I am planning a trip to Las Vegas for early 2004 and a wanted to know what is McCarren like? How busy is it and what different kinds of planes can I expect to see while Im there. I also would like some suggestions on what I should fly there from MKE. And finally are there any good spotting places I should know about?



Thanks

AATriple7

Some neat things I've observed at LAS:

1) There is an aeronautical chart painted on the floor of the transportation lobby on the airside...

2) The runway is long.....very long.

3) You may fly VERY close to a very tall tower as you approach (I forget what it's called).

enjoy!

3) You may fly VERY close to a very tall tower as you approach (I forget what it's called).

Sounds like the "Stratosphere".

Think of MCCarran as a casino that also happens to have an airport.  

I've only been there once, on a 35 minute connection. I believe I was in the B gates, got off my flight from BWI in one of the rotundas just to find old Japanese men sitting at the slot machines. Overall the airside was reasonably nice, slightly cramped, but certainly acceptable given how old that part of the terminal is.

There is a pretty decent variety of aircraft there as well. But LAS doesn't get interesting till late at night when all of the flights start pouring in. And the departure off of the 25s generally involves a long looping right turn that gives you awesome views of the strip and the airport as you leave the valley to head east or south.

McCarran is a great airport! I am biased since I live here, but the new D concourse is beautiful... hopefully you'll fly an airline that uses that concourse. The aeronautical chart mentioned above is in the lobby of terminal D. LAS has four runways: 25R/7L, 25L/7R, 19L/1R and 19R/1L. 25R/7L is a whopping 14,510 feet long! If you happen to land on 19L or 19R, you will be approaching from the north and will have a great view of the Stratosphere Tower, the tower Jhooper was referring to above. It will be off the right side of the A/C.

There is a spotting area on the south side of the airport off Sunset Blvd. Not a great spot for pictures, but a good place to watch the airplanes landing on 25L. The airport is bordered on the east side by Eastern Ave. There is a businees park there where you could get some head-on nose/belly shots of a/c on final.

McCarran is one of the top ten busiest airports in the US. Southwest is the dominant carrier there, so you'll see a lot of 737s. America West is second biggest, followed by United and Delta. Delta has everything from Skywest CRJs to 767-300s landing at LAS, UA flies a mix of 757/737 and A320 A/C. Air Transat operates L1011s there, and you'll see a lot of OAI (Omni Air International DC-10s). Virgin flies 747-400s there, as well as JAL. You'll see a mix of AA MD-80s and 757s, NW 757s and A320s and CO 737s and 757s. The list goes on and on. I think nearly every carrier in the US flies to McCarran.

There's tons I've missed, I know. The great thing about McCarran is it's right off the strip! The west side of the airport is bordered by the famous Las Vegas strip! Check out http://www.mccarren.com for more! If landing on 25L, which is typical, you'll have a good chance of seeing the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam and Lake Mead, depending on how you're vectored in. Have fun!

The only thing I remember from a quick connection at McCarran is all the smoking - The air quality is absolutely atrocious!  

I could be wrong, but I thought all smoking is banned now. At any rate, LAS is a great airport. It needs the long runways because of the high desert heat in the summer!

As far as the casinos, resist the temptation to play at the airport (that 'Wheel of Fortune' ring is still stuck in my head!). The odds are terrible and you'll have much more fun playing somewhere else on 'The Strip'. Speaking of The Strip, you have a good view of it from McCarran!

I have posted my last recommendation (for die-hard aviation enthusiasts only) before but here is a quick rundown:
If you walk south on Las Vegas Blvd (The Strip), past Luxor and past Mandalay Bay, there is a Jack-in-the-Box restaurant about a mile down - with not much in between. This JITB fast food just happens to be very close to the end of the runways and you are bound to see plenty of landing (or take-off) traffic right over your head! My buddies and I pulled away from the casinos on The Strip one evening, walked down there, grabbed a quick dinner to go at JITB and some Mexican beer from the gas station next door. We sat at a bus stop bench and watched planes for several hours! The worst part of it was the planes were taking off and not landing as they had been earlier in the afternoon, so the views were good but not excellent.... A useful hint it to be sure to let the bus drivers know you are not interested in taking them before they come to a complete stop at the bench!!

There is no smoking in the terminal. Condor comes in on Mondays with a 767 from FRA. JAL & VS come in on Sundays.

don't forget as well, that las vegas mccarran airport outside of the security for term c and d has the lobby area with the tribute to avation. it displays vegas' aviation history

It's beautiful.

1. It's got slots right infront of the gate.
2. Finding transportation is a piece of cake. The taxi drivers drive like a bat out of hell!
3. The airport is right on the strip. The terminal is on the opposite end.
4. You can get some pretty good shots of stored aircraft.
5. It's a spotters paradise if you just want to see planes.
Not that much variety as far as airlines though. Alot of WN activity.

Hey Derek,

Im from the milwaukee area, and been to las vegas 9 times , the last 6 or so years. Ive flown midwest 5 times, united 4, and nwa once. Ive arrived in the A,B,C, and D gates. The D gates are very nice and modern, with nice architecture and a cool tram. The older concourses are still pretty nice, and retain a more vintage vegas flair. There are slots literally all over, not like that means anything to us though. McCarran definitely has a lot of on and off times, for instance a night at the D gates is pretty vacant, with the majors spacing flights throughout the day. However, this is prime time for America West and Southwest, who are extremely busy at night. 737's will be the aircraft of choice, but you get a pretty good variety, and some surprises.

As for flights, absolutly nothing beats the old YX, with their 6:40 flight with a fabulous dinner and put you on a sunser approach in summer, fabulous flight. Now the options are more standard, and NW has the nonstop now. I would personally go YX, but i have also had good flights on UA from ORD.

If you want any other tips etc on vegas, email me.

-Justin

For me it is the best airport in the US on my list so far..
yeah concourse D is really beautiful, especiallt at night. I usually prefer to go to LAS at night it is soooo beautiful there. also there are alot of landings on 25L an night I've been to the spotting place on sunset blvd the weather is pretty good to go there at night. to me all the landings at night are neverendless!!!! I am going to Las Vegas on 11/28 through 12/1/03
I will post a trip report and maybe show some pics too I am going to have a lot of fun there  cant wait!!!

The main thing about LAS that I remember is after flying in from ORD on a UA 767-300 seeing the slots as soon as I walked of the plane.

The first thing you will hear as you get off the plane are slots going off!! As far as flying from MKE and would recommend looking at America West, they ALWAYS have specials going on, also Midwest and possibly NWA would be good choices. If you choose to fly out of ORD take a look at UA and AA.

PHXMKEflyer

The airport its self is very nice, but all the slots, and the open smoking make it an extremely loud, obnoxious, stink hole. I spent 3 hours there waiting for my connection between LAX and DEN last summer, and it about did me in.

McCarran is a really unique airport.

If you're arriving from the east on the 25R/L runways you'll get a great view of the Grand Canyon area, and many times the turn onto final approach is made right over the Hoover Dam. If you come in on the 19R/L runways you'll fly parallel to the Las Vegas Strip right up until you touch down. The 7R/L and 1R/L approaches aren't nearly as nice - mostly over desert and suburban sprawl - but landing from those directions is pretty rare.

Because all the high-rise hotels are nearby, you feel like you've landed right in the middle of the city. It's breathtaking at night, with all the lights sparkling.

The only (possibly) negative aspect of LAS are the mountains. They're beautiful, but the fact that McCarran is in the center of the valley (ringed by pretty steep mountains) means that the final approach is almost always bumpy. It's especially bad in the summer... you'll be shaking all the way down to the runway.

well if ur lookin to go spotting (at the airport). my opinion is that the gates where United and Delta are...is the best place as the runway (i think 25) is right in site. also runway 19 is just off of the terminal 2 area and the A gates.

for the smoking areas...they are in an enclosed area. the airport for the majority of it is well ventalated.

like someone previoiusly posted...u can pretty much see all the USA airlines along w/ Hawaiian and Aloha airlines...and Virgin and JAL B747-400's on certain days. JAL leaves LAS between noon-1pm and Virgin leaves around 5ish pm i believe (please correct me if i'm wrong).

types of planes u can see: B727/37/47/57/67, A318/19/20/30, Emb120, RJ's, MD-80, DC-10's.

Enjoy ur time in SIN CITY!

~B6FA4ever

I flew out of LAS in August on DL. The checkin area was a mob scene about (1030am) the line for non elite economy must have been an hour or more long. Luckily I had splurged on a very uncommon upgrade to F but I still had to wait 20 mins to be checked in. There were no DL check in kiosks which pissed me off however I have heard that multi airline kiosks are either now available or will be shortly at LAS.

Arrive early if you are flying DL Y and are not elite with them. But I noticed other airlines were handling their checkin far better. From my experience it is too bad DL can't get their act together at this airport.

Out of all the many times I've been to Las Vegas (and I mean many.........perse around once a month, sort of "mini vacations" for my mom since she dosen't have the time to have real vacations often) I've only been to McCarran once and that was 2 weeks ago when connecting with HP from JFK to LAX. When I got into the D Concourse it was pretty crowded and of course there were slots. Didn't stay long but it was good to finally be look what was inside the airport.

BTW if you didn't make reservations yet and want a room that is facing McCarran, theres hotels like Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Excalibur, Tropicana, and Hotel San Remo (not sure on the last if it is great for McCarran views) that face the airport.

The checkin IN is a nightmare and the as far as airlines go.. Southwest had a ton of those lil 737's.
The airport gives u a great view of the strip but its very underwhelming during day light hours.

Be ready for a brutally hot trip as well, and hold on to your wallet.
They even have one armed bandits in the terminal!!!!!!!

One of the more interesting spotting experiences will be (if you're lucky) seeing the white 737-200s with the red cheatline. Imagine Western's old "flying W" scheme without the "W". These planes are used to provide scheduled service to a place that the U. S. Government refuses to acknowledge exists - Area 51. Actually this "scheduled" service is to Nellis AFB, which is north of LAS.
These flights don't leave from the main terminal, but from the Hughes Executive Terminal located along the western boundary (Tropicana Blvd.???) near where the ends of 7L and 01L/R intersect.

[Edited 2003-11-11 22:51:42]

Yes there is the "Janet" 737s to keep a look out for as well.

I think those 737s go to Groom Lake,if I am not in error. Nellis would only be a 5 minute trip.
Too bad all the Grand Canyon sightseeing outfits are at North Vegas now.It was fun to see the Twin Otters,402s,and Eagle F-27s alongside the big jets.
As a sidenote,I got to finally ride a plush!?! BE 99 of Air Vegas Airlines on the GCN tour in August. 1pm and hot as could be.Fun ride with 13 pax!!

I live in the landing path of the Janet airplanes and they come a lot, you might not notice them, but because I have lived in this path so long that the planes come every 10 minutes, one after another.
The terminals are great, everything is remodeled. Baggage claim is big, with sings all over the place. Some parts are being remodeled right now. Ticketing is long and crowded because of the new scanning machines.
Also if you want to spot planes, try this one street called Chandler St. By Eastern and Sunset. The planes fly above you. Also the cementary that's at the end of the runway is a good spot. It all depends were all the planes are taking off or landing at.
And also its true that most of the planes there are SWA, they take up all of the "C" gates. So my bet is your going to see like 5 737's before you see anything bigger.

Good Luck

By the way, "Janet" stands for Joint Area Network for Employee Transportation. I've watched a few depart LAS, and while most go north to Groom Lake, I've seen some head toward the Los Angeles area.

I really liked McCarran when I was there this past July. I was on a WN connection, at the WN terminal and didn't get a chance to go visit the other concourses at the airport.

Also, there's a security point that lies between the WN terminal and the rest of the airport, which means that you can't really get out of that terminal to do spotting at other areas of the airport, unless you're changing airlines and have a valid ticket for the other concourses.

It's just as well though, if I had gone into the other areas I would have missedmy connection. I barely got back in time as it was. 

I remember the windows were tinted as well, not good for plane pictures.

The WN terminal has red carpet throughout. This was the first time I'd ever been in a large airport that had a carpeted concourse. I'd only ever seen that in small airports. This was nice.

The airport does smell of smoke, yes. For being a "non smoking airport" you sure can smell it, but it's not a huge problem.

Slot machines everywhere. That was another first for me. I'd avoid playing them, but you can hear alot of other people on the wheel of fortune ones, which are the loudest.


After my connecting flight pushed back from the gate, I caught sight of a Condor 767 landing at the airport. Thanks to the person that mentioned this flight was from FRA, I've been wondering for a while. 

We took off parallel to the strip and turned south-west, towards L.A. On the route into SNA, you get a glimpse of the aircraft graveyard at Victorville. You get a better view though on the SNA-LAS run, the return flight, because most flights are vectored closer to VCV in that direction. There was a big cloud hanging over the graveyard but the rest of the sky was mostly clear. It's almost telling, I guess, that VCV would have a dark cloud hanging over it most of the time.  

Anyway, the approach into LAS is fantastic. We came in over Lake Mead on a WN 733. From SNA, we came in on a long left turn. Landed on the same runway both times. Did not pass the stratosphere tower.

During taxi for the flight to SNA, I also caught sight of the Arizona One plane. That was a thrill. 

I've been out there numerous times, although not for the past 2 years. It is one of the better spotting airports around.

There is a parking area on the south side of the airport on East Sunset Road that is good for spotting. It is towards the east end of the airport property on the outside of the airport fence. Planes usually arrive on 27L, which is right in front of you, lined up with the touch down marks. If you want to take pictures, you probably have to stand of the roof of your car. The chain link fence is about 10 feet high. If you like 737's and MD-80's, you'll love the place. That seems to be most of the traffic.

There are also some "stored" aircraft" on the west end of the field opposite the Luxor hotel. There is a side street off South Las Vegas Blvd, I think it was Hacianda Road or Avenue, that can get you pretty close. When I was there last, there was an L-1011, one or two DC-10's, at least one 747 and some other assorted aircraft.

They used broadcast ATC frequencies on an AM radio frequency and had a sign up on the fence telling you to tune your radio to the frequency in order to listen in. I don't know if they do that any more.

If you get a chance and don't mind driving around, head up to Nellis AFB to watch some Air Force birds. If your lucky, the Thunderbirds will be there practicing.

Enjoy. Just stay out of the casinos. Remember, Las Vegas was built with customer money left on the tables.

One thing I have noticed every time I have flown into McCarren (unless this has changed during the past year) -- they do check your baggage claim receipt against the tag on your luggage as you leave the claim area.

Wait until you see all of the ground transportation in front of the airport. Taxi cabs in Vegas come in all shapes and sizes -- Minivans, Explorers, Lincolns etc.

Have a great time. Hit a BIG one!

I noticed Las Vegas to be a real family town.
You see a lot of fathers with their daughters.

I liked LAS. I have only been there once but I thought it was a good airport.
I also like to fly there on FS.

Who says you can't get descent pics at the spot on Sunset?







And the cops won't bother you there !

So United Fan, did you stand on top of the car or force your lens through the chain link fence? Nice shots!

No,I put my camera right up to the fence. I have a Sony F717,and that has a large diameter lense,too! Some pics required some cropping.
I learned my lesson about standing on rental car roofs!

WOW, Thanks a lot for all the info I really appreciate it. Does anyone know when the Virgin Atlantic 744 and the JAL 744 land and take off? I would really like to see them. Oh yea I decided to take Delta out there from MKE I am connecting in ATL and I am getting on a 764 from ATL to LAS, and another 764 from LAS to ATL then a 738 from ATL to MKE.


Thanks Again for all the info cant wait to do a lot of spotting.

I flew into the new terminal (I say this cause it had been a while) last month. I was very impressed... VERY NICE! Spacious, and well laid out... I was impressed for LAS...

Doesn't Midwest operate their Saver Service to LAS?

Note: If you plan to stay at the Luxor... a room on the 26th or 27th floor facing McCarren allows for a splendid view of the airport. Of course, all pictures have to be taken through the windows, since there are no balconies!

Virgin comes in around noon on Sundays and leaves around 4pm. JAL comes in twice a week I believe.Condor comes in on Mondays.

sprxflySWA,
Thanks for the correction! Groom Lake is indeed the destination for those 73s.

WNfan,
Thanks for your info. I knew JANET was an acronym, but didn't know the full name for the service.

Skydrol,

We was stayed in the Aladdin by the hotel near at LAS airport and these are very good hotel for us and it is very nice place. I see good spotter went on the tower of Paris hotel next of the Aladdins. Those are very nice time for us in LAS and it is been very long time for me and since, I was young went flew on same day from PHX-LAS flight by roundtrip. Well, talk ya later!  

Scott W.

This is a wicked fun airport to arrive into. Since you have decided to take DL - you will arrive into the newest D gates. If you check luggage, it will take a few minutes for it to arrive in baggage claim, so take a few minutes to look around the D gates.

I can't think of another city that I have been to that better represents itself though the interior of a terminal. The slots and bright signage inside the terminal buildings echo exactly what Las Vegas strip is like.

If you want to research best "what-to-do-while in Vegas" travel bargains, I would recommend www.lasvegasadvisor.com. The free info on this web site is more than enough for the first time visitor. (the pay stuff is really only for those that live in Vegas, so don't be tempted - ha,ha you will quickly learn that that is what Vegas is all about - temptation!)

I would think one of the best places to stay in Vegas for airliner fans would be in the South Tower of the Tropicana, with a view facing the airport (south). Get a room high up as you can. I have never stayed there, but it looks like that would be a great view!! The Tropicana practically boarders the airport, and you will be at the end of a departure runway.

Have a great trip, I want to hear about the 764.

Sorry, I am Actually taking NW from MKE not DL, They were the cheapest. I am going the non-stop A-319 flight. Then on the way home I go LAS-IAH-MSP-MKE (CO from LAS to IAH obviostly) I dont know what aircraft it is but I know that it leaves LAS at 7:00 AM. Then a NW A-319 from IAH to MSP. NW 757-300 from MSP to MKE.



Maybe I`ll get on a NWA colors