Kiel/Holtenau

1Terminal area

The central buildings here, bordering the parking lot, hold the small terminal and a restaurant. West of those, so looking right when entering the airfield, is the QinetiQ hangar. Photos of aircraft there can be made through the fence, or over it using steps. Bato's Restaurant has a very nice terrace directly along the apron, albeit with a 2m high fence. There is also a dining room on the upper floor. As a customer, spotting and photography from here are absolutely OK. When not a customer, of if you intend to use steps to take photos over the fence, do ask the staff's permission. West of the terminal is the QinetiQ hangar

2Final approach runway 26

The former taxiway that connected the MFG5 heliport with the rest of the field is now partly accessible for cyclists and pedestrians. This allows you to get south of landings on 26 (or departures from 08) at a nice short distance. To get here, it seems best to drive onto the Strandstraße south of the spot, and park near the apartment blocks where the road turns into a cycling track. From there, it is less than 1km to the spot. The other option would be to try and park at the marina just north of the centreline, but this may not be allowed. Public parking further back, towards spot 1, would put you at greater distance from spot 2 than with the southern option.

It is a bit of a hassle to get here from spot 1 by car, but the following should work. Leave the airport to the left onto the Boelckestraße. Take second left, at the traffic lights, and enter the B503 towards Kiel. Take the first exit again and where it ends, at traffic lights again, turn left onto the Richthofenstraße (they know their aces). Keep following this until it reaches the water with a 180-degree right turn. Do not follow that turn but turn left here, onto the leftmost of two streets. This is the Strandstraße, follow it as far as allowed to park.

3Final approach runway 08

On the west side, a cycling track and footpath runs right along the (high) fence, bringing you close to that runway side and the taxiway. Walking or cycling here from the airport parking lot is doable, the distance is some 1200m. For the more automotive option, start by following the directions above to spot 2. In this case, after entering the Richthofenstraße, take first left again onto the Immelmannstraße (there's another one). Park along the allotments before the street becomes a cycling track, there should be ample room for it.