Plane Spotting at Sint Maarten’s Maho Beach

by Ken Kula · Published February 5, 2024

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Story and photos by Ken Kula

COPA B-737-800 series arriving at SXM… on departure, the jet sent much sand and many hats from spectators into the ocean

The largest airport on the shared island of Sint Maarten/Saint Martin (The Netherlands and France occupy different parts of the island) is Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM – ICAO is TNCM). The airport is served by a sole 7500 (or so) foot long runway and has been served by aircraft as large as a Boeing B-747.

World-renowned Maho Beach is located at the western end of the airfield, only a few hundred meters from the runway 10’s threshold. Fantastically close to the arriving aircraft if that runway is in use, a perimeter roadway with concrete barriers and the famous CAUTION! signs abut the airport’s chain link fence. Crowds form to experience the thrilling arrivals which pass overhead the beach, and to withstand jet blast from departing jets (Disclaimer – Please do not try this, people have been killed and injured – the Caution signs are for real!). I decided to stay away from the sand and keep my camera and lens sand-free.

Nearby is the Sunset Beach Bar, a famous plane spotting perch. My wife (she’s a saint for letting me spend some vacation time here) and I spent a few hours here while in port during our recent Caribbean cruise. Over a three-hour span, more than two dozen aircraft arrived, and a similar number departed too. We had appetizers and lunch, plus a few “refreshments” during our visit; one needs to be ordering food and drink while sitting in the shade of the large patio. The pace was leisurely enough though, and the food was tasty. Plus, the photography while sitting at a deck table was fantastic!

Most of the larger inbound aircraft arrive during the afternoon, and our sailing time cut into this, so I didn’t see any “heavies” that day. Nonetheless, a wide array of interesting aircraft came into view. Here are many of my favorites, but in the Gallery at the end of this page, photos of almost all of the arrivals are presented. Hover over the photo for an ID or click for an enlargement.

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