Liberty Station Lookout

It’s cute how LSL has a page on Unilocal.Didn’t see that one coming!
But this place does have some purpose. Rating it against other «lookouts» it is about a 2 star show. It doesn’t have the scenic views of places like Cabrillo or Sunset Cliffs. And even as far as local airport viewing, there are other parks around the country (D.C. comes to mind) where there are much better views of the air traffic.
It’s not worth going out of your way to come here, but it is a decent turnaround point if you’re out running the park.

My family and I came here to see how close the planes get. They get pretty close. Just go to Liberty Station (there’s a vons/​trader joe’s/the rock church over there) and go all the way to the back toward the water. There you’ll find some open fields and then benches so you can sit and watch the planes. Plus there’s a walking/​biking trail too.

My son is an aviation nut and he and a friend who is a pilot discovered that they can come down to this quiet part of Liberty Station and watch planes from San diego International Airport land and take-​off. It is an excellent locale to park and wander right up to the water’s edge of the Bay and really do some awesome plane-​spotting.
This morning I went early when it was very foggy to check out the action. I parked in the parking lot across from Ace Hardware, right off Historic Decatur. The strobe lights that guide pilots on instrument landings into San Diego’s airport when visibility is reduced sit right out in front of Liberty Station and go across the Bay. The planes descend very steeply at this point and you can almost look up above you as they fly over and feel like you can touch them. Other than being very noisy, it is very cool.
When British Airways first arrived in San Diego, this was a good place to watch it land and take-​off. Now it is all about the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane that has all the plane buffs in a state of excitement. My son and I watched it yesterday take off above us in Liberty Station and it is really quiet for such a big plane. Liberty Station’s Lookout Park is nice. There are no bums or vagrants wandering around… yet. Lots of young buff types from nearby Point Loma Workout jog by and there are always stroller brigades of young moms from Navy housing exercising along the well-​kept pathways. It is safe and clean here. And the airplane action is topnotch! 5 Unilocal STARS all the way!