dmpop
Aircraft photography, spaghetti code, half-baked thoughts
Reads GuestbookAircraft photography at MLA
We went on a week-long trip to Malta. We explored Valetta and the nearby cities, savored the local cuisine and wines, consumed copious amounts of Kinnie and iced vanilla latte, took loads of photos — and not a single time I thought about airplanes.
Just kidding! I'd been shuttling between Valetta and Malta Airport (MLA) pretty much every day (sometimes even several times a day), baking under the scorching Maltese sun while capturing aircraft.
The aviation-related part of the trip started on a a high note. During our flight on KM Malta Airlines Airbus A320neo, I asked a flight attendant whether it would be possible for me to visit the flight deck after we've landed. Surprisingly, it worked. When all the passengers disembarked, I was ushered into the cockpit. It was my very first time on the flight deck, and to say that I was excited would be a gross understatement. I had a chat with the captain, and the first office kindly offered me to sit in her seat. She even volunteered to take a few snaps of yours truly. I'm very grateful to the captain and the first officer of Flight KM 307 from MUC to MLA on 2024-06-14 (departure time 12:20) for finding time accommodate my request and chat with me.
Checking Flightradar24 before the trip led me to believe that the airport offers a rather limited selection of airlines and not lot of movements, which turned out to be only partially true. Yes, there are not all that many airlines serving MLA, but there are a few interesting ones. And while there are not a lot of movements, there is enough action to keep you busy most of the time. Besides, military airplanes are relatively frequent guests at MLA, so it pays off to stay alert.
As my time was limited, I couldn't visit all the sports listed on spotterguide.net. So after doing a bit of research, I settled for the spotters wall and the location next to the Summiena bus stop (no. 8 on spotterguide.net). And so in the afternoon of day 2 of our Malta trip, I used Bolt to get to the Summiena spot. Speaking of Bolt, it is by far the easiest and fastest (albeit costly) way to move around Malta, spotting locations included.
On that day, I was particularly lucky, because for a short time RWY 33 was used for take-offs, so I manage to capture a few departing aircraft. The location itself is not exactly the most convenient place to photograph airplanes. It's basically a small lay-by next to a busy road, with passing trucks stirring up clouds of dust.
The spot offers very little shadow, so on hot days (which are aplenty on Malta), standing there quickly becomes unbearable. I tried that on a day with temperatures climbing to 34°C already by 11:00, and I had to admit defeat by 12:00. We live in Bavaria, so we have our share of heat waves, but they are nothing compared to the relentless scorching Maltese sun combined with high humidity. So my sun hat and a microfiber cloth (to protect my camera and wipe away sweat) proved to be indispensable accessories. And although I hate sun screen, I had to thoroughly grease my pasty body with it.
Instead of idling at Summiena while there was a pause in departures, I bolted (as in, used Bolt) to get to the spotters wall. It's a rather rickety construction that doesn't inspire confidence, but it offers a perfect view of the entire runway 13/31, meaning it's possible to capture all arrivals and departures from there, no matter the wind direction.
The best part is that its proximity to the runway mitigates rather heavy heat haze. It also means that there is no need for a long tele lens to photograph aircraft. As an example, the 120mm focal lens (35mm equivalent) is enough to capture an Airbus A320-size aircraft.
There were enough take-offs and landings to keep me busy, but the real treat was a go-around by Turkish Airlines Boeing 737-800 (registration TC-JVV). My uneducated guess was that due to the sudden change in wind direction, the pilots decided that they didn't have enough runway to land, so they executed a go-around. Nothing dramatic, but I've never seen a go-around, so I was pretty excited.
In addition to aircraft, the spotters wall has yet another attraction: sparrows. There are quite a few of them, and they don't pay much attention to all the action going on around the airport. They perch on the airport perimeter fence, and live their normal lives, which makes them fun to observe and photograph while waiting for the next aircraft to land or take off.
It was also the first time, I used exclusively my Nikon Z fc and Nikkor Z DX 50-250mm f/4.5-6.3 VR combo, and I'm pleased to report that it performed admirably. The only niggle was the lens' rather stiff zoom ring. As Nikon Z fc lacks a proper grip, rotating the zoom ring could sometimes be rather awkward. But that's my only, and minor, gripe.
For the rest of our stay, the spotters wall was my preferred location, and I manage to amass close to 3000 photos, with quite a few keepers among them. All in all, photographing airplanes at MLA exceeded my expectations. And despite enduring the heat and scorching sun, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
