really needed, what's the point of secority on the airport peritmeter? Shoulder launched missile? Please, you could shoot one of those from any downtown building, this doesnt help.
Perhaps I'm ignorant, but this simply has no meaning to me.
Aloha 737-200
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 6:00 am
by LY744
Pardon my ignorance, but could anyone tell me when exactly the parking lot on top of T1 in YYZ will stop being available for pic taking? I would really love to go there before its closed.
LY744.
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 8:42 am
by gmonney
Go to
http://www.gtaa.com its the website for YYZ's owner...Basically there you can see the progress and it gives you a progressional look 3 months at a time, there you can see when T1 is going to disappear. I think you will be ok next summer but by 2003 I know its gone.
hope this helps,
Grant
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 9:46 am
by LY744
Thanks, Grant!
LY744.
LY744....did You Get The Info
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 10:36 am
by gmonney
Did you get the required infor that you were looking for?
Grant
RE: LY744....did You Get The Info
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 9:44 pm
by LY744
Yup. According to the construction schedule (
http://www.gtaa.com/airportdevelopment/schedule.asp) section, T1 will be closed somewhere in the first quarter of 2003, as the Dec/31/02 pic still shows a/c at T1, but the next one (April 2003) doesn't.
LY744.
RE: T1
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 11:33 pm
by voodoo
I know its supposed to be inefficient but I can't help thinking that T1 could have been incorporated into the new terminal, if only the new one had been set further away from the existing apron than planned (this shot is just prior to the 2003 dismantling: ).
http://www.gtaa.com/airportdevelopment/images/schedule/2002-12-31.jpg
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2001 11:41 pm
by a380
Any one knows if spotting is still allowed in the T1 garage, and can I see planes landing in Centennial Park?
RE: Disappointing News For YYZ Spotters.
Posted: Tue Dec 11, 2001 1:03 am
by captaingomes
Centennial Park isn't as good for spotting anymore either, because with the new runway (33L), if the winds are coming from the north, they use 33L for landings, rather than 33R (which was the runway you'd see them land on from Centennial Park before the new runway).
However, when they are landing on 33L, there is a great place to go, which is right by the infield cargo area. You are adjacent to the runway and get really nice views of the airplanes landing. Also, since northerly winds can sometimes be quite strong, you get to see some very interesting landings sometimes.
Regarding T1, I assume the garage is still open, I don't see why not.