The observation deck used to be a feature of many airports around the world. You could go to the airport, have something to eat, then head up to the outdoor area to look over the planes.

Unfortunately lots of these have been closed over the years. The culprits have often just been development at the airport, while for others it was security risks that led to the closed sign going up.

Observation Deck Memories

When I was a kid, we would occasionally go out to the airport and visit the observation deck. Our family lived fairly close to the airport, which made it an easy trip. Of course, I was mad into planes, so I imagine I pestered my parents to go.


Naturally when a British Airways Concorde was scheduled to visit in 1985, we just had to go. With extensive media coverage of the flight, most of Sydney seemed to be there that day.


Wall to wall people everywhere and being a kid, I couldn’t see a thing. Dad put me up on his shoulders though, so I got to see the supersonic aircraft for about five seconds while it was on final approach. Worth it!

Overall Thoughts

A lot of people today have probably never been to the airport just to go look at the planes, which is a shame. It was always fun going to wander around and see which airlines were in that day and which aircraft were there. We were and are still spoiled a little bit in Australia though.

At the domestic terminals in places like Sydney, anyone can go through security to the departure lounge. You don’t need a ticket, which is great for looking at the planes at the gates. It’s also fun to walk off the plane and have your family right there to meet you. A rare thing in this world!

Have you ever visited an observation deck before? Any memories to share? Are there any airports you know that still have them? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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Featured image by Raimond Spekking via Wikimedia Commons.
Concorde in colour via Pinterest.
Sydney observation deck via Sydney Morning Herald.