Milan Malpensa Airport

Milan has three major airports, but only one plays in the league of international long-haul: Malpensa. About 50 kilometers northwest of the city, easyJet jets land every few minutes, Emirates widebodies on their way to New York, freighters from Luxembourg, Leipzig and Doha – and in between leisure airlines, US carriers and Gulf carriers. You will look in vain for an observation deck. But if you know how the two runways are operated and where the sun is, you can get shots at the fence that many airports with a terrace can’t match.

From pioneers’ airfield to major airport

The history of Malpensa begins long before scheduled service. On the wide heath around the Cascina Malpensa, a farmstead between Ferno, Lonate Pozzolo and Somma Lombardo, Giovanni Agusta and Gianni Caproni set up an airfield around 1909/1910 to test their first machines. Both names are still present in Italian aviation today – Agusta in helicopter building, Caproni in the historic factory halls that now house the Volandia museum.

In World War II the German Luftwaffe took over the airfield in September 1943, and during the retreat the main runway was badly damaged. Industrialists and politicians from the region rebuilt the airfield after the war, extended the runway and opened it to civilian traffic on November 21, 1948. In 1955 the company SEA took over, which has since run Malpensa and the city-close Linate together.

The big leap came with the Malpensa 2000 project: in 1998 the new Terminal 1 entered service, and the then Alitalia made Malpensa its hub in northern Italy. The model lasted only a decade. In 2007 and 2008 Alitalia largely withdrew, and the airport lost millions of connecting passengers at a stroke. Instead of one home-country airline, SEA then bet on many partners – low-cost, foreign network airlines, long-haul from the Gulf and cargo. It is exactly this mix that makes Malpensa so varied for spotters today.

Two runways in a north-south direction

Unlike Munich or Frankfurt, Malpensa is oriented north and south. The two parallel runways are each 3,920 meters long and 60 meters wide and, according to available information, lie about 800 meters apart – much closer than the Munich runways. The eastern runway is designated 17L/35R, the western 17R/35L. The older Terminal 2 lies at the north end of the grounds.

How runway designations come about and why one runway gets two numbers depending on direction is explained in the article on runway designations at airports.

Runway direction: mostly 35

For your planning this is the most important information: during the day, Malpensa mostly takes off and lands to the north, that is, on runways 35. Aircraft then come in from the south, over the heath and the villages around Lonate Pozzolo, and touch down heading north. The airport uses the opposite direction 17 mainly when strong wind from the south doesn’t allow normal operations. According to spotter reports, in everyday operations one runway often serves mainly landings and the other takeoffs; the split changes regularly.

At night a pattern of its own applies for noise-abatement reasons: landings are generally on 35L, takeoffs on 17R – both on the western runway, only in opposite directions. If you are still spotting in the evening, you are therefore right on the west side.

Still, as everywhere: wind and air traffic control have the last word. A look at a flight tracker or the current weather before you leave saves you the trip to the wrong end. How to judge this is covered in the article Understanding runway direction at airports; how to read weather reports is shown in METAR and TAF for spotters.

No home-country airline, but a big mix

Since Alitalia’s withdrawal, Malpensa has had no classic hub carrier. The domestic network carrier ITA Airways has its hub in Rome – so others shape the picture.

Above all easyJet: the British low-cost airline runs one of its largest bases outside Britain at Malpensa and uses Terminal 2 all by itself. Its fleet consists of A320-family types, from the Airbus A319 through the A320 to the newer neo versions. You’ll find more about the airline in the profile of easyJet. In Terminal 1, Ryanair with its Boeing 737-800s and Wizz Air with jets such as the A321neo have also set up bases.

An Italian highlight is Neos. The leisure airline has its base at Malpensa and flies from here not only to the Mediterranean but also on long-haul, for example to the Caribbean and the Maldives – on those routes with widebody jets from the Boeing 787 family.

Long-haul: Gulf, Asia and North America

For long-haul fans, Malpensa is the first address in northern Italy. According to current schedules (as of October 2026), Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways come in from the Gulf, among others, plus Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways as well as Air China and China Eastern from Asia. A special feature is the Emirates connection that leads from Dubai via Malpensa onward to New York-JFK – one of the few routes on which a Gulf airline flies between Europe and the US.

From North America, Delta, American Airlines, United and Air Canada are represented. New York-JFK was among the busiest connections outside the EU in 2023. Typical types on these routes are the Boeing 777-300ER, the Boeing 787 and the Airbus A350-900 – which type comes on which day depends on the respective airline’s rotation, though.

European network airlines bring the feeders: Lufthansa from Frankfurt and Munich, Swiss from Zurich, Air France, British Airways, Iberia, TAP, Turkish Airlines, LOT, Aegean, SAS, Finnair and airBaltic. From Germany, Condor and Eurowings also fly to Malpensa.

Italy’s number-one cargo airport

In cargo, Malpensa is clearly ahead in Italy: in 2025 about 764,000 tonnes were handled, more than at any other airport in the country. Handling takes place at Cargo City, the airport’s dedicated cargo area. FedEx and DHL use Malpensa as a hub – DHL flies from here to Leipzig/Halle, among other places – and Malpensa is home to Cargolux Italia.

Cargo airlines such as Cargolux from Luxembourg, Lufthansa Cargo, Qatar Airways Cargo, Atlas Air and Silk Way West Airlines from Baku add to that. For spotters that means types such as the Boeing 777F or jumbo freighters turn up here regularly, which you hardly see at pure passenger airports. How to tell the freighter variants apart is shown in the article Recognizing cargo aircraft.

Spotting at Malpensa: fence instead of terrace

Malpensa has no official observation deck like Munich or Zurich. Instead, the spotter scene uses public roads, dirt tracks and lay-bys around the fence. The best-known areas, as described in spotter guides:

• South of the runways, under the approach to 35: In the commercial and wooded area near Lonate Pozzolo, paths lead close to the approach corridor. Depending on your vantage point you see landings on 35L or 35R, and the light is good on one side in the morning, on the other in the afternoon. Since runway direction 35 is the rule during the day, this is the area with the best chances.
• East side near Ferno: At the east runway’s fence you have the sun behind you in the morning and look at landings and takeoffs on 35R. You can reach the west runway from here only with a very long focal length.
• West side along the perimeter road: From the afternoon you stand in good light here for landings on 35L. Grown trees and double fences restrict the view at some places.
• Terminal 1, landside: Before security you can look through the glass front onto the apron and taxiways. The panes are tinted – enough for souvenir photos, but not really for clean shots.
• Around Terminal 2: At the north end of the grounds, with runway direction 17 you get to see approaches to 17L, otherwise mainly the easyJet fleet.

The situation at the spots changes with construction work, trees and fences. Check current field reports before your visit and expect that a vantage point that worked a few years ago may be overgrown today. In Planetrack’s spot map you’ll find directions, best light, ratings and community photos for the locations.

Equipment and weather

At the fence spots in the south, aircraft come relatively close on final approach – a medium telephoto of around 100 to 400 millimeters covers most situations. For the more distant runway or for taxiing movements on the other side you need more focal length. Which lenses suit what is covered in the article on the right focal length.

The Po plain is known for haze and, in winter, for fog. In high summer the air quickly shimmers over the asphalt, making long focal lengths look unsharp. You often get the clearest conditions in the morning or after a change in the weather, when a north wind cleans the air. A tip for days with poor visibility: Plane spotting in bad weather. A small ladder is helpful at some fence sections – but stay on public ground and keep your distance from the fence.

Getting there: Malpensa Express and car

You reach the terminal conveniently by the Malpensa Express from Trenord. The trains run from Milano Cadorna and from Milano Centrale via Porta Garibaldi and stop at both terminals; depending on the train type and number of stops, the ride takes about 30 to 50 minutes. Since 2016, Terminal 2 has also been connected to the rail network. In addition, trains of the Ticino network TILO link the airport with Varese and Switzerland – handy if you come from the direction of Lugano or Bellinzona.

For the spots at the fence you depend on a car or bike. The airport lies on the A8 (Milan–Varese) and A4 (Turin–Trieste) motorways and on the SS336 expressway. Free shuttle buses run between the terminals.

Volandia: the museum at the fence

Right next to the airport, in the historic halls of the Caproni works in Somma Lombardo, lies Volandia. The museum opened on May 8, 2010 and shows more than 100 aircraft and helicopters on a sprawling site – from early Caproni designs through military jets such as the F-104 Starfighter to the civilian Douglas DC-3 and the former Italian government DC-9. Add a space section, simulators and a large model collection.

For a spotting day the visit combines well, for example when the light at the fence spots turns harsh at midday. Opening hours and admission prices are on the museum’s website. If you are looking for similar collections in German-speaking countries, you’ll find them, for example, at the Technik Museum Speyer or the Flugwerft Schleißheim.

Malpensa in comparison

In Italy, Malpensa is number two in passengers after Rome-Fiumicino Airport and number one in cargo. Fiumicino is the hub of ITA Airways, while Malpensa is an international mix with no dominant home-country airline.

Malpensa is easy to reach from southern Germany and Switzerland. Zurich Airport and Geneva Airport offer far more comfortable conditions with their terraces, but have less cargo and hardly any US airlines. If you are planning a spotting trip through Europe, you’ll find more destinations in the overview The best spotting spots in Europe; a comparison of the alliances you meet here is provided by the article on Star Alliance, Oneworld and SkyTeam.

Conclusion

Malpensa is not an airport for comfortable afternoons on the terrace. In return it offers a traffic mix you won’t get anywhere else in northern Italy: easyJet every few minutes, long-haul from the Gulf, Asia and North America, leisure flights from Neos and a Cargo City full of freighters.

Preparation and mobility make the difference. If you know the runway direction, choose the runway side by sun position and can switch between the fence spots by car, you’ll get a lot out of a day at Malpensa – and with Volandia right next door you have a fallback program for the midday hours.