Plane spotting in Brussels: spots, cargo and military at Melsbroek

A Brussels Airlines A330 coming in from Africa touches down on 25L, behind it a gray Belgian Air Force Airbus A400M waits for its takeoff clearance, and on the cargo apron a Boeing 777F is being unloaded. Plane spotting in Brussels thrives on exactly this mix: scheduled traffic, cargo and military on the same runways, plus government aircraft whenever a summit is on at the nearby NATO headquarters or the EU. This guide shows you how the airport ticks, where you can stand legally and well, and how to catch the Melsbroek military side and the Brucargo freighters.

Brussels in brief: one airport, two names, two worlds

Brussels Airport (IATA BRU, ICAO EBBR) lies about twelve kilometers northeast of the city center, on the territory of the Flemish municipalities of Zaventem, Steenokkerzeel and Machelen. In everyday speech it is often simply called “Zaventem.” The terminal there opened on July 5, 1958, in time for the Expo 58 world’s fair.

The other side of the grounds is older: Melsbroek. The airfield was built by the Wehrmacht in the Second World War; after liberation the Royal Air Force and Royal Canadian Air Force used it under the designation B58. On January 1, 1945, it was hit hard by the German large-scale attack “Operation Bodenplatte.” After the war, Melsbroek first became Belgium’s national airport before civil operations moved to Zaventem. The air force stayed – and still shares the runways with civil traffic today.

Three runways and the preferred runway direction

Brussels has two parallel main runways, 07L/25R at 3,638 meters and 07R/25L at 3,210 meters, plus the crosswind runway 01/19 at 2,987 meters. There is a preferred runway system for their use. As long as wind and weather allow, takeoffs are mostly on 25R and landings on 25L and 25R. On weekends, takeoffs on 19 are added at certain times.

Configuration	When	Best spot
Landing 25L/25R, takeoff 25R	Normal case in west and southwest wind	Platform 25L in Steenokkerzeel
Additional takeoffs on 19	At times on weekends	Platform 25L, plus Vliegbos
Landing 07L, takeoff 07R	In wind from the northeast	Platform 25L for takeoffs, otherwise west side
Landing 01	In strong north wind	Platform in the Vliegbos

For planning, a wind forecast the evening before and a look at the flight tracker in the morning are enough: if approaches come in from the east over Kortenberg, landings are on the 25 runways. How to read this reliably is explained in Understanding runway direction in use at airports and Flight tracking with ADS-B for spotters. What the runway numbers mean is covered in Runway designations at airports.

The spots: Steenokkerzeel is spotter territory

Most good spots lie in the municipality of Steenokkerzeel, which borders the grounds to the north and east. Brussels Airport has set up two official spotting platforms here – so spotters are expressly welcome as long as they follow the rules.

Platform 25L on Tervuursesteenweg

The main platform lies between runway 07R/25L and the closed centers on Tervuursesteenweg, which is why many spotters simply call it “Jail.” Landings on 25L touch down right in front of you, with the control tower in the background. There is a wooden platform where ladders and steps are allowed, and a grass mound next to it where ladders are forbidden. A telephoto zoom up to about 300 millimeters covers almost everything; large long-haul jets sometimes fill the frame at around 70 millimeters.

Platform in the Vliegbos

The second official platform lies in a small forest south of the N227 near threshold 01. Here you see landings on 01 and takeoffs on 25L, 07R and 19. It is the logical fallback when little is happening at 25L or the wind turns north.

Approach spots for afternoon and evening

For the second half of the day, there are spots in the center of Steenokkerzeel on the approaches to 25R and 19, for example at the emergency access at the roundabout or at the parking lot on Van Frachenlaan. Head-on approach shots of 25L work near the approach lighting, reachable from the designated spotter parking lot on Kortenbergsesteenweg. All vantage points with access, light and runway relation are described in the spot guide Spotter zones in Steenokkerzeel.

Melsbroek: the military side of the airport

Melsbroek air base (ICAO EBMB) lies on the north side of the grounds and has no runway of its own. The Belgian Air Force’s 15th Air Transport Wing is based here, divided into two flying squadrons:

• 20th Squadron: It flies the Airbus A400M. Belgium has seven aircraft in service, plus Luxembourg’s A400M, which is stationed in Belgium and operated jointly. The first aircraft arrived from autumn 2020.
• 21st Squadron: It is responsible for government and VIP flights and uses two leased Dassault Falcon 7X.

If you know older photos from Brussels, one type is especially missed: the Lockheed C-130 Hercules was the workhorse of Melsbroek for almost fifty years. The last Belgian C-130H was retired on December 17, 2021. The former VIP fleet with Airbus A310, A321, Embraer regional jets as well as Falcon 20 and Falcon 900 is also history. You won’t see Belgium’s share of the multinational A330 MRTT tanker fleet here, by the way: those aircraft are stationed in Eindhoven in the Netherlands.

How to get the military aircraft in front of your lens

The A400Ms and Falcons use the same taxiways and runways as the airliners. The easiest way to catch them is therefore on approach or takeoff from the official platforms. There are no fixed flight times. Traffic pattern training, missions and government flights follow military needs, so it pays to check the flight tracker regularly – many military aircraft transmit ADS-B, but not all. More on this in Tracking military aircraft online. How to tell the A400M apart from other transports is shown in Identifying military transports.

Summit days: when the state aircraft arrive

Brussels is home to the most important EU institutions, and the NATO headquarters is only a few kilometers from the airport. During NATO summits, EU councils or large conferences, government and military aircraft from many countries land in a single day – from business jets to widebodies. For spotters these are the highlights of the year.

On such days, expect full platforms, more police and short-notice closures. Plan early, stick strictly to public areas and shoot so that the registrations are legible, because for state aircraft they are often the only reliable identifier. How to prepare for such days is covered in Spotting government aircraft.

Brucargo: widebody freighters in daily business

The cargo zone Brucargo has been in operation since 1980 and covers over 100 hectares. In 2025, Brussels Airport handled around 795,000 tonnes of air cargo, an increase of a good eight percent over the previous year. According to current schedule overviews, Ethiopian Cargo, Qatar Airways Cargo, the cargo division of Singapore Airlines, Turkish Cargo, LATAM Cargo and Royal Air Maroc Cargo, among others, fly to Brussels. Added to that is cargo in the belly of passenger jets of Ethiopian Airlines, Qatar Airways and other long-haul airlines.

Typical types are the Boeing 777F, jumbos like the 747-400F and 747-8F as well as the Boeing 767-300F. Which aircraft comes on your day changes with the schedule. Many freighters also land outside the classic spotting hours, so a look at the tracker is worthwhile here too. How to reliably recognize freighter versions is explained in Identifying cargo aircraft.

What else flies

Brussels Airlines sets the basic tone. The Belgian network airline belongs to the Lufthansa Group and to Star Alliance and flies the A320 family in Europe and Airbus A330 jets such as the A330-300 on long-haul. Its many Africa connections are a Brussels specialty. Leisure traffic is shaped by TUI fly Belgium, mainly with Boeing 737 MAX 8.

On long-haul, according to schedule overviews, Emirates, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Air Canada come in, among others – partly seasonal, so check the schedule before your visit. If you collect Brussels’ aviation history, you know the names of the historic airlines Sabena (1923–2001) and Virgin Express (1996–2006), which were based here.

Light and day planning

The main runways run roughly east to west, and the 25L platform lies south of the runway. A clear daily routine follows:

Time of day	Recommended spot	What you get
Early morning to late midday	Platform 25L	Landings on 25L in front light, strongest traffic wave
Midday and early afternoon	Vliegbos or a break	Less traffic, takeoffs from 25L, 07R and 19
Late afternoon to sunset	Approach spots 25R in the village center	Landings on 25R in side light, often long-haul and cargo

For takeoffs over the long asphalt surfaces, heat haze becomes a problem on warm days. Distant subjects therefore belong in the cool morning hours. How to determine the sun position precisely for your date is explained in Planning sun position at the photo spot, and countermeasures against the shimmer are in Avoiding heat haze.

Getting there and gear

The station Brussels Airport-Zaventem lies right under the terminal, with direct trains from Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, Leuven and other cities. From there a De Lijn bus takes you to the “Nossegem Spottersplatform” stop – check the line and frequency beforehand in De Lijn’s journey planner. By car you reach the platform via Tervuursesteenweg (N227) and a dedicated parking lot; by bike you are most flexible in switching between the spots in Steenokkerzeel.

At the spots there are neither restrooms nor a kiosk, so bring drinks and food. For gear, a telephoto zoom up to about 300 millimeters is enough for the platform; for registration details and approaches farther out, longer is fine. More on this in The right lens for plane spotting and in the gear checklist.

Brussels compared

Brussels is not a mega-hub like Amsterdam or Paris, but it scores with official platforms close to the main landing runway and a traffic mix of scheduled, cargo, military and state visitors. The spotting guide to Schiphol is a natural combination; for pure cargo fans, the comparison with the spotting guide to Leipzig/Halle is worthwhile. More destinations are collected in The best plane spotting spots in Europe.

Conclusion

Brussels is an underrated spotter airport. The official platform at 25L brings you legally and close to the most-used landing runway, Brucargo supplies widebody freighters, and on the north side the Belgian Air Force flies its A400Ms and Falcon 7X over the same runways. If you check the wind, spend the morning at 25L and switch to 25R in the afternoon, you come home with a varied memory card – and on summit days with subjects you only get here.