Planespotting at Madrid Airport Barajas

Madrid’s Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport (IATA code: MAD, ICAO code: LEMD), the capital of Spain, is one of the largest airports in Europe and the most interesting for a planespotter. Aircraft from around the world, especially from Latin America, arrive at this airport. It connects with cities such as Bogotá in Colombia, Santiago in Chile, Mexico City, Uruguay, Brazil, as well as China, Vietnam, Singapore, Japan, and of course, the USA. From European cities, it has connections to Athens, Munich, Frankfurt, London, Lisbon, Rome, Milan, Amsterdam, and many others.

It features four runways and an equal number of terminal stations. In terms of variety of airlines and aircraft, it ranks among the best airports for a planespotter. Airlines such as Iberia , Air Europa, British Airways, Air France, Air China, Lufthansa, Aegean Airlines, KLM, Austrian, Delta Airlines, Avianca, Latam, United Airlines, American Airlines, etc., and aircraft such as Airbus A320, A350, A340, Boeing 737, 787, 747, Embraer, ATR, etc., are some of the aircraft that one can photograph.

The airport is friendly to planespotters, and there are no issues with authorities. Since June 2022, an official Observation Deck has been operational!