Plane Spotting at YUL
Revision: Winter 2013
© YULspotter 2013
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Plane Spotting at YUL TABLE OF CONTENTS
Background Information on Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport The origin of YUL/CYUL Airport Layout . The Runways . .
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Runway Configurations
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What to Bring .
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Airplane Spotter Tools How to dress . .
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Jacques-de-Lesseps Park . . . . Blvd Pitfield . . . . . . 55th Avenue Parking Lot . . . . Chemin St-Francois . . . . . Westwood Arena . . . . . Best views at YUL based on direction of the wind .
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Where to Spot .
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YUL Radio Frequencies .
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YUL Airport Diagrams
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YUL Aerodrome Chart . YUL Taxi Chart . . YUL Gates and Terminal Building
Conclusion
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Plane Spotting at YUL
Background Information on Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport
The origin of YUL/CYUL All airports in the world are identified by a three-letter code that is determined by the IATA (International Air Transport Association). The IATA code for Pierre-Elliot Trudeau airport is YUL. You may have noticed this code on your luggage if you have ever traveled by plane from/to Montreal. Most major airports in Canada have airport codes that start with the letter “Y”. It is thought that the letter “Y” was once used to identify Canadian airports which had weather stations at them. Pierre-Elliott Trudeau has a weather station so its code starts with the letter “Y”. The remaining two letters were randomly selected. Another organization, ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization), also has its own airport code system. The main difference is that ICAO uses a four-letter identification system as opposed to the IATA's three. The ICAO code for any airport in Canada has a 'C' as its first letter. The 'C' means the airport is located in Canada. Montreal's Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport's ICAO code is the letter 'C' followed by the IATA code resulting in CYUL. Though airplane spotters tend to use the IATA code when identifying airports, it's important to mention that the IATA will eventually switch its airport code system over to the ICAO standard. Often, to save time, aviation enthusiasts will name airports by their IATA code instead of by their actual name. For example, a flight going from Montreal to Toronto can be referred to as “leaving YUL and arriving in YYZ”.
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Plane Spotting at YUL Airport Layout The satellite photo below has the basic airport layout. Major features have been labeled. Spotting locations will be discussed later in more detail. Satellite photo of Pierre-Elliot Trudeau Airport with runways and buildings identified.
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Plane Spotting at YUL The Runways Montreal’s Pierre-Elliot Trudeau International Airport has 3 paved runways. Two of the runways are parallel to each other and one that is perpendicular to those runways. All airport runways are numbered. Those numbers come from the compass heading that a runway points towards. If there are more than two parallel runways such as in the case of Pierre-Elliott Trudeau, letters such as 'R' for right, 'L' for left and ‘C’ for center will be added to the number. Information on Pierre Elliott Trudeau's runways can be found below. An overview map of the runways follows on the next page. Runway Number:
24R on the runway’s northern end. 06L on the runway’s southern end. See red circles on the map. Pronounced “two-four right” & “zero-six left”. This is the longest runway. It is used primarily for landings of larger aircraft. It is identified with the number “1” on the map on the next page.
Runway Number:
24L on the runway’s northern end. 06R on the runway’s southern end. See green circles on the map. Pronounced “two-four left” & “zero-six right”. This is the second longest runway. It is used primarily for departures of aircraft and landings of smaller aircraft. It is identified with the number “2” on the map on the next page.
Runway Number:
28 on the runway’s western end. 10 on the runway’s eastern end. See pink circles on the map. Pronounced “two-eight” or “ten” sometimes also ”one-zero”. This is the shortest runway. It is used for departures and landings when winds are directly from the east or west. It is also used for departures of domestic flights which are heading in a westerly direction (such as Toronto or Vancouver). It is identified with the number “3” on the map on the next page.
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Plane Spotting at YUL Pierre-Elliot Trudeau Airport Layout
1 2 3
You may be wondering why each runway has two numbers, one at each end. Depending on the direction of the winds, aircraft may land or take-off in either runway direction. Wind direction is important as aircraft must always take-off and land against the wind. The reason for this is safety. If an aircraft were to land in the same direction as the wind, the wind could push the plane and cause it to overshoot the runway. If an aircraft were to take off with the wind, the aircraft may run out of runway before it gets enough lift under its wings to become airborne. © YULspotter 2013
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Plane Spotting at YUL Runway Configurations
Before going airplane spotting, it is important to know the runway configuration. Runway configuration refers to the runway numbers that are currently being used. As stated earlier, the direction of the wind is very important as it determines the runway configuration. Determining the current runway configuration is easy. First, check the direction the wind is blowing. You can do this by visiting a weather website such as Environment Canada’s Weather Office (http://www.weatheroffice.gc.ca/canada_e.html). You can also check Nav Canada’s web based service called IIDS Webview for CYUL. It will provide basic weather information. It will also list all of the runways and tell you which ones are being used. The website can be accessed via the following web address: http://gca.navcanada.ca/atm/iwv/CYUL. A screenshot has been included below to show you what the website looks like. The ‘OK” with the green background under the LOC, GP and DME columns tell you which runways are currently in use. The LOC, GP and DME are types of radio beacons that aircraft use to guide themselves to and from airport runways. Items with a red background mean that runway is closed or that radio beacon is currently not operational.
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Plane Spotting at YUL In the event you don’t have access to the internet or don’t feel comfortable using the IIDS Webview site, the table below can be used to determine which runways are being used. WIND DIRECTION South Southeast Southwest North Northeast Northwest East
RUNWAY TYPICALLY USED 24R for landings 24L for take-offs
PLANE ORIENTATION
06R for landings 06L for take-offs
Landing aircraft pass over highway 20. Departing aircraft pass over highway 13.
10 for landings & take-offs
West
28 for landings & take-offs
Calm Winds
24R for landings 24L or 28 for take-offs
Landing aircraft pass over Blvd. Des Sources. Departing Aircraft pass over the CoteDe-Liesse (highway 520). Landing aircraft pass over the Cote-DeLiesse (highway 520). Departing aircraft pass over Blvd. Des Sources. Landing aircraft pass over highway 13. Departing aircraft pass over highway 20. Departing aircraft on runway 28 pass over Blvd. Des Sources.
Landing aircraft pass over highway 13. Departing aircraft pass over highway 20.
Please note that the table above covers a majority of situations. There will occasionally be aircraft that take-off from a runway that is normally being used for landings or vise versa. This is because there are other factors that influence what runway an aircraft is going to use besides the wind. These could include amount of air traffic wanting to use a runway, airport vehicles on the runway, debris on the runway, maintenance on the runway and weight of the aircraft (heavier aircraft tend to use runway 24R/06L as it is the longest). Another way to know which runways are being used is via an airport broadcast service called ATIS (Automatic Terminal Information Service). If you have a radio band receiver which can turn to airport frequencies, you can listen to the frequency of ATIS. For YUL the ATIS frequency is 133.700 for the English broadcast and 127.500 for the French broadcast. ATIS includes airport and weather conditions for pilots which are regularly updated and broadcast on a continuous loop. Included in the broadcast are the runways that are being used for landing and departing aircraft.
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Plane Spotting at YUL What to Bring
When going airplane spotting, it’s better to be prepared. It will make the experience that much more enjoyable. You don’t have to bring all of the items listed below to have a good time. All you really need is your curiosity. However, you may arrive on site and see other airplane spotters and say, “I wish I would have though of bringing that!”
Airplane Spotter Tools There are several tools an airplane spotter will have with them when going to spot aircraft at the airport. Some of these may include: - Binoculars - Daily schedule of aircraft arrivals and departure (for Pierre-Elliot Trudeau airport, the arrivals & departures schedule can be found on the web via the following address: www.admtl.com) - Radio frequency receiver to listen in on airport/pilot conversations (discussed in section titled "Radio Communications") - Aircraft spotters guide to help identify aircraft - Camera - Video camera - Folding chair - Food & drink (having water is important on hot sunny days in the summer – bring a hot beverage in the winter to help warm up your insides) - Sunscreen (again for those sunny days) - Umbrella (in case of rain or for protection from the sun) - *** Garbage bag - It is very important to place all waste in a bag that you will dispose of in the garbage. Do not throw trash on the ground as some of these items can blow on to airport runways or in front of aircraft. This can be a hazard to aircraft. Imagine if a paper bag where to blow onto a departing aircraft’s windshield and the pilots couldn’t see properly. In the aviation world these objects are known as FOD (Foreign Object Debris).
How to dress The type of clothes to wear will depend greatly on the time of year you are spotting. Most spotters take the winter months off and do their spotting in the summer. This is primarily due to the cold winter air and the fact that airports tend not to be as busy in the winter as they are in the summer. However, winter spotting does have its advantages. These would include snow reflections off aircraft fuselages and crisp clear air. Both are great for visibility and for photography. Since YUL experiences about 3 to 4 months of cold winter weather and 3 or 4 months of hot summer weather, the clothing instructions that follow have been split into winter and summer spotting sections. In the winter: © YULspotter 2013
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Plane Spotting at YUL -
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Down (or other similar material) lined winter coat Long sleeve shirt or sweater (even with a winter coat, your arms may get cold if you wear a short sleeve shirt or T-shirt) Winter hat that covers your ears Ear muffs Scarf (to cover your neck) Gortex or other similar material gloves (gloves are better than mittens since you will have more dexterity for activities such as picture taking). Thick pants (such as wool) and snow pants (I recommend the snow pants as you can always take them off if they are too warm. You will be happy to have them if your legs get cold). Thick socks Winter boots that are water proof (if your feet ever get wet, they will get cold a lot faster) Sunglasses (it may be cold but the sun can still be bright – reflections off the snow make sun glare even worse in the winter)
In the summer; - A baseball cap - Sunglasses (the sun’s ray can be strong in the summer) - Short sleeve shirt & shorts for hot days - Comfortable shoes or sandals as you may be standing for long periods of time - A thin sweater/jacket and long pants (it can get cool when the sun goes down) - Sunscreen is must on clear days Warning:
Avoid airplane spotting on really cold or really hot days. If you still feel the need to go, avoid staying outdoors for prolonged periods of time. Warm up or cool off in your car or at a nearby restaurant at regular intervals. Frostbite/hypothermia in the winter and dehydration/heat stroke in the summer are hazards during days of extreme temperatures. Remember that no airplane is worth getting sick over.
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Plane Spotting at YUL Where to Spot
There are many places around Pierre-Elliott Trudeau International Airport (YUL) to spot aircraft but I have picked out the most popular ones. They are explained in detail below.
Jacques-de-Lesseps Park Of all places to spot around YUL, by far the best one is the Jacques-de-Lesseps spotting park. Located at the intersection of Halpern and Jenkins streets, the Jacques-de-Lesseps spotting park was opened by the Montreal airport authority (Aeroports de Montreal – ADM) in May of 2012 to celebrate the airport’s 70th anniversary. This park has been designed to be very accommodating to both aviation enthusiast and nonenthusiasts. It features landscaping, a walking path and park benches. The best feature is the 5 level bleachers which allow you to sit and relax or stand up and have unobstructed views of the airport and aircraft. The park also features signs describing the park itself and a chart containing silhouettes and brief description of all the aircraft types which can be seen at YUL. The park is located adjacent to runway 24L/06R which is the runway most often used by departing aircraft. When runway 06R is being used, this location offers views of aircraft taxiing into position on the runway as well as the sound of the engines spooling up to take off power. When runway 24L is being used, aircraft can be seen taxiing right past this location as they head to the end of the runway. In addition, aircraft tend to rotate either just before or right at the location of the park. In addition, the park is also located just to the left of the approach path to runway 28. This means that observers at the park can watch landing aircraft pass quite close. However, runway 28 is very rarely used for landing aircraft. Runway 28 is more often used for departing aircraft who are heading west to domestic destinations like Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver. The park does offer good views of aircraft lining up on runway 28. The park is also lined up nicely with the apron area as well as the alpha taxiway meaning that observers can get some nice head-on and side-on views of taxiing aircraft.
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Plane Spotting at YUL The yellow circle in the image below marks the location of the Jacques-de-Liesse spotting park.
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Plane Spotting at YUL Blvd Pitfield This dead-end street off Blvd. Cote Vertu is very popular, especially amongst amateur spotters such as parents and their children. The reason for its popularity is mostly due to the fact that aircraft landing on runway 24R pass very low and directly over your head. It’s about as close as you can get to an airplane in flight. Also, the sound from the engines is sometimes so loud that you can't hear anything else. One of the unique features of this location is that it offers you the opportunity to stand directly in a landing aircraft’s flight path. They come right at you and pass low overhead. You tend to wonder if it’s going to fly right into you. It can be a little scary and intense but that’s part of the fun. Another reason for its popularity is due to the fact that it is a dead-end street. This means that there is very little traffic and there is room to park. Be careful though. There are no stopping signs throughout the entire roundabout on this street (see yellow circle on the map on the next page). People often ignore these signs but you should consider parking away from these no stopping areas just in case. Due to its popularity, it is not uncommon on nice Sunday afternoons to see 30 or more people watching planes from this venue. However, it’s important to note that this spot is only good when runway 24R is being used for landings. As per the best views chart seen earlier, this runway will be used when the winds are calm or are blowing from a southerly direction. If the winds are from any other direction, aircraft will land at the opposite end of the runway and spotting from this location will be as exciting as watching paint dry.
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Plane Spotting at YUL The yellow circle in the image below indicates the Pitfield spotting location (the roundabout).
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Plane Spotting at YUL 55th Avenue Parking Lot The parking lot just off of Chartier Avenue is another favorite spotting location. It’s quite popular with the more serious airplane spotters. From this location you can see the airport terminal building, the domestic & international gates, the de-icing bay (used in winter) and Air Canada’s maintenance hangers. However, the best part of this spot is that you are right in front of runway 24L/06R, which is used mostly for take-offs. Whether the wind is blowing from a southerly or northerly direction, aircraft will use 24L/06R for take-offs and the airplane will rotate (get airborne) almost right in front of you. It’s up close and really impressive. It’s a good spot if you prefer watching aircraft take-off. On rare occasions when the winds are blowing directly from the east or west, this spot still offers good views. If the winds are blowing from the west, landing aircraft pass pretty close and almost directly overhead to land on runway 28. If the winds are blowing directly from the east, departing aircraft will fly almost directly overhead as well. If the winds are calm, you may be treated to the occasionally aircraft landing on runway 28. There is an aircraft landing on runway 28 in the satellite photo of the Chartier site on the next page. Can you spot it? This is not a good spot if you want to see larger aircraft land. This is because these aircraft usually land on runway 24R/06L, which can’t be seen from this location. The next discussed location, Chemin St-Francois, is a better spot for this. Please note that the parking lot at this location is used for employees of the companies located in this area. Therefore, priority should always be given to the workers that use this parking lot. You should not block driveways or other parked vehicles during working hours. Ideally, it's best to go to this spot in the evenings on weekdays or during the weekends since these times are outside of regular working hours.
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Plane Spotting at YUL The yellow circle in the image below indicates the 55th Avenue parking lot spotting location. Runway 24L/06R
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Plane Spotting at YUL Chemin St-Francois Chemin St-Francois is a dead-end street that runs parallel to runway 24R/06L. This spot is popular with many of the advanced & professional spotters. Besides being parallel to the runway, from this location you can see Air Canada’s & Air Transat’s maintenance hangers, the terminal & cargo buildings, the de-icing bay (used in winter) and aircraft departing runway 28 (though this runway is relatively far from this location). Like the Pitfield location, this spot has the advantage of being a dead end street, which means lots of place to park. Usually, the only traffic you’re going to see here are other spotters showing up or departing. The further you drive down the street, the more of runway 24R/06L you will see. Driving further down the road will bring you closer to the terminal and cargo buildings if you want to see the activity going on there. This is the best spot to see aircraft landing and departing on runway 24R/06L. However, this runway is mostly used for landings, as it is the longest. If you like seeing the larger aircraft, it’s a good spot to be between 3:00pm to 8:00pm as a lot of them land on this runway during this period. However, this is not a good spot for viewing landing and departing aircraft on runway 24L/06R as you can’t see that runway from this location. If you prefer seeing aircraft taking-off, then the Jacques-de-Lesseps park and 55th Avenue locations are a better choice. The yellow circle in the image below indicates the Chemin St Francois spotting location.
Runway 24R / 06L
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Plane Spotting at YUL Westwood Arena The hill behind the Westwood Arena is a good spot to be when runways 06L and 10 are being used, as these runways are both in direct line of sight from this location. The hill offers some unobstructed views but some views are blocked by some airport buildings and electrical wires. This location can be accessed via Blvd Pine Beach off Cardinal Avenue. Once on Pine Beach, just look for the sign pointing to the Westwood Arena. There is usually plenty of parking available at the arena. If winds are blowing from the north and you want to see aircraft taking-off, then this is a very good choice. You’ll be able to see aircraft taxi onto runway 06R right in front of you and will hear the engines spool up to take-off power. It’s also a good place for viewing take-offs and landings when the winds are blowing directly from the east. If this is the case, you’ll be able to see aircraft land and take-off on runway 10. However, easterly winds do not occur often so this runway is not often used for take-offs and landings. This is not a good spot if winds are blowing from a southerly direction or if they are calm. In such cases, runway 24R will be used for landings, which, though in direct line of sight, will occur too far away from you to be able to see aircraft up close. Also, runway 24L will usually be used for take-offs and you can’t see that runway from this location. Additionally, you will see very little activity on runway 28 unless northerly winds are on the light side.
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Plane Spotting at YUL The yellow circle indicates the location of the hill behind the Westwood Arena.
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Plane Spotting at YUL Best views at YUL based on direction of the wind A lot of information has been discussed in each location and you may find it difficult to remember which spot is good to use depending on the weather conditions. The chart on the next page summarizes which site is best to use for each activity based on wind direction. Table summarizing the best views based on wind direction. WIND DIRECTION
RUNWAY
ACTIVITY
PITFIELD
JACQUESde-LESSEPS / 55th AVE.
ST. FRANCOIS
WESTWOOD ARENA
Landings Good* Poor Good Fair Good Poor Good* Fair Take-Offs Southerly Landings Poor Good Poor Poor 24L Take-Offs Poor Good Poor Poor Landings Fair Fair Good Good* 06L Take-Offs Fair Poor Good Good* Northerly Landings Poor Good Poor Poor 06R Take-Offs Poor Good Poor Poor Landings Poor Fair Fair Good East 10 Take-Offs Poor Good Fair Good* Landings Poor Good Poor Poor West 28 Take-Offs Poor Fair Fair Good Landings Good* Poor Good Fair 24R Good Poor Good* Fair Take-Offs Landings Poor Good Poor Poor Calm 24L Take-Offs Poor Good Poor Poor Landings Poor Good Poor Poor 28 Take-Offs Poor Fair Fair Good Table Legend: Good : close and unobstructed view Fair : distant and/or semi-obstructed view Poor : far and/or little to no view * : indicates a site that has the best view when there is more than one good spot for viewing. 24R
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Plane Spotting at YUL YUL Radio Frequencies
If you have a radio frequency receiver and you wish to listen in on radio communications between pilots and Air Traffic Control at Pierre Elliot Trudeau International Airport, then you'll need to know which services use which frequency on the megahertz (MHz) band. The table below contains a list of the services and the frequencies that are used for each.
FREQUENCY (in MHz) SERVICE 119.900 Tower 121.900 Ground 122.075 Apron 118.900 Arrivals/Departures (South & East) – Montreal Terminal 124.650 Arrivals/Departures (North & West) – Montreal Terminal 125.600 Clearance Delivery 126.900 Low Arrivals (Localizers) 133.700 ATISº - English 127.500 ATIS - French 123.550 FSS¹ - Quebec FIC² RCO³ 126.700 FSS - Quebec FIC RCO 132.850 Montreal Terminal - Arrivals 134.150 Montreal Terminal – VFR´ Advisory 122.525 De-icing traffic coordinator 123.125 De-icing coordinator ºATIS – Automatic Terminal Information Service ¹FSS – Flight Service Station ²FIC – Flight Information Centre ³RCO – Radio Communication Outlet ´VFR – Visual Flight Rules
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Plane Spotting at YUL YUL Airport Charts
If you are one of the people who have a radio band receiver and can hear airport air traffic control & pilot communications, you will likely hear directives that include taxiway numbers such as Alpha 4 and Bravo 2. You may also hear aircraft being directed to a certain gate number. So you may want to know where these locations are at the airport. On the next few pages you will find three airport diagrams published by Nav Canada which will help you identify these locations.
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Plane Spotting at YUL YUL Aerodrome Chart
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Plane Spotting at YUL YUL Taxi Chart
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Plane Spotting at YUL YUL Gates and Terminal Building
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Plane Spotting at YUL
Conclusion
So there you have it. All the basics you need to know to enjoy your airplane spotting at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport. I hope you have found this guide useful. Enjoy and happy spotting!
The End.
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