5 Most Impressive U.S. Airport Final Approach Views

[JAYNYC]

Assuming you prefer a window seat to the middle or aisle, which 5 U.S. airports offer the most impressive final approach view?

For example, although Atlanta and Denver are large cities,I find the final approach view into ATL and DEN to be disappointing, due in large part to the location of those airports in their respective city (ATL being on the relatively underdeveloped south side, DEN 25 miles north east of the downtown core).

In contrast, I have never been disappointed by the East to West approach into LAX, one featuring a gradual suburban to urban sprawl that essentially begins in Palm Springs, 125 miles from LAX. And, although most here are likely aware, it should be noted that the view on the LAX East to West approach is improved substantially by nabbing a window seat on the plane's starboard side, enabling one to not only take in views of the entire Inland Empire region and frequently gridlocked massive freeway interchanges, but also breathtaking views of the (often snow-capped) San Gabriel Mountains, an impressive view of the ever-evolving DTLA skyline (looks amazing night OR daytime,) and a spot on birds eye view of the super-dense cityscape (South Central, Koreatown, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Century City, Westwood, Culver City) between downtown and the coastal areas of Santa Monica, Venice and Marina del Rey). Regardless of which side of the plane you're on, that final approach gives an incredible perspective on the city and region before you ever touchdown.

1. LAX (Los Angeles International Airport - Los Angeles/Westchester, CA) for reasons cited above.

2. LAS (McCarran International Airport - Las Vegas, NV) the airport sits literally on the western edge of the Las Vegas Strip; similar to the LAX approach, it's impressive day or night).

3. MDW (Midway International Airport - Chicago, IL) similar to the LAX approach, this view is substantially enhanced by sitting starboard side, giving one a spectacular bird's eye view of Lake Michigan and the gargantuan Chicago Loop skyline as the airport sits just southwest of downtown.

4. DAL (Dallas Love Field - Dallas, TX) similar to MDW (but with less "oh shit!" factor), the final approach into DAL provides insane views of the city's downtown (and, in this case, Uptown) towers, Central Expressway, Park Cities and its overall most dense urban fabric. The proximity of DAL to downtown Dallas (a mere 6 miles) makes for a rather impressive landing.

5. LGA & SFO tie (LaGuardia Airport - New York/Queens, NY and San Francisco International Airport - San Francisco/Burlingame, CA) both offer a mix of impressive water & urban views; the drawback in both cases is that generally speaking, depending on which direction you're landing from, you do not fly directly over either city's downtown.

Honorable Mention: SAN (San Diego International Airport - San Diego, CA) based primarily on its proximity to downtown and urban core.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

5. LGA & SFO tie (LaGuardia Airport - New York/Queens, NY and San Francisco International Airport - San Francisco/Burlingame, CA) . . . . you do not fly directly over either city's downtown.

Thank G*d. That's where I live. I don't want hundreds of planes zooming above me every day. The frequent news and traffic copters are bad enough.

[JAYNYC]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

Thank G*d. That's where I live. I don't want hundreds of planes zooming above me every day. The frequent news and traffic copters are bad enough.

Yeah, neither would I. Couldn't imagine living in Inglewood/Westchester or Playa del Rey, CA, either, with the nonstop insane air traffic into and out of LAX.

[pianowizard]

I quite enjoyed flying over the frozen Arctic Ocean while approaching Barrow (Utqiagvik), Alaska, which is the northernmost city in the US:

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

Thank G*d. That's where I live. I don't want hundreds of planes zooming above me every day.

It really depends on how close you are to the runway.

Our 3-flat is DIRECTLY under the approach path to runway 10C/28C at ORD, with planes flying overhead every several minutes, but because we're 10 miles from the end of the runway, the planes are still like 2,000+ feet in the air as they fly over us and they aren't really all that noisy/disruptive.

The brown line el trains that rumble down the alley in back of our building every couple minutes are an order of magnitude louder.

Now, if you're a 1/4 mile from the end of the runway and the planes are flying over your home at less than 100 feet, like the bunaglows around MDW, that's an entirely different story.

[Jonboy1983]

I like the approach flying into SEA personally. That was the first time I saw the Space Needle up close (sort of). By chance I happened to be looking at the right area and happened to catch the Needle, Puget Sound, and the rest of the skyline as we were on approach into Sea-Tac.

Philadelphia also offers an intriguing approach. If you're on approach from the east you either get a good view of Center City or you're looking at the Delaware River. If you didn't know any better, you'd think you're going to be landing in the river.

Sorry I'm only able to provide two of them. I don't fly too often to too many places.

[niwell]

Midway has alway stuck out one of my faves. The first time you fly in is almost unsettling because it feels like you are right above residential neighbourhoods almost right until landing. Plus awesome views of downtown if you are on the correct side of the plane.

Only flown into Philly once but lucked out and came in from the east and was sitting on the right side of the plane so got amazing views of the city.

Never had good luck with any of the New York airports, unfortunately. Ditto San Francisco.

Toronto City Centre airport also has an amazing approach if you are coming in from the east and sitting on the right hand side of the plane. The approach is just off the lakeshore so you can see the entire city culminating with the downtown skyline.

[Buckeye Native 001]

Landing from the west at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport.

Landing in San Diego.

[SteveD]

Atlanta approach, if you're on the skyline side of the jet (right side westbound, left side eastbound) can be spectacular, especially if the air is clear and you see not only downtown and Midtown but also Buckhead, Perimeter Center, Cumberland, and the north Georgia mountains. I travel frequently and nationwide. People crane their necks to get views in the usual suspects, New York, Chicago, etc., and also Atlanta, especially if the air is clear and weather is cooperating.

I love coming into LaGuardia over the water and Midway in Chicago, because they both seem so dangerous. When you travel as much as I do, it becomes tedious and anything that adds excitement is welcome. Also nothing beats clear views of Manhattan, coming into any of the big three airports, if you're lucky enough to catch a glimpse.

[iheartthed]

Boston Logan has really good takeoff and landing views, since the airport is so close to downtown.

Charlotte also has very good views from the runway when taking off, especially after sunset.

[JAYNYC]

Originally Posted by SteveD

I love coming into LaGuardia over the water and Midway in Chicago, because they both seem so dangerous. When you travel as much as I do, it becomes tedious and anything that adds excitement is welcome. Also nothing beats clear views of Manhattan, coming into any of the big three airports, if you're lucky enough to catch a glimpse.

No matter how many years pass, nor how many times I fly into any of the 3 NYC-area airports, there's still something a little unnerving about flying too close to / too low above Manhattan.

[Labtec]

Originally Posted by SteveD

Atlanta approach, if you're on the skyline side of the jet (right side westbound, left side eastbound) can be spectacular, especially if the air is clear and you see not only downtown and Midtown but also Buckhead, Perimeter Center, Cumberland, and the north Georgia mountains. I travel frequently and nationwide. People crane their necks to get views in the usual suspects, New York, Chicago, etc., and also Atlanta, especially if the air is clear and weather is cooperating.

I love coming into LaGuardia over the water and Midway in Chicago, because they both seem so dangerous. When you travel as much as I do, it becomes tedious and anything that adds excitement is welcome. Also nothing beats clear views of Manhattan, coming into any of the big three airports, if you're lucky enough to catch a glimpse.

Yes, Atlanta can be spectacular if you're on the correct side (can also see Stone mountain), the other side is a bore. Approaching Vegas is always great, a lot of mountains and then suddenly a view of the strip. My favorite is probably landing in Newark because you can see the entire Manhattan skyline from the air.

[azliam]

Originally Posted by Buckeye Native 001

Landing from the west at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport.

Landing in San Diego.

My favorites are San Diego, Miami, and Honolulu. Here's a couple landings into Phoenix from the west:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlNA6OuGImY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OscsHc6v_84

[Sun Belt]

Originally Posted by azliam

My favorites are San Diego, Miami, and Honolulu. Here's a couple landings into Phoenix from the west:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlNA6OuGImY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OscsHc6v_84

Both videos are great.

I rarely land in Phoenix from the West due to timing and the prevailing winds. Early AM hours, the winds blow from East to West, afternoon heating hours they blow from West to East and we all know planes must take off [and therefore must land in the opposite direction] into the wind.

[JAYNYC]

Originally Posted by Buckeye Native 001

Landing from the west at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport.

Speaking of landing from the west at Phoenix Sky Harbor, anyone know what's up with the massive vehicle junkyard that appears to be located somewhere southwest of downtown Phoenix? Saw this there when flying in last week - thousands of scrapped buses, trucks, cars, etc. randomly adjacent to a couple of middle class neighborhoods.

[chris08876]

That Burbank landing is very scenic. LA is a monolith, just flat out huge. It might sprawl, but no doubt it is dense and an urban vista that extends to the horizon. Beautiful topography with the mountain side neighborhoods on a side note.

I wish the clip had sound though.

[Will O' Wisp]

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

I think the best way for you to look at it is to ask yourself this: Does the dense urban core / massive, congested freeway system of Phoenix, Dallas, Houston or any other Western US (or even US in general, for that matter) city begin thirty minutes prior to landing as does the final approach to LAX? From my observations, the answer is no, and it's not even close.

I am very well acquainted with what my hometown looks like from the air. I spend over 20 years of my life in LA, including one and a half years where I was flying out of LAX on a weekly basis or more. I have probably landed at LAX more times than anyone else in this thread. I know the endless fields of suburban homes stretching off into the hazy gray of a smog filled horizon, specked freeways stretching through them like set of clogged arteries. I've flown low across the rooftops of Inglewood and looked down at the only green grass in sight, the empty rows of demolished houses for the new parking structure LAX has spent years waiting for permission to construct. I don't see anything different from a dozen other places I've been, there's just more of it.

It's like when my friends from Europe ask me how I'm not amazed everyday by how many lanes of traffic the 405 has. I've seen that view more than you can imagine, and to me it just looks like more pavement.

Originally Posted by chris08876

That Burbank landing is very scenic. LA is a monolith, just flat out huge. It might sprawl, but no doubt it is dense and an urban vista that extends to the horizon. Beautiful topography with the mountain side neighborhoods on a side note.

I wish the clip had sound though.

It does! Mostly engine noises, but that's the nature of the beast.

The most impressive views are always the ones at night. Even my salty old heart can appreciate them.
• Video Link

[urbanview]

Originally Posted by chris08876

That Burbank landing is very scenic. LA is a monolith, just flat out huge. It might sprawl, but no doubt it is dense and an urban vista that extends to the horizon. Beautiful topography with the mountain side neighborhoods on a side note.

I wish the clip had sound though.

It would be far better if LA wasn't so spread out. European cities and a few American (NY, SF, Boston) are just better in their compact yet dense format because the streetlife is better and people walk around more. And, L.A isn't dense at all. It's known to be a spread out city. Check the numbers. It's a low density city compared to East Coast cities and euro cities.

[LA21st]

Originally Posted by urbanview

It would be far better if LA wasn't so spread out. European cities and a few American (NY, SF, Boston) are just better in their compact yet dense format because the streetlife is better and people walk around more. And, L.A isn't dense at all. It's known to be a spread out city. Check the numbers. It's a low density city compared to East Coast cities and euro cities.

LA's high density areas are far larger in area compared to places like, DC, Baltimore, Boston, Philly etc. NYC is different, obviously.

LA's pretty urban from Boyle Hts/East LA all the way out Century City or so and even those areas west of there are denser than many of these eastern city outskirts. Westwood is full of 5-7 story residential complexes, as are Palms, Culver City, West LA, areas of Brentwood, Santa Monica, the flats of Beverly Hills etc etc. And this is the post war stuff 12-15 miles from downtown.

DC is right next to Prince George's County, which would be low density in the LA area, for example.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by JAYNYC

5. LGA & SFO tie (LaGuardia Airport - New York/Queens, NY and San Francisco International Airport - San Francisco/Burlingame, CA) both offer a mix of impressive water & urban views; the drawback in both cases is that generally speaking, depending on which direction you're landing from, you do not fly directly over either city's downtown.

This isn't entirely true for LGA, and depends on the wind direction that day, which will determine the runway that is used for landing. One of the approaches requires planes to come across NJ and down around Jersey City, then up directly over Manhattan, and U-turn above the Bronx, Westchester County, and Connecticut to land at LGA over Rikers Island. There is always just one runway for takeoff and one for landing at LGA.