Joint Base Andrews (ADW / KADW) Plane Spotting Map & Live Active Runway Predictor

As of Tue 27 Oct, 20:00 local, the METAR/TAF wind vector predicts landing and departure 19R+19L. The METAR wind is calm. 19R is the long-runway pick because the wind is calm or variable. Closed runways: 01L, 01R.

At 08:00 local the sun is at 111° azimuth and 5° elevation. Short final 19L - sunny side scores 80/100, 1234 m from runway 19L, view bearing 209.2°, best as a morning spot with a 150-600mm lens. At 16:00 the sun is at 230° and 22°. Short final 19R - sunny side scores 77/100 on a 150.7° view. Morning and afternoon picks follow that bearing: a view that wants the sun in the east is a morning spot, and a view that wants it in the west is an afternoon spot.

The best time to plane spot at Joint Base Andrews (ADW/KADW) is the window marked CLEAN FRONT LIGHT for the fence you are using. Morning (07:00-11:00) front light: no listed spot stays fully front-lit. Afternoon / golden hour (14:00-18:00) front light: no listed spot stays fully front-lit. Midday (11:00-14:00) is HIGH SUN / TOP LIGHT at 0 of 2 spotting locations. Read the Best Time of Day & Lighting Schedule by Spot table for the lens and the hours to avoid harsh backlit contrast.

KADW spotting locations sun direction: Short final 19R - sunny side (runway 19R) is BACKLIT / GLARE in the morning, BACKLIT / GLARE at midday, and SIDE LIGHT in the afternoon. Recommended focal length 150-600mm. Best local hours for crisp fuselage illumination: 17:00. Avoid 09:00-14:00 harsh backlit contrast. Short final 19L - sunny side (runway 19L) is BACKLIT / GLARE in the morning, BACKLIT / GLARE at midday, and SIDE LIGHT in the afternoon. Recommended focal length 150-600mm. Best local hours for crisp fuselage illumination: 17:00. Avoid 08:00-14:00 harsh backlit contrast.

Short final 19R - sunny side is 1234 m from the 19R centerline, so the lens is 150-600mm. The bands are fixed from that distance: 70-200mm inside 250 m, 100-400mm from 250 m to 450 m, and 150-600mm beyond 450 m. The aircraft itself is about 573 m from this pin on a 700 m final.

Monitor Tower 118.4 MHz, Ground 121.8 MHz, Approach 119.3 MHz, ATIS 113.1 MHz. Online streams lag by 30 seconds or more. A handheld VHF airband scanner at the fence is the zero-delay way to hear a runway change on Tower 118.4 MHz.

No TAF wind shift in the next 6 hours flips the flow. Wind stays near calm, so 19R remains the favored arrival. The $3/mo Telegram Runway-Shift Alert pings you when D-ATIS or the METAR wind vector changes the active runway: https://planespottingmap.com/airport/KADW#runway-alerts