TC-ALI DC-3C 'Nostalgie' (ex Yugoslavian AF): Koc Museum	6052/YSL-52 C-47A Turkish AF:Turkish Airforce Museum	ETI-683 C-54D Turkish AF:Turkish Airforce Museum	430 Viscount 794D Turkish AF:Turkish Airforce Museum	TC-ABA Caravelle 10B1R Istanbul Airlines: Turkish Airforce Museum	TC-ANA A319-100CJ Turkish Government:Touchdown on '36R, from Ankara with the Turkish PM	82-8000 VC-25A USAF 89AW: 'Air Force 1' arriving from Ankara with President Obama
98-0001 C-32A USAF 89AW: 'SAM3801' following the President from Ankara	CM-01 Falcon 20E Belgian AF ('60 Years 15th Wing'):Departing after UN meeting	YK-ASB Falcon 20F Syrian Government:Departing after UN meeting	N666MX Cessna 560XL Flying Partners:Based at Rotterdam, taxying to GA ramp	D-AIRX A321-200 Lufthansa (Retrojet): Touchdown on '36R	UP-T3403 Tu-134A-3 Jet Airlines: VIP aircraft, rolling on '36R	82-8000 VC-25A USAF 89AW: 'Sierra 1492' lining up on '36R, destination Iraq
TC-OAE A321-200 Onur Air: Airborne off runway 18R	TC-OAA A300-600R Saudi Airlines/Onur Air:Operated in full Saudi colours	TS-IND A320-200 Libyan Airlines: On lease from Nouvelair Tunisie	TC-ONO MD-88 Onur Air:Typical MD-80 blast off!	PH-BXU B737-800 KLM: Late rotation off '18R= great photo!	TC-JIJ A340-300X Turkish Airlines:Showing the KLM how to get it up quicker!	VT-JED B777-300ER Turkish Airlines:Leased from Jet Airways, with Indian reg and flag!
5A-DMH B737-800 Buraq Air: Rotating off '36R	TC-JCT A310-300F Turkish Cargo:Airborne off '36R	70-0455 C-5A USAF NY ANG:Note the 'watch-man' out the hatch behind the cockpit!	95-103 CN235M-100 Turkish AF 223Filo:Based at Kayseri	RA-42389 Yak-42D Saratov Airlines:Typical long take off run on '36R	TC-THK Pa42-700 THK:Impressive visual approach for '36L!	OE-FII Cessna 525A JetAlliance:Standard approach for '36R!
P4-IVM EMB-135BJ ITERA:Taxyling from the GA ramp	HZ-ANC MD-11F Saudi Cargo:Touchdown & Airborne on '36R	TC-SUZ B737-800 Sun Express:'20 Years' logos

Continuing from Part 2 Moldova... After arrival in Istanbul I had to collect the hire car and arrange a hotel for an extra night, now that I was a day early. By the time I did this, and with the weather not being too clever, I called it a day. Prior to making the trip I had done a lot of research on Istanbul, and had contacted a few of the local spotters. Not surprisingly, the advice was that you need to take a lot of care, although there are 'safe' places to go. Istanbul Ataturk airport has three runways, the long parallel 36L/18R and 36R/18L to the west of the terminals, and the shorter 06/24 between the terminals and the military area (and museum) to the south of the airport. The military base, known as Yesilkoy, is fairly busy with transport aircraft, helicopters and some training aircraft.
The most popular place to go is to the southerly perimeter, around the final approach area to runways 06 and 36L/R, where you may find some of the local spotters, especially on weekends. However, after making arrangements, I was fortunate enough to be able to visit the Tarkim Flight Academy building, with their fantastic rooftop cafe and balcony which overlooks the airport. This is located on the western perimeter, very close to the parallel runways and not far from the R06 approach. Shots from here are very good, and it was so convenient that I spent the whole time there!
Also to mention the other airport in Istanbul... Sabiha Gokcen airport is on the Asian side of the city to the east, and quite a long distance away. Not as busy, but used by some of the Turkish charter airlines (including Pegasus), as well as Easyjet, the airport is well known for frequent visits by Russian and CIS cargo and charter aircraft. It also has a classic 'resident', the burnt out 9L-LDU B707! I had tried to contact the airport for a visit, but had no luck.

Mon 6/4/09: The day started with a bit of drama! After waking, I looked to check the weather outside (not good again), only to see a massive fire starting not far away! It turned out to be a large tent shaped show venue called Gosteri Merkezi, located about 100ft away from the WOW Hotel, which was where I had booked for the next few nights! Anyway, the place burnt down, but luckily the hotel didn't!
The decision to have an extra day at Istanbul fortunately paid off, as there was a government meeting taking place. The UN-backed Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) meeting had attracted quite a few government aircraft, which were already here. Hoping to photograph these on departure over the next few days, I missed a few which left at night, including a Spanish AF A310, Bulgarian Gov Tu-154 and a Greek Gov Legacy. As well as this meeting, the big news was that President Obama was making a state visit to Turkey (his first to a Muslim country), and was in the capital Ankara. That disappointment was short lived though, when I found out he was flying up to Istanbul later. Yes!
As the day went on the weather wasn't improving, and as time went on I was then concerned if he would arrive before dark or not. By this time the Tarkim cafe was attracting TV and press for his arrival from this great viewpoint, as we watched live on TV as the President was leaving Ankara. First to arrive though was Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Erdogan, in his Government A319CJ TC-ANA (which I had missed at Davos two months earlier!). By this time the rain was coming down and photography was difficult. An hour later, and getting darker... 'Istanbul Tower this is Air Force 1, established on 36 Right', followed by 'Runway in sight, four miles out'. The controller replied 'Air Force 1 you are not cleared to land, security vehicle still to vacate', which drew the quick response 'Please clear the runway immediately' with slight anger in his voice. VC-25A 82-8000 then made a perfect landing at 1859, the reverse thrust throwing up a huge amount of spray off the wet runway. Six minutes later it was followed by 'SAM3801' C-32A 98-0001, which was supporting the Presidents visit (no second VC-25A this time). And that was the end of a great first day, shame about the weather!

Tue 7/4/09: After President Obama had spent the morning visiting the sights in Istanbul, he arrived back at the airport in his famous car 'The Beast' at 1405. Ten minutes later VC-25A 'Sierra 1492' was taxying for departure on Runway 36R, with people wondering why this unusual callsign was being used. After take off at 1421, he was followed two minutes later by the C-32A as 'Sierra 3801'. It was later discovered that the President was making an unannounced visit to nearby Iraq, staying there just a few hours before heading back home (landing at Andrews AFB on the 8th at 0624Z). I presume the 'Sierra' callsign was used for security reasons, and was shortened from 'SAM' (Special Air Mission), the regular callsign used by the 89AW, including the VC-25A's when the President isn't onboard. As for the '1492 part of the callsign... this is a mystery to me! Just a random number?
Supporting the Presidents visit to Istanbul were three C-17A's, which arrived during the day and departed after dark. Also involved was 105AW NY ANG 'Stewart' C-5A 70-0455, being the final aircraft to clear up and leave on the 9th. Also possibly involved was 86-0419 C-130H 440AW AFRC 'Bragg-Pope', which had departed just before the Galaxy. These aircraft being tasked to take out the Presidential vehicles etc (but no helicopters on this visit). Also, as usual, the press corp. were following the President, using two United B777's (one in 'Star Alliance' colours).
So far runways 36 and 06 had been used, with '36R mainly for take offs, and '06 for most landing aircraft. So it was a nice change to see them switch to runway 18R, again mostly for take offs, with '24 now used for most landings. This meant that take offs on the parallel runway closest to Tarkim (18R), saw the aircraft rotating as you look down on them (especially those that used a lot of runway), so fantastic for photography! The weather today was much improved and the forecast for the next two days was nice sunshine!

Wed 8/4/09: Today saw take offs continue to use runway 18R, with the final departure after the UNAOC meeting, Oman Government Gulf 4 A40-AC. The following were also photographed departing over the previous couple of days: T.18-1/45-40 Falcon 900 Spanish AF, A9C-HWR RJ-85 Bahrain Royal Flight, 5105 CL601-3A Czech AF, T-783 Falcon 50 Swiss AF and CM-01 Falcon 20E Belgian AF, with '15th Wing 60 Years' special markings. Highlights for me though were YK-ASB Falcon 20F Syrian Government, and (presumably connected) UP-T3403 Tu-134A-3 of Jet Airlines, with a very 'sexy' 37-seat VIP interior! Check it out at www.jetairlines.kz/eng/page9.php!

Thu 9/4/09: After checking out of the hotel, my final day in Istanbul was again spent at Tarkim, with great weather. They had switched back to using runway 36R, mostly for take offs, and '06 for most landings. As the trip was coming to an end, my final impressions of Istanbul were very good. A great airport with a fantastic spotting location. There is a very good variety of airlines, with a lot of aircraft not seen in the UK (and most of Europe). Among the many A300's and MD-80's parked around the place, some grounded or off-lease to various airlines, Onur Air A300's can be seen operating for Saudi Airlines, as do AtlasJet B757's, so that all the SVA flights operated out of here are by Turkish registered aircraft. Also on the Turkish scene, Turkish Airlines have their new B777-300's on lease from Jet Airways (with VT- registrations), their final few B737-400's and two remaining passenger A310's are still in service, while they recently leased a couple of Kingfisher A321's. Other Turkish airliners seen were Onur Air MD-80 and A321, Turkuaz A320, AtlasJet A321, Sun Express B737-800, Cyprus Turkish A320, Freebird A321 and Izair A319, as well as cargo operators ACT and MNG Cargo with A300's.
One more word on Istanbul... a good time to visit is coming up, with the UEFA Cup final being played here on Wed 20th May. Expect lots of charters from Germany and the Ukraine for this!

With a very successful trip coming to an end, I left Istanbul on Tukish Airlines flight TK1162, again on an A321 to Dubai. Arriving in the early hours, I still had one more days photography ahead of me, as I took a taxi to the Sheraton Deira for a few hours sleep. This hotel has become well known over the last year or two, and threes a bit of a 'Sheraton Spotters Club' going on now, frequenting the rooftop pool bar area (often to the curiosity of other guests)! From here there is a good view over the airport, and great landing shots can be had of aircraft on finals to Runway 12L. The usual landing runway at Dubai is '12L in the morning up until around mid-day, when they switch to '30R/L. After this happens, obviously photography is not so good from the hotel with most departures well overhead, apart from the odd heavy or Russian built aircraft, which can stay quite low after take off. It can be down to luck, as occasionally they can land over the hotel all day, or you just get take offs, sometimes depending on strong winds etc. On this occasion, landing aircraft used '12L all day until around 1700, so a good day for the photographer!
As I was meeting a work colleague here (on his way back from the UK) who is a 'number cruncher', there follows a list of visitors for the day... highlights were:

Dubai Fri 10/4/09 (Credit: John Steptoe):

AP-BAH B737-200 Shaheen
A9C-BXB CL604 Bexair
A9C-BXI Cessna 560XL Bexair
CS-DKC Gulfstream 550 Net Jets
D-ABKH CL604 Jet Air Flug
D-CFCF Lear jet 35A ADAC
D6-CAS A320-200 Comoro Islands Airways (Operating for Sudan Airways)
EI-DER A320-200 Rossiya
EP-ASB B727-200 Iran Asseman
EP-GOM IL-76TD Yas Air
EP-MHO A310-300 Mahan Air
EP-QFA Yak-42 Qeshem Air
F-GSPP B777-200ER Air France
F-GUOB B777-200LRF Air France Cargo
F-OJHH A310-300 Mahan Air
F-ORME A321-200 MEA
G-CJMD EMB-135BJ Corporate Jet Management
HS-TEH A330-300 Thai Airways
HZ-AIW B747-400 Saudi Airlines
HZ-APK MD-90-30 Saudi Airlines
JY-JAN B737-300 Jordan Aviation
N10SV EMB-135BJ ACM Aviation
N570UP B747-400F UPS
N737GG B737-700BBJ Mid East Jet
N754TS Global Express XRS Aero Toy Store
N866DA B777-200ER Delta
OE-HFC Galaxy G200 Jetalliance
OK-SLN EMB-135BJ ABA Air
OY-CKI Falcon 2000 Air Alsie
PH-BQO B777-200ER KLM
PH-CKA B747-400ERF KLM Cargo
P4-NAS A321-200 Air Astana
P4-TAK Gulfstream 4SP EuroAsia Air
SP-KCS Cessna 560XL Jet Service
TS-IMQ A319-100 Tunisair
UP-I7626 IL-76TD A400
UR-VVA B737-300 Aerosvit
UR-..... IL-18 National Paints
VP-BKJ B747-400 Transaero
VP-BNH CL850 ExecuJet Middle East
VP-BPV A320-200 Ural Airlines
VP-BSC Global Express ExecuJet Middle East
VP-BWE A320-200 Aeroflot
VP-CMG Gulfstream 4 SAP Systems/Jet Aviation
VP-CUP EMB-135BJ Fort Aero
VT-ALD B777-200LR Air India
VT-AXM B737-800 Air India Express
VT-ESA A320-200 Indian Airlines
VT-JEH B777-300ER Gulf Air/Jet Airways
VT-JGS B737-800 Jet Airways
VT-JWN A330-200 Jet Airways
VT-PPJ A321-200 Air India
YA-KMF MD-82 Kam Air
YA-SFL B737-300 Safi Airways
YI-AQO B737-300 Magnolia
ZS-GAV B737-200 Airquarius Air Charter
165152 C-20G US Navy
4R-EXD IL-18D Expo Aviation
5Y-AXF DC-9-32 African Express
9H-AFM A318CJ Comlux Aviation
9K-EAB A320-200 Wataniya Airlines

Of the local A6- stuff, the latest Emirates B777-300ER was A6-ECP, latest A380-800 was A6-EDD and the latest B777-200LR was A6-EWH. With Emirates SkyCargo, their first, just delivered B777-200LRF A6-EFD was noted, with old A310-300F A6-EFC still present in an all white scheme (the sale to Turkey fallen through). Belgian registered B747-400F OO-THC, leased from TNT was also noted. Along with the usual AVE B737's were Silver Air B737-300 A6-JUD (ex PH-BDE) and the first Global Jet B737-300 A6-KJM (ex N399UA). Local executive stuff included Dubai Government B747-400's A6-COM & A6-MMM, B737-800 A6-HRS and Gulfstream 4 A6-HHH. With other local biz: A6-AAH CL604, A6-CYS Learjet 60, A6-ELB Hawker 1000, A6-FBQ Global Express, A6-NGN Learjet 60, A6-NKL EMB-135BJ, A6-SAB Cessna 525, A6-SAC Falcon 900B and A6-SAM Global Express. Finally, one chopper read off was A6-ALD Bell 212 of Aero Gulf.

As it got dark we called it a day and headed to Terminal 3 for Emirates flight EK821 to Dammam on an A330-200, and back home. That's it, phew!

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