Tianjin Binhai Intl. Airport - Spotting Guide

Tianjin Binhai Intl. Airport – Spotting Guide

October 28, 2021 - last modified on August 5, 2024

Tianjin Binhai Intl. Airport is a civil international airport with 4E capability, located 13km away from downtown Tianjin. The airport was built in 1939 and was formally opened in 1950 with the name Zhangguizhuang Airport, where it was situated. Later it got the name Binhai Intl. Airport as it was close to Binhai Xinqu District. In the year 2007 and 2014, the airport was expanded twice respectively. Nowadays, the airport has got two terminals, two runways and several aprons. It’s also one of the major aviation logistics centres in China and the base of Airbus Tianjin and Bombardier Tianjin as well.

Tianjin Binhai Intl. Airport is the hub of Tianjin Airlines(GS) and Okay Airways(BK). Other Chinese carriers operating flights here include Air China(CA), China Eastern(MU), China Southern(CZ), Shanghai Airlines(FM), China Express(G5), China United Airlines(KN), Colorful Guizhou Airlines(GY), Donghai Airlines(DZ), GX Airlines(GX), Xiamen Airlines(MF), Juneyao Airlines(HO), Chengdu Airlines(EU), 9 Air(AQ), Fuzhou Airlines(FU), Jiangxi Airlines(RY), Spring Airlines(9C), Shandong Airlines(SC), Shenzhen Airlines(ZH), Sichuan Airlines(3U), etc. Carriers outside mainland China include Air Macau(NX), Air France(AF), Korean Air(KE), LOT Polish Airlines(LO), Spring Airlines Japan(IJ), Scoot(TR), etc.

As an important cargo hub in Northern China, a great variety of airlines operate cargo flights to TSN, including Korean Air Cargo(KE), Asiana Cargo(OZ), CDI Cargo Airlines(GJ), EMS(CF), SF Airlines(O3), Longhao Airlines(GI), Tianjin Air Cargo(HT), etc. And please note that TSN is one of the two airports that offer the capability of operating Antonov An-225. Due to COVID-19, lots of airlines operate charter flights to TSN, including Volga-Dnepr Airlines(VI), Japan Airlines(JL), Biman Bangladesh Airlines(BG), Uzbekistan Airways(HY), Antonov Airlines(ADB), etc.

All in all, Tianjin Binhai Intl. Airport provides us spotters with a remarkable variety of airlines and aircraft, as well as random surprises.

General tips for China

many foreign websites and apps are blocked and don’t work in China. Below you will find some helpful apps:

WeChat: every Chinese use 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. The common western messenger services like Facebook, WhatsApp etc. don not work in China!
Alipay: it is a major Chinese App that can be registered abroad and almost all shops/stores/hotels etc. support it as an official payment. You can add your western credit card like Amex, VISA or Mastercard to Alipay in advance. Furthermore you can also book and pay flights, hotels, restaurants, didi etc. with the app. This app is a must have!
Didi: the Chinese “Uber”. Very helpful to reach the spots which are not connected to the public transport.
Baidu Maps or Gaode Maps: this is the chinese google/apple maps.

We recommend to buy a chinese eSIM in advance from airalo for example. It is cheap and simple to install.

Written by Felix Yao and Martin Yu. Last Update: September 2021.

Rating
Movements
Airline Variety
Photo Locations
Weather
Airport Information
Runways
16L/34R	3200m(10499ft) Concrete
16R/34L	3600m(11811ft) Concrete
Terminals
Terminal 1	International
Terminal 2	Domestic
Spotting Information
Ladder	Not recommend to use as it may attracts the authority.
Car/Public Transport	Car and taxi recommended. Public Transportation is relatively inconvenient.
Drinks/Food	Drinks and food only available inside terminals.
Hotels	Green Inn Hotel is recommended as it provides runway sight rooms.
Season	Anytime in a year
Security	The secruity is relatively loose in TSN compared with other major airports in China such as PEK,PVG. But it’s still necessary to watch out especially when spotting at terminal driveways.
Runway Usage
General Info	The east runway is mainly for arrivals and the west one mainly for departures.
16L/34R	Generally for arrivals, check ATIS for actual runway usage
16R/34L	Generally for departures, check ATIS for actual runway usage

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.

	Spot #1 – Terminal Driveway West – RWY16R, RWY34L Departures and Arrivals, Ramp
WHERE	This spot is the west terminal driveway of the airport, located near T1. You can simply walk up there on the walkway next to the car lanes of the driveway. Cars are only allowed to be on the driveway for less than 8 mins, but you can park your car at the airport parking lot and walk onto the spot. It’s also possible to reach the spot by taking a taxi and ask the driver to drop you off middle of the driveway. As for public transport, metro line 2 Binhai Intl. Airport station is just a few minutes walk from the spot. The spot is higher than the fence so ladder is not required.

WHAT	RWY16R, RWY34L Departures and Arrivals, taxiway A, B and the cargo ramp are visible.

TIME	Sunrise to noon and at night, any season. When spotting at daytime, it’s recommended to spot here earlier than 9am. as the heat distortion gets more serious later on.

MISC.	Food, drinks and restrooms are available inside both terminals. One or two police officers are deployed on the driveway to assist the traffic and they normally don’t send spotters away. But it’s always better to keep a low profile at the spot.

FOCAL LENGTH	An-124=200mm 737=500mm 747=400mm Il-76=300mm

	Spot #2 – Terminal Driveway East – RWY16L Arrivals and Departures
WHERE	This spot is the east terminal driveway of the airport, located near T2. You can simply walk up there on the walkway next to the car lanes of the driveway. Cars are only allowed to be on the driveway for less than 8 mins, but you can park your car at the airport parking lot and walk onto the spot. It’s also possible to reach the spot by taking a taxi and ask the driver to drop you off middle of the driveway. As for public transport, metro line 2 Binhai Intl. Airport station is just a few minutes walk from the spot. The spot is higher than the fence so ladder is not required.

WHAT	RWY16L Arrivals and Departures

TIME	noon to sunset, any season

MISC.	Food, drinks and restrooms are available inside both terminals. One or two police officers are deployed on the driveway to assist the traffic and they normally don’t drive spotters away. But it’s always better to keep a low profile at the spot.

FOCAL LENGTH	737=400mm An-124=200mm A330=300mm Il-78=350mm

	Spot #3 – Chenglin Street – RWY16L Arrivals
WHERE	This spot is located at the north of the east runway. As there’s a car park nearby, it’s pretty convenient to drive to the spot. Also, taking a taxi is a good choice but make sure you have a chinese map to show the driver. Reaching the spot by walk is not recommended due to the lack of public transport around this area. After reaching the spot, walk from the main road along the riverside and find the best spotting location for you. LINK TO BAIDU MAPS

WHAT	RWY16L Arrivals

TIME	The whole day, anytime of a year.

MISC.	Nothing at the spot. Take everything you need to the spot.

FOCAL LENGTH	737=300mm 757=150mm Learjet=350mm A330=150mm

	~~Spot #4 – Tianbao Parking lot – RWY16L Arrivals and Departures~~
WHERE	This spot is a shabby open-air parking lot located close to the threshold of RWY16L. It’s recommended to drive to the spot as you can park right at the spot with no parking fee to be paid. Taking a taxi, of course, is always a feasible way. Reaching the spot by walk is not recommended due to the lack of public transport around this area. In order to spot 16LOnce inside climb up the white wall on your left hand side after passing the entrance to clear the airport fence. ~~LINK TO BAIDU MAPS~~ UPDATE FEB 2024: the location is not available as the Parking lot is used to store left-over COVID-19 nucleic acid testing booths, and the security there will drive away anyone who even wants to stay there.

WHAT	~~RWY16L Arrivals and Departures~~

TIME	~~sunrise to noon, any season~~

MISC.	~~Nothing at the spot. Take everything you need to the spot. The use of a ladder is not allowed.~~

FOCAL LENGTH	~~An-124=100mm 757=150mm 737=200mm 767=190mm~~

	Spot #5 – Airbus Flyover – RWY16L, 34R Departures and Arrivals
WHERE	As the name implies, this spot is a flyover few minutes walk away from Airbus Tianjin. There’s a bus stop (690 bus) nearby, which enables you to reach the spot by public transport. After getting off the bus, walk towards the northern flyover highway exit and until the fork in the road. There is a small layby were you can stay. Then adjust your position as you want. But always remember to keep an eye on the traffic and be ultra careful when walking on the car lanes as the vehicles on the flyover move at a high speed. Driving is not recommended to reach here as it’s prohibited to park on the flyover. Also, Taxi is always recommended. It’s okay to ask the driver to drop you off half way on the flyover. LINK TO BAIDU MAPS

WHAT	RWY16L, 34R Departures and Arrivals

TIME	Sunrise to noon for departures. Sunrise to 9am. recommended for arrivals due to heat distortion

MISC.	Nothing at the spot. Take everything you need to the spot. It’s not always recommended to spot here, concerning your safety and experience. Only use this spot when something you’re extremely eager to spot(like an Antonov AN-124) takes off from RWY16L

FOCAL LENGTH	An-124=200mm

	Spot #6 – Jinbei Highway – RWY34R Arrivals, 16L departures.
WHERE	At the roadside of Jinbei Hwy, useful to shoot departures and arrivals of the East RWY by positioning at all along the road.. Especially when you cannot reach Spot#5 Airbus Flyover, It’s a perfect back-up location. There are nothing there and no direct Line-of-sight to the actual aerodome so there is no need to use any ladder as is won’t make any difference. There are also no public security personnel so there are basically nothing to worry about. Have fun! This spot can be arrived by Taxi and cars, road-side parking is available. LINK TO BAIDU MAPS

WHAT	RWY34R Arrivals 16L Departures

TIME	Any time, any season. walk along the road to find best lighting condition.

MISC.	Nothing at the spot. Take everything you need to the spot.

FOCAL LENGTH	An-124=200mm 737=300mm A320=300mm

	Spot #7 – Meadow – RWY34R Arrivals
WHERE	This is an alternative spot when you cannot get into Spot#8-Yaoliuqiao. It is on a meadow, a few hundred meters north of Jinbei Highway (Spot 6). After a few hundred meteres there are several gravel piles on a meadow. You can climb up these piles and get some nice surface-to air photos. Getting there by car is the best way, off-road vehicles and SUV are recommended. Getting there by taxi is available, you need to walk a little from the Jinbei Highway on the farm road to get there. LINK TO BAIDU MAPS

WHAT	RWY34R Arrivals

TIME	noon to sunset, all seasons

MISC.	Nothing at the spot. Take everything you need to the spot.

FOCAL LENGTH	Il-76=200mm 777=150mm A320=200mm

	Spot #8 – Yaoliuqiao-RWY34R Arrivals and Departures
WHERE	This is the best spot for RWY34R where you can stand super close to taxiway W. Getting there is a relatively tougher experience, as the journey includes an approximately 25min walk through the field regardless of how you reach there. Taxi always works. Ask the driver to drop you off at the Jinbei Highway as marked on the map. Then follow the farm road northwads as marked on the maps. Pass the previous spot and once you have crossed a bridge continue to the perimeter fence. From there just walk along the fence. Once you get closer to the spot, you will see a little mound. Climb up there and you made it to the spot. It’s not recommended to head for the spot within 2 days after a rainy day as the wet muddy field there could get you stuck. Driving is not recommended because of the lack of car park nearby. LINK TO BAIDU MAPS UPDATE FEB 2024: a fence door was installed at the previous walk path by local farmers to protect their cornfields in summer and winter. It is still accessible but a little bit harder.

WHAT	High quality photos of aircraft taxiing by, lining up, takeoff rolls, touching down as well as Airbus Tianjin movements can all be shot there.

TIME	noon to sunset, any season

MISC.	Nothing at the spot. Take everything you need to the spot. If you spot there in freezing winter, jet blast from the lining-up aircraft can be a cool way of warming yourself. It could be bit weary when walking with heavy equipment for a long time in harsh weather.

FOCAL LENGTH	A350=20mm; Business Jet=70mm; 777=150mm

	Spot #9 – Construction site – RWY34L Arrivals, RWY16R Departures
WHERE	This is a spot for the west runway. Driving is recommended to reach the spot as you can simply park in the construction site with no cost. Taxi is also a good choice. Ask the driver to drop you off at the mark on the map and walk straight into the construction site. Walking is not recommended due to the lack of public transport around this area. After entering the construction site, a mound or maybe an elevated platform will be visible to you. Just walk towards it and climb up the mound. There you can shoot photos with better background including airport facilities and buildings of CAUC.

WHAT	RWY34L Arrivals, RWY16R Departures

TIME	sunrise to noon, any season

MISC.	Nothing at the spot. Take everything you need to the spot.

FOCAL LENGTH	An-124=150mm Il-76=150mm A350=150mm ARJ21=200mm A340=150mm