Okęcie dusk

Boy was it cold out this evening! I drove down to Okęcie, over the cart tracks and unmade roads to the railway sidings, just under the final approach as the planes go 'over the fence', seconds before touching down. Arriving at ul. Karnawal just before sunset, I caught this Alitalia Express Embraer ERJ-170-100LR (EI-DFL) inbound to land. Incidentally, I note that ailing state carrier Alitalia is registering (or leasing) its aircraft in Ireland.

Above: I crossed the tracks in time to catch this early evening train from W-wa Wschodnia to Radom on its way between W-wa Okęcie and W-wa Dawidy. This livery - grey/silver/maroon - looks rather fetching on the EN-57, lending the air of French SNCF in the 1960s. The rear four-car set was the more frequently seen light blue and yellow.

It was getting dark - time to set up the tripod. To my left, the continual sound of bird distress calls, broadcast at twilight roosting time to scare flocks of birds away from the airport. Above: A Eurolot ATR-42 inbound to land, flies over the 12:03 Kraków-Olsztyn train passing on its way to Warsaw. It will arrive in Olsztyn at 21:03. My hands are getting cold.

It's now gone quarter past five and -4C. Above: This 30 second exposure captures the light trace of a Boeing 737 landing overhead. The battery in my trusty and generally excellent Nikon D80 does not like cold. It's not got long to go. And my hands are now very cold. Time to go home.

Incidentally Google Earth users, the above two pics were taken exactly here: 52° 8'34.12"N, 20°59'20.99"E. Switch on Panoramio and you'll see an outstanding shot taken from the same point taken by Paweł Prokop, which inspired me to come here.