Hatton Cross at London Heathrow Airport

Updated: October 2026 – Almost everyone who wants to photograph landings at Heathrow gets off at Hatton Cross station. Most then head straight on to Myrtle Avenue. Yet it is worth stopping right here: around the traffic junction at the airport’s southeast corner there are vantage points of their own under the final approach to runway 27L, with different light, different angles and a restroom within reach.

This page shows you where to stand best at Hatton Cross, when which vantage point works and how the place differs from the famous field next door.

Hatton Cross: junction at Heathrow’s southeast corner

Hatton is a small settlement on the southeastern edge of London Heathrow Airport. The A30, called Great South-West Road here, runs right through it and also forms the border between the London boroughs of Hillingdon and Hounslow. North of the road, the airport has taken over most of the land: depots, warehouses, hotels and parking lots line up one after another. The Hatton Cross roundabout complex is a ring of five mini roundabouts, with the Tube station next to it.

Hatton Cross station opened in 1975, when the Piccadilly Line was extended from Hounslow West toward the airport. For two years it was the terminus, until the line continued to the terminals in 1977. Today it mainly serves the maintenance and operations areas in the airport’s southeast – and, of course, spotters. A small detail for aviation fans: the tiles on the platforms carry a pattern derived from the Speedbird logo of British Airways.

What matters for you is the geometry: the south runway 09R/27L is 3,660 meters long, and its eastern end with the landing threshold of 27L lies just west of the station. Aircraft landing on 27L fly over Hatton in the last stretch of the approach. The north runway 09L/27R, at 3,902 meters, lies much farther north and can only be seen in the distance from here.

Hatton Cross or Myrtle Avenue? Telling them apart

In forums and spotter guides, the two names often get mixed up. Some people talk about the “Hatton Cross approach” and actually mean Myrtle Avenue. Yet the places differ clearly.

	Hatton Cross (at the station)	Myrtle Avenue
Position relative to the approach line	north	south, closer to the threshold
Best light	Summer, early morning and evening	during the day, especially in the afternoon; all day in winter
Walk from the station	right at the station	about 7 minutes
Facilities	Restroom, snacks in the station	none at the spot
Surroundings	Sidewalk on a busy road	quiet field in a residential area
Shots	Side views, slightly from below	Belly views and low flybys

Myrtle Avenue is the classic, no question. The field is closer to the threshold, the aircraft come in even lower, and the place is quieter. Hatton Cross plays to its strengths elsewhere: on a summer evening, when the sun moves into the northwest, the station gives you side light that the field next door does not offer at that moment. And if you only have an hour between two appointments, you are back on the Tube faster.

The most sensible approach is to think of both places as one area. From the station you walk about seven minutes west along the A30 until you reach Myrtle Avenue. Depending on the light and the crowds, you stay wherever it suits you at the moment.

The vantage points around the station

Right at the station

The vantage point that spotter guides list under “Hatton Cross” is right at the station. An elevated bridge used to be the best place because no lampposts got in the way; according to a spotter guide, it was taken down in December 2023. Today you stand at one of the sidewalks around the junction and look for a gap between the poles. Aircraft on final approach to 27L pass just south of you. According to the guide, a 777-300 already fits the frame at about 70 mm, while an A319 needs about 155 mm.

The sticking point is the light. Because you stand north of the approach line, you only photograph the aircraft with the sun behind you when it is also in the north. In London that is the case in summer early in the morning (sun in the northeast) and in the evening (sun in the northwest). The guides therefore name May to August as the sensible season – in winter the sun is in the south all day and thus behind the aircraft.

The field at Myrtle Avenue

About seven minutes west of the station lies the field at Myrtle Avenue, south of the approach line. According to a spotter guide, it has good light all day in winter and from about 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in summer, which makes it an ideal complement to the station spot. You do not need a ladder there; according to the guide, it is not tolerated either. What is allowed is explained in the article Ladders, steps and tripods at the airport fence.

Green strip on Southern Perimeter Road

North of the A30, Southern Perimeter Road runs along the airport fence toward Terminal 4. A green strip on this road is another vantage point for landings on 27L, according to a spotter guide with good light all day in winter and from about 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in summer. An A380 fills the frame here at about 100 mm. Keep your distance from the fence and from the A30. For a break, according to spotter guides, there is a hotel restaurant nearby; it is about 15 minutes on foot from Hatton Cross or Terminal 4.

On to the north runway

Hatton Cross is also a bus hub. The station includes a bus station with nine bus routes. When the north runway is landing, buses take you to the east side of the airport, where on Eastern Perimeter Road near British Airways’ big maintenance hangars you see approaches to 27R. On foot, according to spotter guides, it is about two kilometers to Waye Avenue Park, which also lies under the approach to the north runway.

Runway alternation: when landings happen at Hatton Cross

As at Myrtle Avenue, everything here depends on whether 27L is currently the landing runway. In westerly operations, Heathrow runs its two parallel runways in alternation so that residents under the approach paths get predictable periods of quiet. According to the airport, it works like this:

• From 6 a.m., one runway is used for landings, the other for takeoffs.
• At 3 p.m., the runways swap roles.
• The following week, the pattern reverses. If 27L lands in the morning this week, next week it is only its turn from 3 p.m.
• Between 6 and 7 a.m., the busiest arrival hour, both runways can take landings.
• If approach traffic backs up heavily after 7 a.m., a few aircraft per hour may also land on the takeoff runway. Maintenance, weather and air traffic control decisions can also break the schedule.

In an east wind there is no swap at 3 p.m.: aircraft then land from the west on 09L, and takeoffs are from 09R. At Hatton Cross you see no landings in this case, at most departing aircraft in the climb. The airport publishes a schedule for each year from which you can read off, for every week, which runway lands when. The basics of wind direction are explained in the guide Understanding runway direction at airports.

Situation	What you see at Hatton Cross	Recommendation
Westerly operations, 27L landing, sun in the north	Landings with side light right at the station	Sidewalks at the station
Westerly operations, 27L landing, sun in the south	Landings in backlight	On to Myrtle Avenue
Westerly operations, 27R landing	Landings only in the distance	By bus to the east or north side
Easterly operations	No landings, only takeoffs in the climb	Pick another spot

Light and photography

Hatton Cross is a spot for people who plan around the light. The station spot lies on the “wrong” side of the approach line if you think in central European terms: during the day, the light comes from the south and thus from behind the aircraft. If you ignore that, you go home with dark fuselages against a bright sky. How to still get something usable in such situations is explained in the article Backlight in aircraft photography.

In summer, the picture reverses at the edges of the day. In the evening the sun moves into the northwest, and the aircraft approaching from the east are lit on their north side – exactly the side you see from the station. Those are the hours when Hatton Cross beats Myrtle Avenue. In the early morning the same works with the sun in the northeast, though then more from the front at an angle.

On gear: a telephoto zoom up to 300 mm covers everything. Widebody aircraft fit the frame at the station at just 70 to 90 mm according to a spotter guide, while for narrowbody jets like the A320neo you reach for the longer end. Expect lampposts, signs and traffic in the foreground – find a position where the aircraft appear in a clear gap, and wait there. You will find the right exposure for fast approaches in the article Camera settings for plane spotting.

What you will see at Heathrow

Heathrow is one of the world’s big long-haul hubs, with almost 84 million passengers in 2024. At Hatton Cross, widebody aircraft are therefore an everyday sight.

• British Airways: The home airline of the International Airlines Group accounts for a large share of the traffic – from Airbus narrowbody jets like the A321neo to the A350-1000, Boeing 787-10 and A380. British Airways is a member of the oneworld alliance.
• Virgin Atlantic: The second British long-haul airline at Heathrow flies modern twinjets like the A350-1000 and the Boeing 787-9. More on the page for Virgin Atlantic.
• Gulf airlines: Emirates and Qatar Airways bring the A380, among other types, to London. How to reliably tell it from the 747 is explained in the article Telling the A380 and Boeing 747 apart.
• North America: American Airlines, United Airlines and other airlines cross the Atlantic with Boeing 777-300ER and 787.
• Europe: Lufthansa and many other European airlines provide variety among the narrowbody jets.

Which airline lands at what time depends on the schedule. Many long-haul flights from Asia and North America reach Heathrow in the early morning – in summer exactly the time window in which the station spot can have good light. Background is provided by the article When long-haul flights land in Europe.

Getting there by Tube and bus

It hardly gets easier: the Piccadilly Line stops right at Hatton Cross. The station is on the Heathrow branch between Hounslow West and the terminal stations, in fare zones 5 and 6. From central London you ride straight through without changing. The station includes a bus station with nine routes that connects the airport and the surrounding towns. Check journey times and fares in advance at Transport for London.

By car, the area is sluggish. Spotter guides mention only a few parking options on residential streets around Myrtle Avenue and Cains Lane. If you park on residential streets, do not block driveways – complaints from residents are documented in the area.

Supplies: According to spotter guides, there is a restroom and a snack shop in the station and a BP gas station south of the junction. That makes Hatton Cross the natural base camp for the whole southeast corner.

How to make the most of Hatton Cross

What else belongs in your camera bag is covered in the gear checklist for plane spotting. An overview of all corners of the airport is given by the article Plane spotting at Heathrow.

Rules and safety on site

The vantage points at Hatton Cross are public sidewalks and green strips. Even so, you are standing at the edge of one of Europe’s most sensitive airports.

As at any busy traffic junction: put away expensive gear when you are not using it. Tips on this are given in the article Protecting your camera gear.

Hatton is also a place where people live with the noise. On January 17, 2008, a British Airways Boeing 777 (flight BA38) touched down in the grass just short of the south runway after a loss of thrust, having barely cleared Myrtle Avenue and the A30. Everyone on board survived. The accident shows how close the approaches come to the houses – and why consideration for residents goes without saying.

More spots in Great Britain and Europe

If you travel on from London across the country, the Runway Visitor Park at Manchester Airport offers a completely different experience with a café and exhibition aircraft. You can experience similarly low approaches in Europe at the Polderbaan at Schiphol, at the Flyvergrillen in Copenhagen or at the Zeppelinheim viewing platform in Frankfurt. An overview is provided by the article The best spotting spots in Europe.

Verdict

Hatton Cross is the gateway to Heathrow’s southeast corner – and more than just the station on the way to Myrtle Avenue. The sidewalks at the station deliver side light on approaches to 27L on summer mornings and evenings, Myrtle Avenue and Southern Perimeter Road cover the rest of the day, and the bus station gets you quickly to the east side when the north runway is landing.

If you know the alternation schedule, keep an eye on the sun and think of Hatton Cross and Myrtle Avenue as one connected territory, you get the most out of every Heathrow day.