Seeing the news from The Beijing News, CAAC: Plans to learn from foreign experience and build a batch of sightseeing facilities at major hub airports,

At present, the CAAC is proceeding to learn from the successful experience of airport observation platforms in developed countries abroad, striving to take the lead in planning, designing, and building a batch of sightseeing facilities in major hub airports nationwide. On one hand, it can reasonably satisfy the demands of the vast number of tourists, allowing them to visit various major hub airports with ease and pleasure; on the other hand, it must also ensure the safe and efficient travel of passengers, giving consideration to both and letting each have its place.

This is indeed a very anticipated piece of good news.

Friends who frequent this site will know that Tokyo/Osaka International Airports, and London Heathrow International Airport all have many sightseeing facilities inside and near the airport. Whether on a business trip or a private tour, I never treat the airport merely as a transit point, but rather as a travel destination in itself; Because I live in Japan, I treat Haneda Airport near Tokyo as a daily leisure and entertainment center, for example, meeting friends for a meal while watching planes and chatting.

I have already written some introductions in this regard before, adding up to about ten airports, I suppose, and estimated over 30 shooting spots, such as Spotting Planes Archive Spotting.info Category: Locations I will not go into details here.

Below is a summary of my personal thoughts on airport observation platforms.

Objective To build the airport and nearby facilities into a comprehensive commercial and entertainment circle, improving the added value of the airport without compromising safety, and enhancing the material and spiritual enjoyment of tourists and nearby residents.

Facilities

Inside the Airport Catering, travel souvenirs, travel supplies, books and magazines, electronics, clothing, haircut and bathing, religious facilities, observation decks, small cinemas, children’s play facilities, photography platforms, science popularization platforms, small hotels, airport facility tours, wedding ceremony venues, conference centers.

Outside the Airport Large shopping centers, outlet malls, aviation museums, aviation theme parks, large cinemas, large amusement facilities, large photography platforms, large hotels, airline facility tours, sports facilities, stadiums, conference centers.

For example, for people with religious beliefs, if there are small temples, churches, mosques and other facilities inside the airport for them to pray, they would certainly be very satisfied.

For instance, in terms of aviation science popularization, this site has introduced many airport observation decks, Besides providing shooting areas, they all have some introductions to the airport, aircraft, and airport facilities, sometimes there are even simple flight simulation devices, This plays a huge role in exposing young children to aviation knowledge and cultivating their interest in aviation from an early age.

This site has also introduced tours inside Kansai Airport, JAL and ANA maintenance factory tours, and aviation museums in Narita and Nagoya, These venues not only provide more professional information and science popularization effects, but can also improve the brand effect of airlines.

The commercial effect should not be underestimated either, for example, looking at the sales of travel souvenirs at Haneda Airport, local specialty foods alone account for a considerable share. Chinese people say that food is the first necessity, I think airports everywhere can also set up similar facilities, which is much better than joining tour groups and being forced to buy unreliable souvenir specialties.

What aviation enthusiasts care about most, of course, is the condition of photographing planes, so here is a brief summary. Because light and meteorological conditions are constantly changing, and the takeoff and landing Runway and routes of aircraft are also constantly changing, In fact, perfect shooting conditions are quite difficult to achieve.

Therefore, many shooting locations must be provided, In terms of scenes, just inside the airport there are: Close-up shooting of planes next to the Jet Bridge (also important for seeing off friends and family); watching the hard work of the ground crew; aircraft Taxiing on the Taxiway; aircraft taking off and landing on the Runway; It is best to be able to see several famous local scenic spots.

For example, from the observation deck of Terminal 1 at Haneda Airport, you can see Mount Fuji, From the observation deck of Terminal 2, you can see the sea, Tokyo Skytree, and Disneyland. With these landscapes as the background, not just the planes, but from the perspective of general tourists, it is also an excellent photo spot.

I remember one time when a university classmate and his family (three people) came to Tokyo for a trip, I took a photo of the moment their flight plane was about to land at the Haneda Airport observation deck, The background was naturally the famous Tokyo Skytree. Next, I went to a convenience store inside the airport to print out the photo, and held this photo to welcome them at the security checkpoint, giving them a pleasant surprise.