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Raymund Yeoh

Taiwan 2012 Spotting

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Since I could not find a thread on the above, I created one.

MODs: If there is a existing thread, you can merge it

 

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China Airlines Cargo - B747-409F

B-18712

 

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Far Eastern Air Transport - DC-9-82

B-28035

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Despite being there twice I've never managed to do some serious spotting. :(

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Despite being there twice I've never managed to do some serious spotting. :(

 

Mee too...being there countless times but no time for real spotting.....anyway, the above pix are taken from my plane after landing while taxing to the bridge

T1 not really spotter friendly as if u are in there, T2 is more spotter friendly......anyway these days weather in Taipei sucks....rainin most of the time

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Mee too...being there countless times but no time for real spotting.....anyway, the above pix are taken from my plane after landing while taxing to the bridge T1 not really spotter friendly as if u are in there, T2 is more spotter friendly......anyway these days weather in Taipei sucks....rainin most of the time
nice work dude...hope more pictures from Taipei :clapping:

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Actually, flying into Sungshan airport is more convenient to us passengers whose destination is Taipei City. Does anyone know any route to land into Sungshan with one transit?

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Actually, flying into Sungshan airport is more convenient to us passengers whose destination is Taipei City. Does anyone know any route to land into Sungshan with one transit?

 

From?

 

Anyway, based on previous observation there were charter flights serving BKI - TSN around July I think. Equipment id A321 from TranAsia Airways.

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Oh, yeah, actually from KUL or PEN.

 

If u mean direct flight fr KUL or PEN to Songshan, the answer is no.

Songshan serves mainly as domestic airport n regional routes to certain destinations in China and Japan. I know JAL flies into Songshan but not sure from where

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Pretty much; thanks, Li Ren!

 

The good thing about being able to arrive/depart from Sungshan is connecting to Japan would be lots of ease for a dual vacation in both Taipei and Japan.

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I'm in Taipei now n have a free day on Wed ( public holiday )...wanna go spotting....does anyone here knows anyone in Taipei who can bring me around or guide me to the suitable spots....much appreciated

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Thought you'll have better chance at TSA. TPE needs car.

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Thought you'll have better chance at TSA. TPE needs car.

 

TSA is also a military airbase so i think photography is not allowed..correct me if i m wrong

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As far as I know, TSA is in town and even if photography is not allowed, you can get pretty nice shots from around the perimeter. Traffics are nice, too!

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With this kind of shots you got to be kidding me...

 

http://www.airliners...d37ec81d494ff20

 

Damn someone need to point me to this location .....its on some perimeter....all i need is the name of the road.... I meant photography is not allowed on apron but allowed on observation deck which I went but the morning light was not doing justice in me taking some nice pix....will post it u after transfer from camera

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I had the opportunity to do some aircraft spotting at Taipei Songshan airport (TSA/RCSS) on a recent trip. However I'm not sure if this is the correct place to post these photos as the thread title only mentioned spotting at Taipei Taoyuan airport (TPE/RCTP). :)

 

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Taipei Songshan Airport (臺北松山機場) is a mixed use airport located in the northeast corner of Taipei City and serves both domestic flights as well as limited international connections to China, Korea and Japan.

 

Songshan Airport is conveniently located near the city centre and travelling to the airport is more convenient than ever before with the opening of the Taipei Metro Neihu Line (brown line) that serves the airport. It only takes less than 10 minutes to get from the city centre to the airport metro station by metro (approx S$1).

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Passengers are treated to a sweeping view of the Songshan Airport west apron when the metro train slows down to negotiate a sharp bend before entering the underground section towards Songshan Airport station from Zhongshan Guozhong station.

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Songshan Metro station is located directly below the terminal building. Clear directional signs direct passengers to the correct exit for either terminal. Terminal 1 (shown here) handles international flights while Terminal 2 handles domestic flights and houses the new observation deck on the third storey.

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Terminal 2 departure entrance after exiting from Exit 2 of Songshan Airport metro station.

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Terminal 2 Check-In Area (Domestic Flights)

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Terminal 1 Check-In Area (International Flights)

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It is near impossible to miss the colourfully decorated entrance to the observation deck upon entering the Terminal 2 departure area! There are 2 lifts which whisk visitors direct to the third floor or one have the option of taking the stairs instead.

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Wall mural at the final staircase landing before entering the observation deck. Each staircase landing in the stairwell is decorated with colourful cartoons which make walking up the stairs a joy as one gets to admire them!

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With the introduction of direct air routes between city centre airports such as Taipei-Songshan, Tokyo-Haneda and Seoul-Gimpo (from Apr 26), the airport management is aggressively marketing the airport as Taipei International Airport instead of Taipei Songshan Airport to highlight its convenient international connections. Taipei's main international gateway is known as Taipei Taoyuan Airport instead after the county where it is located.

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The observation deck is open air but the dark tinted glass would pose certain challenges to photography especially where reflections are concerned. However, it faces the single runway (10/28) and amenities such as toilets are within easy reach.

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Two piers jut out into the apron above the gate holdrooms and visitors are thus not only restricted to a single view of the apron and the runway. One could also move around to find the best spots to capture the aircraft movements.

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Apart from aircraft movements, the observation deck also offers a vantage point to spot the different monuments that lie north of the Keelung River. The Grand Hotel (圆山大饭店) on the left is featured prominently in many of the approach photos of aircraft coming into land at Songshan Airport's runway 10.

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EVA Air A330-200 B-16311 taxiing to her gate at Terminal 1. The airport sees regular widebody movements from ANA (B763), JAL (B763), EVA Air (A332) and China Airlines (A333) in the afternoon.

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Air China B737-800 B-5485 gets under way for another cross-strait flight to China. Air China serves Shanghai-Hongqiao and Tianjin from Songshan Airport.

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Uni Air Dash 8 DHC-8-311Q B-15235. Even at 300mm on a 1.6X crop factor camera body, the aircraft only occupies half the frame!

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Uni Air is the largest domestic operator at Songshan airport. Uni Air MD-90 B-17911 was photographed pushing back from her gate for another short domestic flight. However, it is not easy to photography many aircraft movements at close distance as there was extensive construction work being done at the apron and taxiway at the time of visit.

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A forlorn looking ex-Far Eastern Air Transport MD-80 B-28017 with both her engines removed.

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A Republic of China Air Force C-130 Hercules taxies out for departure. No political repercussions for spotting these birds at its home base!

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Tucked behind a narrow street lined with temples at the western perimeter of Songshan Airport, is one of the most famous spotting locations in Taiwan which had even been featured in several Taipei travel guides.

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Lush green fields and farm produce create an unlikely location for aviation enthusiasts and the general public to enjoy an afternoon of plane spotting and admiring the beauty and sheer size of the aircraft that pass by mere dozens of metres above their heads.

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This is Binjiang Street Lane 180, where photographing widebody aircraft taxiing to the end of runway 10 for take-off requires a wide-angle/standard lens and one need not worry about viewing the aircraft through multiple layers of fences. One of ANA's newest B767-300ER, JA626A taxiies for take-off to Tokyo-Haneda. On afternoons where weather is good, locals turn up in droves to witness the wave of widebody arrivals and departures much like the A380 continues to be a weekend highlight for many families at larger airports around the world.

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Uni Air MD-90 B-17921. This is probably the easiest way to fly a MD90 in this part of the world as Uni Air offers frequent flights throughout the day to various domestic destinations such as Kinmen and Kaoshiung using these Mad Dogs!

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Transasia ATR72 B-22810. The private Taiwanese carrier had been progressively downsizing its operations at Songshan over the past year as the Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) had affected demand on many of the domestic routes.

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The Republic of China Air Force Beech 1900D is a regular movement at Songshan Airport. The sunlight gets increasingly tail-on towards the evening as the sun shifts to the west.

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China Eastern A321 B-2288.

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A China Airlines A330-300 moments from touchdown in the evening sun after a flight from Tokyo-Haneda.

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Mandarin Airlines (a subsidiary of China Airlines) Embraer 190 on short finals.

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Saving the best for last, photographing the 'Sun Moon Lake' special livery on the Mandarin Airlines E-190 B-16829 is always the highlight of any spotting session at Songshan Airport. Here, she was photographed on approach from a slightly further vantage point.

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B-16829 turning onto the runway for departure with her special livery being illuminated by the late afternoon sunlight. The weather had cleared up dramatically as it was pouring heavily in the morning!

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Getting There

 

The information below had been compiled from Taipei travel guides, various forums, personal experiences and other sources.

 

Walk

The nearest metro station to this spot is Zhongshan Junior High School (中山國中) on the Neihu Line 內湖線. After exiting from the station, walk towards the north until one reaches the junction with Mingzhu East Road. Turn left and continue walking until the No.2 Fruits & Vegetables Wholesale Centre. The lane is the opposite side of the road. Various travel guides estimate the walking time to be approximately 20 minutes.

Alternatively, one can take a 30 minute walk from Songshan Airport along Mingzhu East Road (bear right after exiting the airport compound and keeping the airport perimeter on your right). However, do be forewarned that in a country known for its profileration of convenience stores, there is not a single 7-11 to be found in the vicinity along the road!

 

Bus

Services 49, 74, 642, 643 and 286 Supplement serve the No. 2 Fruits & Vegetables Wholesale Centre bus stop. Many visitors can attest to the complicated one way loops that bus services in Taipei favour and the above five services are no exception as most of them only call along the road in one direction. To further complicate things, service 74 will call at a terminal within the one way loop before serving Mingzhu East Road. However, an excellent and accurate bus stop announcement system is installed in the buses and bus drivers in Taipei are among the most courteous and friendliest that I had ever met.

TSA_Templebusstop_TR.jpg

 

Getting To > Take the Taipei metro to Xintian Temple on the newly opened Xinzhuang line. Transfer to Xindian Bus 642 or 643 and alight at the fourth stop. As these two services are long distance stage fare services, do remember to tap your EasyCard when boarding and alighting the bus. Alternatively pay NT$15 for a single stage fare upon boarding. The headway is approximately 15-20mins.

 

Getting Away > From the same stop, take Metropolitan Transport Company service 74 to Zhongshan Junior High School metro station. As this is a single stage fare service, one only need to tap the EasyCard upon alighting. Cash fare remains the same at NT$15. The headway is approximately 10mins and is serviced by a full wheelchair accessible bus fleet.

 

Note: 643 also serves Zhongshan Junior High School. 642 and 643 will also both return to Xindian Temple metro station.

 

Security

The airport police conduct frequent patrols of the spotting location and there are prominent signs that warn visitors that they are in a protected area. Do not stand next to the fence or park besides the fence - one will most certainly be chased away and personal particulars noted down from what I had observed! Apart from that, visitors are generally left to photograph the movements unhindered as long as they stand on the opposite side of the road.

 

Thanks for reading and happy spotting!

 

Note to moderators: Please feel free to move/delete the post if it is in an inappropriate location or deemed inappropriate! Thank :)

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Thanks for reading and happy spotting!

 

Note to moderators: Please feel free to move/delete the post if it is in an inappropriate location or deemed inappropriate! Thank :)

 

Hoe Jyh, many thnks for the info on TSA.....especially on the spotting location outside the airport as I did try some spotting on the observation deck but the reflection was quite a hindrance there.

Did u use a 70-200 lense for taking those take off shots ?

The Zhongsahn Junior Sch station is the station before Songshan airport station, right.

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Hoe Jyh, many thnks for the info on TSA.....especially on the spotting location outside the airport as I did try some spotting on the observation deck but the reflection was quite a hindrance there. Did u use a 70-200 lense for taking those take off shots ? The Zhongsahn Junior Sch station is the station before Songshan airport station, right.

 

I used a 70-300mm for the take-off shots at the observation deck. Yes, Zhongshan Junior High School is one stop before Songshan Airport in the direction towards Nangang Exhibition Centre.

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I used a 70-300mm for the take-off shots at the observation deck. Yes, Zhongshan Junior High School is one stop before Songshan Airport in the direction towards Nangang Exhibition Centre.

 

Wow...quite a load to carry around.....

 

Wow...quite a load to carry around.....

 

Aside to MODs.....can you change the topic title to "Taiwan 2012 Spotting" since we have TPE and TSA

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TPE on 6th April 2012

 

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A330-200 B-HLU "One World"

 

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B777-200 B-HND

 

TSA on 4th April 2012

 

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ERJ-190 B-16822

 

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ATR72-500 B-22801

 

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Hawker Beechcraft 400XP B-77701

 

Pardon the quality as the backlight sun on TSA was just too great to take any decent pix.....furthermore I only had my 17-50 so had to crop

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