Spot#1-2_RWY05_Tianjin-Airlines_B-9963
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March 15, 2019Xiamen Gaoqi Intl. Airport – Spotting Guide
- last modified on May 3, 2024
Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport( IATA：XMN / ICAO：ZSAM )is an important regional aviation hub along the southeastern coast of China. This airport is located on the northeast coast of Xiamen Island, about 15 km from the ferry terminal, where you can take a ferry to Kulangsu (one of the World Cultural Heritage).
Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport is the first airport constructed by foreign capital in China, and is also the first airport operated by local government in China. This airport was officially opened in October 1983. After the airport completed the reclamation extension in April 1987 and the second period extension project in January 2000, the total length of the runway is 3400 meters. Since December 2014, XMN has operated with Terminal 3 and Terminal 4 at the same time. Passenger throughput in 2018 was about 26.6 million, cargo throughput reached 345,500 tons, and the total number of flight in the whole year was about 193,300. XMN continues to be the busiest Single-Runway airport in China.
According to the data of the airport official website, 40 companies operated regular passenger and cargo flights at XMN, routes reached 109 cities, including 83 cities in China and 26 cities in international and regional areas. Xiamen Airlines, founded in 1984, is the main airline of Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport and is a member of the SKYTEAM. Xiamen Airlines operates about 170 all Boeing aircraft and has won the Boeing 737NG Fleet Global Reliability Award. In addition, Taikoo (Xiamen) Aircraft Engineering Company Limited is located near the Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport, it was registered in July 1993 and put into operation in March 1996. TAECO has six hangars, which can accommodate 12 wide-body aircraft and 5 narrow-body aircraft at the same time. The overhaul, route maintenance and modification capability of TAECO cover main aircraft types of Boeing and Airbus, also MD-11. TAECO is the first company in the world to convert 747-400 passenger aircraft into cargo aircraft. As one of the largest and most capable maintenance centers in the world, you can photograph a lot of non-scheduled flights coming XMN for regular checks in TAECO.
Flight information can be accessed on the airport official website.
General tips for China
Some websites and app don’t work in China (like Whattsap or Facebook/Messanger ecc.) so you might need a list of useful apps:
- WeChat: every Chinese person has this app, it also has a good translation function that helps really a lot because the language is the main barrier. You can translate from Chinese writings and they can translate your English into Chinese characters. This is a must have.
- Didi: the Chinese “Uber”
- Mobike: If you need to rent a bike (not totally needed in Sanya)
- Baidu Maps: This is the “Google Maps” that works, instead of the Google one
We recommend the use of an esim on your smartphone. There are providers like Airalo with good deals and easy installation.
Written by Qiao Zheng. Updated: March 2019
| Rating | |
| Movements |  |
| Airline Variety |  |
| Photo Locations |  |
| Weather | |
| Airport Information | |
| Runways | |
| 05/23 | 3.400m |
| Terminals | |
| Terminal 3 | Domestic: CZ\MF\NS\KA\NX |
| Terminal 4 | Domestic: CA\SC\ZH\KY\3U\HO\EU\MU\FM\KN\HU\JD\GS\PN\8L\BK\G5\9C |
| Spotting Information | |
| Ladder | Not necessary. |
| Car/Public Transport | Car is recommended. If there is no car, you need to take the bus and walk to the spots. It’s also a good choice to ride a shared bicycle from the terminal to some spots. |
| Restrooms | At some spots, restrooms are nearby. |
| Drinks/Food | Convenience stores can be found around the terminal buildings, or hotel supplies market and tea market all around the airport. |
| Hotels | Xiamen Fliport Garden Hotel and Xiamen Airport are both managed by Xiamen Xiangye Group Co., Ltd. about 2 km away from Terminal 3 and 5 km away from Terminal 4. It offers free shuttle service. Other nearby hotels include Hampton by Hilton Xiamen City Plaza, Xianglu Grand Hotel, etc. |
| Season | More rain from May to September every year than from October to April. |
| Runway Usage | |
| 05/23 | XMN is the busiest Single-Runway airport in China. Northeast wind is the dominant wind direction all the year round, so the probability of using RWY 05 is higher. |
Due to national security concerns, the use of geographic information in China is restricted and the layers in google maps don´t fit. The satellite images are correct but the street layers are displaced!
Please click on the link at each location (WHERE) to get to the chinese website baidu where you find an exact map with satellite and street view images. If you use a smartphone please download the Baidu App.
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Spot #1 – Hotel Supplies Market – 05 Arrivals |
|---|---|
| WHERE | This spot is located on the roof of the Zhongdian Hongji Hotel Supplies Market. In this market, choose the building on the northwest side, and then ask the manager for permission to go upstairs to the roof. Take the bus No. 27 or No. 81 from Terminal 3 to Dianqian North Community Station, then walk about 1200 meters to this market. If you start from Terminal 4, take the bus No. 755 to Dianqian Station, then walk about 900 meters to this market.It’s also a good choice to ride a shared bicycle from the terminal to this spot. Navigation software can be used to select “Zhongdian Hongji Hotel Supplies Market” (“中典宏基酒店用品市场”） as the target location. LINK TO EXACT POSITION ON BAIDU MAPS +++ Keep a low profile here, behave nice and of course, DON’T LEAVE YOUR RUBBISH HERE – otherwise the spot will be closed by the owner! This is foreign property, be grateful! +++ |
| WHAT | You can photograph all arrivals on RWY 05 and the aircraft waiting to take off outside RWY 05. |
| TIME | Best light from sunrise till 1 pm in summer, and from sunrise till 3 pm in winter. |
| MISC. | There is restroom in the building, and small shop in the market. The managers may not understand English. When you take out your camera and telephoto lens, they should understand what you’re here for. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 120-400mm (Arrival: 120-400mm, Taxiway: 200-400mm) |
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Spot #2 – Approach Lighting – 05 Arrivals |
|---|---|
| WHERE | This spot is on Xiangyun 1st Road. It’s near the airport boundary and very close to the starting point of RWY 05. You can shoot on an abandoned road there, and rest in the nearby grassland. Take the bus No. 27 or No. 81 from Terminal 3 to Dianqian North Community Station, then walk about 400 meters to the airport boundary. If you start from Terminal 4, take the bus No. 84 to Dianqian North Community Station, then walk about 400 meters to this spot.It’s also a good choice to ride a shared bicycle from the terminal to this spot. The nearest target in navigation software is “Octagon Building”(“八角楼”), then walk or ride northward along Xiangyun 1st Road to the airport boundary. LINK TO EXACT POSITION ON BAIDU MAPS |
| WHAT | You can photograph all arrivals on RWY 05. Close enough to the aircraft is the advantage of this spot, but only the sky as the background. |
| TIME | Best light from sunrise till 1 pm in summer, and from sunrise till 3 pm in winter. |
| MISC. | There is no food, no water, no restroom. You need to take everything with yourself. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 24-105mm |
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Spot #3 – Tea Market – 05 Arrivals |
|---|---|
| WHERE | Tea Market is located on Aoshan Road, which is in the northwest direction of the airport. Ask the manager if you could go upstairs to the roof of Tea Market to take pictures. If the roof is locked you can go to the street and photograph from the fence but a ladder would be helpful. To get there by public tranpsort take the bus No. 81 from Terminal 3 to Gaoqi Railway Station, then walk about 450 meters to Tea Market. If you start from Terminal 4, take the bus No. 959 to Gaoqi Railway Station, then walk about 450 meters to this spot.It’s also a good choice to ride a shared bicycle from the terminal to this spot. The nearest target in navigation software is ” Biming Tea Factory “(“璧茗茶厂”） or ” Jinchun Restaurant “(“金春饭店”. LINK TO EXACT POSITION ON BAIDU MAPS+++ OCT 2019: Spotters were asked to please don’t spot here. +++ |
| WHAT | You can photograph all arrivals on RWY 05 and the aircraft waiting to take off outside RWY 05. |
| TIME | Best light from 3 pm till sunset. |
| MISC. | There’s a gas station near the Tea Market where you can go to the toilet or buy water and food. The managers may not understand English. When you take out your camera and telephoto lens, they should understand what you’re here for. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 70-300mm (Arrival: 70-300mm, Taxiway: 100-300mm) |
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Spot #4 – Overpass on Jiahe Road – 05 Arrivals |
|---|---|
| WHERE | The Overpass is located in the northwest direction of the airport and stretch across Jiahe Road. Take the bus No. 81 from Terminal 3 to Gaoqi Railway Station, then walk about 200 meters to the overpass. If you start from Terminal 4, take the bus No. 959 to Gaoqi Railway Station, then walk about 200 meters to this spot. It’s also a good choice to ride a shared bicycle from the terminal to this spot.
The nearest target in navigation software is “RECHT Wine Company “(“雷司酒业”), the overpass is in front of the company. |
| WHAT | You can photograph all arrivals on RWY 05. |
| TIME | Best light from 3 pm till sunset. |
| MISC. | There’s a gas station near the overpass where you can go to the toilet or buy water and food. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 100-300mm |
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Spot #5 – Construction Site on Airport North Road – 23 Arrivals |
|---|---|
| WHERE | There is a construction site on North Airport Road and near the Jimei Bridge. You can choose a suitable position in the field to take pictures. Sometimes the security at the site will come to dissuade you. Take the bus No. 81 or No. 424 from Terminal 3 to Wanxiang International Business Center Station, then walk northeastward along North Airport Road for about 1400 meters to the site entrance. If you start from Terminal 4, take the bus No. 424 to Wanxiang International Business Center Station, then walk about 1400 meters to the site entrance.It’s better to drive to this spot. The nearest target in navigation software is ” Biguiyuan International Coast “(“碧桂园国际海岸”), which is located on Airport North Road, and just opposite the site.LINK TO EXACT POSITION ON BAIDU MAPS |
| WHAT | You can photograph all arrivals on RWY 23. |
| TIME | Best light from 3 pm till sunset. |
| MISC. | There is no food, no water, no restroom. You need to take everything with yourself.
If you have a ladder will be better, because some of the bamboo poles in bird nets are relatively high, will block the aircraft tyres. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 200-400mm |
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Spot #6 – Terminal 4 West Departure Bridge – Taxiway & TAECO |
|---|---|
| WHERE | This is a relatively easy spot to reach and it is on the departure platform of Terminal 4. Walk westward along the lane to the downhill ramp, you can stay there and take photos carefully. |
| WHAT | Aircraft at Terminal 4 and arrivals on RWY 23 can be photographed. You can also photograph aircraft parked in TAECO. |
| TIME | Best light from sunrise till 1 pm. |
| MISC. | All things you need are in the terminal building.
Pay attention to passing vehicles in this position, and maybe the staff will come to dissuade you. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 50-200mm (Taxiway: 100-200mm, TAECO: 50-100mm) |
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Spot #7 – Terminal 4 Departure Hall – Taxiway & 23 Arrivals |
|---|---|
| WHERE | Enter the departure hall of the Terminal 4 and proceed to the far right, you can see the parking apron through the glass. AeroJones Aviation has an exhibition room here as well.
+++ OCT 2019: Spotters were asked to leave the spot here once the guard saw them spotting. So stop taking pictures while guards pass by. +++ |
| WHAT | Aircraft at Terminal 4, on taxiway or arrivals on RWY 23 can be photographed. |
| TIME | Best light from sunrise till 1 pm. |
| MISC. | All things you need are in the terminal building. There will be some reflections of glass and geothermal effects. |
| FOCAL LENGTH | 50-200mm |
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Spot #8 – Dormitory Building – RWY 05 & Taxiway |
|---|---|
| WHERE | These three buildings have been out of service in the past few years. You can choose a suitable position in the high-rise staircase of the dormitory building to take pictures, or go upstairs to the roof of the operation building for the best spot.LINK TO EXACT POSITION ON BAIDU MAPS |
| WHAT | |
| TIME | |
| MISC. | |
| FOCAL LENGTH | (Runway: 70-200mm, Taxiway: 24-105mm) |
If you’re not Chinese it might be better to avoid Spot 1 in general. Initially I was accompanied by a local, we asked the shop owner, showed cameras and he let us onto the roof. Some other locals came later. After one hour a man, must be in his 60s, appeared and asked only me not to take photos from here. No idea who he was. Even explanation that the owner allowed me to be here didn’t reassure him. As I wanted to leave he tried to impede me and made a phone call. Shortly afterwards police appeared at the scene and detained me. They brought me to the department, did lots of questioning, ID check, etc and brought me to hotel, searched my room and released me after three hours when they were convinced that it’s just a hobby. Fortunately I could keep the pictures taken so far. No idea what’s going on with the people there or what kind of games they are playing but they might be super nervous against western looking spotters.
Hi Fabian, wirklich komisch was dir dort widerfahren ist. Ich vermute mal der Mann (Kunde des Ladens) hat dich gesehen und hielt dich für einen “Spion” und rief deswegen die Polizei. Das muss ja nicht einmal was mit dem Laden selbst zu tun gehabt haben und evtl. wäre es auch an anderer Stelle passiert?
-Julian
It‘s better to find some local spotters and they will get you there. Foreigners are sensitive to the people at spotting locations.
Seems like some spotters left their rubbish in SPOT1…
Please do not leave your trash here or the location will be closed by the host!
请随手带走家具城上的垃圾！
Note with the advise left in the guide. Thanks for the info…
-Severin
Point 8 has used as an airport warehouse, so point 8 cannot enter anymore. Entry is considered as breaking into the airport restricted area, which is illegal.
Okay Aaron we left a note. Thanks
Point 8 can’t spot anymore. Point 3 has asked not to photo here.(Spotting at point 3 and 8 will deport.) If you spot at point 7, Don’t spot when the guard come, or they will ask you to leave.
Will be added.
Sad, but thanks…
Severin
Got to Xiamen early this afternoon, so after checking in to the hotel we went out to the airport to do some photography. First – at 3pm – we went to Spot 3, Tea market, but the people in the shop wouldn’t let us onto the roof. 不能上去· – “you can’t go up there” – was their response. We went across the road to another place and were told the same thing. So we headed for Spot 4, the overpass. That location is pretty good and got some nice shots from there. The only drawback is there are a lot of tall trees to the right – the direction the planes approach from – so you only get a couple of seconds warning before a plane appears in front of you, then you’ve got a few seconds to get your shots off. Good variety of China-based airlines including a couple I haven’t seen before. Overall this is a pretty good spot. Tomorrow morning will try one other spot mentioned in this guide.
The weather was a lot nicer (brighter) the second day I went, and I just went back to Spot 4 again. It seemed the best spot at the time and I only had a couple of hours available. The photos I shot yesterday were better than the first time out, so overall I’m pleased with what I got from this visit. That’s all from Xiamen.
Hi James, sad to hear that they did not let you up on the top at the tea market. Maybe they were confused that you are not chinese. But good to see that #4 is a good alternative!
I’ll be in Xiamen next week and will be checking out a few of these locations. I’ll report back anything of interest later on…..
That would be nice. Thanks James and have fun there!
-Julian