Near Osaka Airport, there is another famous spot for aviation photography: Itami Sky Park. Located on the south side of the Osaka International Airport Runway, it is a very long and narrow park, running essentially parallel to the Runway. Because it is so close to the Runway, you can capture photos from various angles.

To get to Itami Sky Park, take the JR Fukuchiyama Line from Osaka Station, get off at Itami Station; the ride takes about 15 minutes. After exiting the station, head to the right (northeast), walk through the AEON Mall, cross the Inagawa Bridge, and keep walking for another ten minutes to arrive.

By the way, there is a pedestrian overpass right before the intersection at Itami Sky Park. From up there, you can capture shots combining the street view with taking off aircraft, like this:

However, capturing this kind of photo is quite difficult. Because there are many utility poles and buildings on both sides of the road, controlling the focus point is tricky. Also, since your line of sight is limited to the front, you don’t know when an aircraft will arrive, so you must stay highly focused and patiently wait. Moreover, the point where the aircraft lifts off is uncertain. The timing for the photo above was perfect, but such opportunities are rare. Most of the time, the aircraft is still accelerating on the ground, so the resulting photos lack visual impact.

This one is passable, I guess.

Here is an introduction sign inside Itami Sky Park. You can see how massive it is, covering an area of 9 hectares. (A one-hectare plot is approximately the size of a standard football field) Directly ahead are the Runway, the Osaka Airport Tower, and the terminal building.

Because the schedule was quite tight, the time for photography this time was very short—I only stayed for about an hour, so I don’t have many great works to show.

I tried a few panning shots,

Captured some close-ups of the cockpit and the nose section,

A group shot after rotation with the hills in the background,

And the Osaka cityscape during final Approach, among others.

Because of the proximity, details of the empennage are also clearly visible.

It’s a pity that the stay was so short this time. Next time, I plan to spend the whole day here shooting.

Location of Itami Sky Park Location at number 3 on the map