Spotting Guide to Nassau (Lynden Pindling) International Airport (NAS/MYNN) (formerly known as Windsor Field) (Bahamas)

General Information

  1. Old Control Tower at MYNN. (c) 2007 by Stephen B. AranhaTraffic: Nassau gets a variety of planes. Regular visitors include (from memory, September 2007):
    • Aerocaribbean - ATR-72
    • Air Canada - A319/A320
    • Air Jamaica - A320/321
    • American Airlines - MD-82
    • American Eagle - ATR-72, CRJ-700
    • Avialeasing - AN-26
    • British Airways - B767-300
    • CanJet - B737-500
    • Continental Airlines - B737-300, 737-500, 737-800
    • Continental Connection - B1900D
    • Continental Express - ERJ-145
    • Cubana - YAK-42 (also IL-62 and a variety of leased aircraft)
    • Delta Air Lines - MD-88
    • Delta Connection - CRJ-700, ERJ-145
    • First Choice - B767-300
    • Gulfstream International Airlines - B1900D, EMB-120
    • IBC Airways - Metro III, Saab 340
    • JetBlue - A320, ERJ-190
    • Sky King TCI - B1900 (C & D)
    • Spirit - A319
    • US Airways - B737-300, 737-400, A319
    • WestJet - B737-700
    Visitors that most spotters will enjoy include carriers based in Haiti and the Dominican Republic as well as some cargo operators flying vintage planes. Then there are our numerous Bahamian carriers, lots of small GA planes and biz jets of (almost) all sizes.
  2. Runways: The runway used most is 14, both for arrivals and departures, simply because it's the shortest taxi distance that suits the prevailing winds. However, while arrivals often choose RWY09 as well, most operators try to avoid it if at all possible for departures. Too far to taxi. The same goes for arriving on RWY27.
  3. Getting Around: Your own set of wheels will be useful, as moving from one spotting location to another will be difficult otherwise.
  4. Security: Neither the Royal Bahamas Police Force nor Airport Security are terribly fond of spotters. The people you are most likely to come into contact with will tell you (and they believe it, too) that taking photos of airplanes (even if they are airborne out over the ocean and you're standing on your private property) is illegal. Arguing with them is pointless, and I have heard from visiting spotters (read FOREIGNERS) that they were taken in for questioning. I find that the best approach is to just agree with them, back up and leave - and come back when they've left, too.
  5. Photography: Your biggest enemy is going to be heat haze. On a sunny day you're bound to have it, be it January or July. Also, there's a wiremesh fence around the airport. Lenses with a diameter of 52mm or less fit through. I realise that most gear is larger. Standing on a ladder will attract unwelcome attention, on an SUV on the other hand, I have rarely been bothered.
  6. Food and Drink: There are no restaurants in the immediate vicinity, and you want to avoid what's inside the airport. I strongly recommend that you bring something to drink with you. On the side of the road near the airport you will find people selling lunch out of trailers or even car trunks. This is typically Bahamian. Personally, I recommend:
    • Mr Delancey, who can be found at Cave's Point on the coast road (2.6 miles from RWY14, see it on Google Earth). On Saturdays he has souse on the menu!
    • At Gambier there's also a stall on the shore selling fresh scorched conch and conch salad (1.4 miles from RWY14, see it on Google Earth), too.
    • August Moon Cafe (Lyford Cay Shopping Centre, arguably the best beer selection on the island, 2.7 miles from RWY14 - see it on Google Earth).
    • Traveller's Rest (on the coast road, by Tropical Gardens, 1.2 miles from RWY14 - see it on Google Earth).
  7. Miscellaneous: The small roads off the main roads around the airport are often used for casual sex (even the relatively busy RWY14 spot - please don't ask me why!). If you see a car with tinted windows bouncing up and down, give it some privacy. And watch out for used condoms, you don't want to step on them.

Location Sample Pictures Sample Pictures Sample Pictures Find Me on Google Earth
RWY14 - The easiest place to spot at MYNN, and also the most public one - right off the main road. While both the police and airport security have come to hassle me there, it's usually peaceful. Great for late afternoon/evening (too much heat haze during the day) shots of both arrivals and departures, of which there are a lot, as this is the runway used most often. A lens with a diameter of 52mm will fit through the fence, otherwise you either need to stand on something (like an SUV) or limit yourself to arrivals. You can have fun with as little as 90mm here, but as most traffic is small turboprops or GA I'd recommend something bigger. I have used my 500mm lens at full length here.
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RWY14 #2 - In the morning this is an option to catch arrivals, but you have a very short window of opportunity between the aircraft coming into sight (trees) and disappearing below the fence line. For departures the sun is generally not that great, and there's usually a lot of heat haze.
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RWY14 #3 - If you just want to go for arrivals, standing North of the main road is an option, too. In rare circumstances do you get light that will allow you to capture departures, too, that are not ruined by heat haze or tall grass standing in the way.
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RWY14 / Driving Directions: When coming from town (or Cable Beach), drive towards the airport. After you pass Blake Road, there is a turn off to the left leading to the Domestic Terminal (approx. 0.6 miles). IGNORE THIS and keep going straight on the main road. Another quarter of a mile later, you get to a roundabout. If you went left, you would get to the U.S. Departures Terminal. Instead keep going straight (2nd turn off from the roundabout) on the main road. After about three quarters of a mile you will see the end of RWY14 to your left. Choose your spot, you done reach.
RWY09 - From this spot you can take very nice pictures of arrivals on RWY09 as well as great photos of RWY09 departures during the latter half of the day. Alas, RWY09 is rarely used for departures. I recommend a lens that has a range of approximately 100-200mm (of course, more doesn't hurt).
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RWY09 / Driving Directions: Follow the directions to RWY14 but keep going. For the next half mile, the road will make a turn to the left followed by another turn to the right. After that, you get to an intersection with a sign for the Airport Industrial Park (to the right). Instead, you take the gravel road to the left. (While a normal car can handle the road, it's nicer if you have bigger wheels and decent suspension. If you were planning to ride around on a rental scooter, this isn't going to be fun.) After about a mile on this road, you see a building to the right and a road to the left, which leads to the RWY09 spot. You done reach.
Kilo Gate - One of the best spotting locations at MYNN has been blocked off by a gate now. Although it's not always locked, I do not recommend going there by car, as you may find your vehicle locked in when you want to leave. It's a 1.4 mile walk from the gate at RWY09 if you insist on trying it, but airport security don't like to see spotters there.
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K Gate / Driving Directions: Follow the directions to RWY09. As you approach the airport fence, there's a gravel road going off to the right. There is a gate installed, which may or may not be open. If it's closed, it may or may not be locked. You never know. Keep following this road around the airport perimeter, and after about 1.4 miles you will get to a gate in the fence with gaps large enough for most lenses. A word of caution: If you take your vehicle down that road, you may return later and find the gate locked. Also: Airport security really doesn't like spotters at Kilo Gate. Often they won't notice, but when they do, they can get rather grumpy.
Lake Killarney - If you have something high to stand on (like an SUV), you can get nice shots along this stretch of road South of the GA terminal of the morning traffic on RWY14/32 (especially aircraft taxiing parallel to the runway), but you have to be prepared to "answer to the authorities." There's a dirt path leading to the shore of the lake, and you can get nice shots of RWY27 arrivals or RWY09 departures there (rarely used). Recommended lens 300mm or more. Warning: Do not walk in the lake with your equipment. There are holes below the sand which will cause you to trip, and you risk getting your gear wet. The area around the lake is also popular amongst duck hunters; so don't be surprised if you see dead shot gun shells littering the ground.
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Lake Killarney / Driving Directions: When coming from town (or Cable Beach), drive towards the airport. After you pass Blake Road, take the turn off to the left leading to the Domestic Terminal (approx. 0.6 miles). After about 0.4 miles you get to a roundabout. If you continued straight, you would get to the terminal buildings; instead you take the first turn off ("half left") towards General Aviation, Executive FBO and Million Air. Stay on that road for about three quarters of a mile. Now you're driving parallel to RWY14/32. You can catch the action from almost anywhere on that road. Eventually, you will see a phone booth outside the airport fence on the right. Near that spot, there's a dirt "road" on the left going to the lake. Standing there you can still see the airborne traffic (not as well as you can from the road), but you're less likely to be questioned by the police or airport security.
Old VOR - This spot is great for afternoon/evening arrivals on RWY32. Usually the authorities leave you alone here. For GA traffic you may need a lens up to 300mm, for commercial traffic considerably less.
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Old VOR / Driving Directions: Follow the directions to Lake Killarney but keep going. At the end of the runway, the road curves right. (Careful: Dangerous curve. Plenty accidents happen here. Go slow!) Short after the curve there's a gravel road going off to the left which leads you to the old VOR. You done reach.

ATC FREQUENCIES
ATIS 118.7 TOWER 119.5 APPROACH 121.0 GROUND 121.7

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© 2007 by Stephen B. Aranha - Please let me have your comments. Send an e-mail to C6-SBA at aranha dot de.