12/24/2013 - CLT...Yes, CLT!

[moose135]

I had my first encounter with CMPD at CLT today!

They were up and down the 36s, making shooting from the Overview passable at best. Recently, a number of local spotters have found a spot on the road parallel to 18R/36L, near the touchdown zone of 36L. The road is lower than the airfield along there, but on the side away from the airfield fence are a series of hills. Park off the road, and climb up the hill, and you can shoot 36L arrivals. Adam S. had been there a couple of times, and when he let me know he was out there this afternoon, I joined him.



We had been up there about an hour and a half, and I saw at least one Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police cruiser go by below us, when another CMPD cruiser pulled up behind our cars and hit the lights. We came down the hill to talk with the officer. He knew we were up there shooting pictures, and said there was nothing posted about parking or shooting from the side away from the fence, but since they had gotten a call about us, he needed to ask us to leave. He asked if we had gotten any good shots, and was very apologetic about the whole thing - he said if they hadn't gotten a call, he would not have bothered us. He even suggested we might move further down the road, closer to the approach end, as we might get some good shots there before someone else called about us...

He even said he had asked his supervisors about photographing from that side of the road, and had never gotten a straight answer. In the end, we did need to move, but he was friendly, and as I said, sorry that he had to ask us to leave. For a less than optimal outcome, it was one of the better law enforcement encounters I've had while spotting...and now I can add another agency to the list of those I've encountered!

[megatop412]

Moose it is nice he was 'nice' about it...but in the end you were asked to stop doing something that was perfectly legal, all because some uninformed brainwashed citizen was seeing something and saying something. I would have asked him, if there's no sign saying photography is outlawed, and you are not breaking any laws, then how does he have the legal grounds to ask you to leave? He doesn't.

[adscram14]

I don't really remember him asking us to leave, but he hinted at it. He even told us to go to another unofficial spot to try to get some more shots before he was called again. Honestly, I think he was just doing his job and didn't want to hear any more calls. We were done anyway, so all in all I thought it was a pretty good encounter.

[moose135]

As Adam said, I don't know that he came right out and said we had to leave, but after talking with him, and his hinting at it, I did say "If you need us to leave, I guess we'll be going." It is all airport property, and I'm not familiar with the airport rules on things like parking on the side of the road, or shooting from somewhere other than the Overview. Earlier this year, after the Boston Marathon bombing, when the Overview closed, a number of us parked in a dirt area off the road near the approach end to 18C when a CMPD cruiser came by and the officer announced it was a "no parking zone" and we needed to leave. There were no signs stating such, but it's possible that the airport doesn't allow parking outside of designated lots, like at the Overview - I don't know the airport rules off the top of my head.

It wasn't the time or place to get into a pissing contest with the officer, who clearly wasn't happy about having to ask us to leave, and I didn't want to cause a confrontation that could lead to more stringent enforcement in the future. It is something that I will discuss with other CLT spotters, and see if it is worth following up with airport/police officials for clarification.

[DHG750R]

I really like that shot of the A321 Moose, love that lighting..

As Adam said, I don't know that he came right out and said we had to leave, but after talking with him, and his hinting at it, I did say "If you need us to leave, I guess we'll be going." It is all airport property, and I'm not familiar with the airport rules on things like parking on the side of the road, or shooting from somewhere other than the Overview. Earlier this year, after the Boston Marathon bombing, when the Overview closed, a number of us parked in a dirt area off the road near the approach end to 18C when a CMPD cruiser came by and the officer announced it was a "no parking zone" and we needed to leave. There were no signs stating such, but it's possible that the airport doesn't allow parking outside of designated lots, like at the Overview - I don't know the airport rules off the top of my head.

It wasn't the time or place to get into a pissing contest with the officer, who clearly wasn't happy about having to ask us to leave, and I didn't want to cause a confrontation that could lead to more stringent enforcement in the future. It is something that I will discuss with other CLT spotters, and see if it is worth following up with airport/police officials for clarification.

[Zee71]

Moose …. nice encounter and sweet vantage point.