SpotLAX+Dorkfest 2025 avgeek news and notes

Nick Benson - JetTip

Scores of avgeeks at Dorkfest 2024 enjoy the up close and personal views of this Singapore 777-300ER a few moments before it arrives at LAX, at the park in front of In-N-Out.

It's the most wonderful time of the year - SpotLAX and Dorkfest are happening in less than a week (Sept 12-14 2025)! I've attended and written about these events since 2018; if unfamiliar, it's an opportunity to meetup with other avgeeks, from airline CEOs to toddlers easily distracted by airplanes, in a minimally structured environment.

As is now tradition, I'll be there (look for the big guy in a dark blue JetTip hat) handing out our custom event keychains and our spotting checklists, with assistance from JetTip Kid 1 and Kid 2, who'll be wearing JetTip t-shirts from Jetset Shirts.

Below I've got a summary of what's changed since last year's events; for those looking looking for a complete history of changes year over year, keep in mind that services may not appear in these posts unless they happen to be flying in mid-September the previous year.

Fellow spotters, I know we all groove on the most trivial of trivial minutia - please shoot me an email if anything here (or on the checklist once in hand) needs to be corrected, and I'll happily update this post.

Lucas Benson - JetTip

There's no finer setting for an avgeek gathering than the rooftop deck of the H Hotel in Los Angeles, as seen at SpotLAX's 2024 welcome party.

New airlines for 2025

• AirZeta 747-400
  Formerly Air Incheon, this South Korean carrier has taken over Asiana Cargo's operation after the merger with Korean, and now operates a fleet of 747-400 freighters in a variety of paint schemes along with simple "cargo" titles. AIH284 is scheduled through LAX on Saturday mornings.
• CMA-CGM Air Cargo 777-200
  This French cargo airline has a pair of routes through LAX operated by Atlas 777s. GTI8915/8276 comes through on Friday afternoon/evening, GTI530/8531 is a Saturday morning visitor.
• Sunwing 737
  Sunwing's operations were merged into WestJet this spring, and many of their aircraft have not yet been repainted. LAX was not part of Sunwing's network previously, so LAX visitors get a chance to see Sunwing aircraft operating for WestJet this year (same as Swoop, which made its debut on our list last year).
• TAP Portugal A330-900neo
  TAP's beautiful livery is a welcome addition this year, arriving Friday, Saturday, and Sunday around 2:30 PM and departing around 4:30 PM.

New airline + type combinations for 2025

• Atlas 777-200F
• Air Canada A220-300
  Once daily, to and from YYZ arriving evening, departing in the morning.
• Air Canada Express CRJ9
  Once daily, to and from YVR midday.
• Japan Airlines A350-1000
  Midday arrival/departure from HND, replacing the 777-300ER from last year.

Returning to LAX in 2025

• Asiana A350
  Friday and Saturday morning's flights are operated by A350s instead of A380s.
  
• China Airlines Cargo 777-200F

Berk Benson - JetTip

The Cargolux 50 special livery arriving during the 2024 SpotLAX dinner at Proud Bird.

Discontinued / gone in 2025

A fairly lengthy list this year, with a surprising number of A330s.

• A330: Air Canada, Awesome Cargo, Delta, Iberia, ITA, Philippine, Wamos
• 737: Northern Air Cargo
• 747: Asiana Cargo
• 757: UPS
• 767: Air Canada Cargo, CargoJet, Northern Air Cargo, United
• 777: Japan Airlines, Kalitta / DHL, Qatar Cargo

2025 checklist errata

Despite numerous reviews, a few errors were discovered after this year's list went to print, and I'm confident the community will discover a few more. Please email me with any additional updates and I'll add them them here.

• DHL 737
  Accidentally removed from the list in 2025 - it'll be back in 2026!
• GlobalX Cargo A321
  GlobalX is the sole operator of A321 freighters in the US; they had been serving LAX with GXA1814/1914, which arrived late on weeknights and left early the following morning, though it appears this route was suspended on September 5.
• StratAir 767-300F
  Serious egg in our face on this one: N567NC had been operating the HNL-LAX circuit, which we had tagged as being in StratAir's livery - unfortunately it's no longer operating the route, and it looks like it was delivered in StratAir colors, but quickly repainted into a white tail - I can't find any evidence of it operating the route in StratAir colors. So, this year's edition should have Northern Air Cargo listed under 767, but struck out - they did operate through LAX during last year's event, but I expect them to be absent this year.
• Western Global 747-400
  Operations are sporadic now, fortunately for spotters, a smart flight alert was sent out on Thursday for a Western Global 747 at LAX, so they're not gone yet, even though we said they were on the checklist.

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 his Subaru at MSP's Aircraft Viewing Area.