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Aircraft Spotting at Greater Manchester's Airfields and Airports
BARTON - TWR 122.7
Exit M60 at J11 and head southwest on A57, airfield on right after 1 mile. It’s now a paying car park but the first 30 minutes are free – take a ticket on entry and check in at the tower before leaving. They will check your ticket and advise you of the cost. Park in car park and walk to left past cabins to log helicopters. You should be able to log all aircraft on the grass from here. Follow the path next to the grass towards control tower and go up the stairs one level. If you missed any on the grass you will get them from here. Walk around the balcony as aircraft are parked behind the tower and beyond the portacabins, therefore hidden from view from ground level. At the bottom of tower is where the pilots sign in. Ask here for access to the hangars, you should be able to sign in, borrow an airside fluorescent yellow jacket and go round the hangars, usually escorted. An email in advance may help your chances as access has been known to be denied, especially if the airport is busy. Get what you can from just outside the door and walk back towards the car park. In between the hangar and the main clubhouse is a taxiway. Walk down there towards the furniture shop (I think it is) and turn left (this may be 'roped off' so walk past the clubhouse with it on your left and in to the car park. There is a small path that runs alongside the clubhouse that will get you on to this road that leads to the hangar. Alternatively, you can just use the main road entrance but there is a sign saying No Entry for Unauthorised Persons or Vehicles (strange considering there are shops along this road) and you really shouldn't ignore signs like this. Next to said furniture shop there is a track that leads to a helicopter hangar. Very friendly here, ask an engineer for a look round, no problems, don't forget the dismantled aircraft along the back wall. Back to the road and on the right, a couple of aircraft are parked here and you get a different angle at the main hangars. To the right of the shop is another hangar. It’s not always open but if it is, ask in there for access. Website http://www.ringwayreports.co.uk/barton.htm
Correct 3 May 2008
MANCHESTER - TWR 118.625, APP 119.4
Off M56 at J6, follow signs. 1) Car park roof (level 13) of T1 is now used by car rental companies. You’ll have to park lower down, where the views are the same, and walk up if you prefer, but at £1.50 per hour it’s too expensive to stay for long. 2) Viewing park - Just follow the signs. Open 0830-2030 every day except Christmas Day and there is a cost per car including driver with additional charge for passengers or pedestrians aged 4+. Great views of 06L/24R and it's ideal for photographs but compass bay and hangars block view of terminal. 06R/24L is off to the right in the distance but anything using this runway has to taxi past so you will miss nothing. This is where you want to stay all day and then nip up the top of T1 car park in case there is anything parked up on the stands that you haven't seen. Or do the reverse. 3) Public footpath - exit airport and follow signs to Wilmslow, go through approach for 24L to the bottom, turn right at lights (Moss Lane?). Go past fire dump, double crash gates and nursery (Style Ponies). About 150 yards past nursery pull up at metal gate - look for tyre tracks (you can park at the Holiday Inn nearby). Entrance is on right side of road - perfect for views of NEA's ramp where bizjets park, all of T3, some of T1 and tail-tops on T2. Great for photos on 24R. You are advised to bring wellies as very muddy, though if you follow the fence round it gets drier. Or alternatively follow signs for Cheadle away from the airport, turn right at the T-Junction onto Styal Road, travel along here for about 300 yards and turn right down Moss Lane. Follow this road past the ATP fuselage and pull in after Styal Show Ponies, where there is a signed bridleway on the right. A short (100ft) saunter up here and you are facing the Ocean Sky biz ramp. Anything parked in front of the hangars is visible where it wouldn't be from the Multi Storey car park.
If you’re flying out - T2 only has views airside, and then
mostly of aircraft parked on that apron area, those parked on T1 pier C facing
north and cargo movements. T3
again only has views airside, this time looking out between piers A and B of
T1. You can also see traffic
landing on 24R and if it’s between 12:00pm and 3:00pm, traffic taxiing to use
this runway. T1 airside - a cafe
area allows views of traffic parked on the western side of pier B and the south
side of pier C. If you are
departing from a gate on pier C you can look out onto T2 apron, but there is no
way back when you've entered this area.
Pier B views are good either side, but little else can be seen except
passing traffic. You can spot from
the airside gate at any of the 3 terminals when checked in, with different
results. T3 is closest to the
runway, but you can see very little of what's already in, so mainly it's
movements only. T1 you need to go
down the pier (gates 1-13) for decent views. The other pier in T1 (20s gates) also gives some views but
not much use for photos. You can
see T2 and cargo from here. When
you land here, you're shepherded straight to arrivals. For more info visit http://www.ringwayreports.co.uk/ringway.htm,
http://www.tasmanchester.com/ and Spotterswiki Manchester. Yahoogroup http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/manchesterspotters2. For airport parking visit 
or 
Updated 11 May 2008
MANCHESTER-MUSEUM of
SCIENCE & INDUSTRY, GTR MANCH
Museum website http://www.msim.org.uk/
WOODFORD - TWR 120.7, APP 130.75
A5102 between Wilmslow and Poynton, if heading from Wilmslow direction turn right down the side of a chruch shortly after entering a 40mph limit. Follow road for about a mile, past a farm and there is a pull off just short of a golf course - can see anything in middle of field from here. For Avrotech just walk a little further up road by golf course - be cautious as road is supposed to be private and they can be a bit funny. After that, retrace steps to church, turn right onto main road, continue past main factory entrance and turn right at small roundabout. Turn almost immediately right down Bridle Lane. Road bends right and there is a pull off as it bends left - park here and walk 100 yards back up the fence for hangar, right half is for 146s, left is for Nimrod fuselages.