Plane Spotting Los Angeles International Airport At Clutter’s Park Runway 25L 25R And Economy Parking

In September 2023 I traveled to Los Angeles for a weekend of tourist activities and sightseeing.  For more than 10 years I have wanted to spend a weekend in LA touring Hollywood studios, going to the beach, and visiting tourist attractions.  Additionally, I wanted to combine the trip with the goal of plane spotting At LAX. On this trip, I accomplished both.

On three separate days, two daytime and one dusk, I went to two spots around Los Angeles International Airport LAX for some of the best plane spotting in the world. Once I landed at LAX, I got my rental car and headed toward the south side of the airport. Clutter’s Park, centered on runways 25R and 25L, sits at the top of a hill on a residential street. It is a tiny “park” that has a widened sidewalk and an ornate fence. As an aviation photographer, this was my Mecca.

Seeing All The Aircraft While Plane Spotting At LAX

I was able to watch hundreds of commercial planes take off, land, and taxi for hours. See these feats of engineering lift off in front of the mountains surrounding LA was amazing. I saw many 737s, 777s, 787s, and A380s. The most amazing was to see the Qantas A380 being taken to a hangar and being behind an Asiana A380 as it took off from runway 24L by In-N-Out Burger.

At another time, I paid to park at the Economy Parking lot at the east end of runways 24L and 24R. I went to the top floor and drove to the northeast side. Once parked, I was able to set up my camera. I watched as plane after plane was on final approach to LAX over my head. The best moment at the LAX plane spotting location was, by far, a Lufthansa 747, queen of the skies, landing directly over my head. From the parking lot to touch down is approximately 1 mile. I could not believe that I witnessed my favorite 747 landing!

Check out my other Los Angeles International Airport plane-spotting posts here!