SpotLAX+Dorkfest 2023 airline and aircraft updates

Nick Benson - JetTip.net

An Air Tahiti Nui Dreamliner captures the attention of aviation enthusiasts at Dorkfest, 2022. 2023's checklist will be available at festivities next weekend.

First things first, if you have the ability to get out to Los Angeles this weekend, I highly recommend going. Cranky Dorkfest is the marquee event on Saturday at lunchtime, and NYC Aviation's SpotLAX will be hosting other events that weekend. You'll be able to meet Brett from Cranky Flier, Ian and Jason from FlightRadar24's AvTalk, Monique, Laura, and Tyler from Non-Rev Lounge, Doug and Drew from Next Trip, Seth Miller from Dots, Lines and Destinations, Kevin and Rudy from Airline Videos, Eric from JetSet Shirts, along with hundreds of other aviation geeks. I'll be there too, of course - look for the big dude in the JetTip hat, I'll be handing out avgeek checklists again this year.

For photographers and videographers, sunrise is ~6:32 am, sunset is ~7:08 pm this weekend.

Now, onto the important stuff - for those of us who need to see and/or document everything we can, what's new, different, or gone this year?

New airlines for 2023

Several airlines have made their debut at LAX since SpotLAX and Dorkfest last September.

• Air Premia - 787-9
  Daily, arrives 8:20 am, departs 10:50 am
• Breeze - A220-300
  Daily, multiple flights, midday
  
• Cayman - 737 MAX 8
  Arrives 8:00 pm Saturday, departs 8:00 am Sunday
  
• Flair - 737 MAX 8
  Daily, multiple flights, mornings
  
• Lynx - 737 MAX 8
  M/W/Th/F/Su, multiple flights, midday
• Silk Way West - 747-400F/-8F
  Arrives Saturday evening, departs Sunday morning
  
• Starlux A350-900
  Daily, arrives 8:30 pm, departs 12:50 am

New airline + type combinations for 2023

These are new aircraft types being operated by airlines that were serving LAX during last year's events.

• Air France - A350-900
  M/Tu/Th/F/Sa/Su, arrives 11:10 am, departs 1:10 pm
• Iberia - A350-900
  M/W/F/Sa/Su, arrives 4:00 pm, departs 6:00 pm
  
• Condor - A330-900
  M/W/Th/Fr/Su, arrives 3:15 pm, departs 5:00 pm
• Latam - 777-300ER
  W/F/Su arrives 7:35 am, departs 1:15pm
  

Returning to LAX in 2023

These airline + type combinations have been in regular service at LAX previously, but weren't present during last year's Cranky Dorkfest or SpotLAX.

• Avianca Cargo - 330-200F
  Tu/F, arrives early evening, departs late evening
  
• Cathay Pacific - 777-300ER
  2x daily, arriving 10:35 pm and 3:10 pm, departing 1:15 pm, 12:15 am
  
• China Southern - 777-300ER
  M/W/F/Sa, arriving 7:40 pm, departing 11:50 pm
  
• Hillwood - 737-700
  Operating to and from OGG, marketed by "ROAM Maui," days of service are sporadic, but consistently arrives around 7 pm and departs around 11 am.
  
• Korean - A380
  Daily, arrives 9:40 am, departs 12:30 pm
• Lufthansa - A350-900
  Daily, arrives 3:20 pm, departs 5:10 pm
• LATAM Cargo - 767-300F
  F/Su, typically arrives and departs overnight
  
• WAMOS - A330-200
  EC-NUI, daily, for Avianca 83/84 (BOG), arriving 6:45 pm, departing 8:30 pm
  EC-NCK, sporadically, for Avianca 522/523 (SAL), arriving noon, departing 1:50 pm
  

Passenger quadjets at LAX

Remarkably, all three families of modern pax four-holers (A340, A380, and 747) are still operating at LAX in 2023. The Lufthansa A340-600 and China Southern A380 are gone, sadly, but there's still an impressive mix of passenger quads at LAX. Scheduled times below are for September 8-10, 2023.

A380

• Asiana
  Daily, arrives 9:30 am, departs 12:50 pm
  
• Emirates
  Daily, arrives 9:00 am, departs 4:40 pm
  
• Korean
  Daily, arrives 9:40 am, departs 12:30 pm
• Qantas
  Daily, arrives 10:20 am, departs 11:50 pm
  

747

• Lufthansa - 747-8i
  Daily, arrives 11:45 am, departs 3:00 pm
  
• Korean - 748-8i
  Daily, arrives 2:50 pm, departs 11:30 pm

A340

• Lufthansa - A340-300
  Daily, arrives 4:40 pm, departs 7:10 pm

Gone

Here's what we got to see last year that won't be around this year.

• A220: Air Canada, Delta
• A330: China Eastern, DHL, Fiji, Iberia
• A350: Cathay Pacific, China Airlines
• A380: China Southern
• 757: UPS, FedEx
• 767: Condor, Kalitta
• 777: ANA, Japan Airlines, KLM, KLM Asia
• 787: Air Canada, Air China, Avianca, Hainan, New Zealand
• CRJ: Delta Connection
  

2023 Checklist Errata

Regrettably a few errors were discovered after this year's checklist was sent to print:

• Aeromexico Connect's E190s were operating daily service from Monterrey (MTY), but the route was suspended on August 28
• MSC Air Cargo launched a new LAX service with 777s, but it was suspended on August 24
• United's 767s had been flying at LAX again earlier this summer, but they aren't anymore

As always, our smart arrival/departure boards at LAX will be free this week, so everyone can keep tabs on special liveries, diversions, and other unusual equipment. See you there!

Nick Benson

Nick lives in Burnsville, Minnesota with his wife and three children. He grooves on railroad and aviation photography, politics, geography, weather, and LEGO. He started JetTip's smart flight alert service in 2017, and is now a full-time avgeek. He can frequently be found atop a step ladder at MSP's Aircraft Viewing Area.