Live webcam · Santa Cruz · South Coast

Madeira Airport (LPMA): Live Plane Spotting

24/7 live stream from Madeira Airport (LPMA / FNC) showing landings and takeoffs on Runway 05/23, one of the world's most challenging approaches, famous for dramatic crosswind landings against the cliffs of Santa Cruz.

Live · checked 21 min agoChecked automatically · last check 21 min ago

Right nowat the camera

Madeira Airport (LPMA): Live Plane Spotting is 24°C and overcast with a fresh breeze from the N at 26 km/h as of 16:27 local time. Golden hour starts around 19:17, sunset at 19:49.

Temperature: 24°C
Wind: 26 km/h N
Sky: Overcast
Golden hour: 19:17

Sunrise 08:04 · Sunset 19:49 (Madeira time). Weather from Open-Meteo, refreshed every 10 minutes; sun times calculated for these exact coordinates.

Region

Santa Cruz

Facing

Coordinates

32.698, -16.774

Updated

2026-08-05

What you’re looking at

This is a 24/7 stream pointed at Runway 05/23 at Madeira Airport, the runway built out on concrete columns above the sea at Santa Cruz. You see aircraft on final approach, the pronounced late turn pilots make to line up, and the touchdown itself, with the cliffs of the north-east coast forming the backdrop. Because the approach requires a specific certification for crews, the landings here look markedly different from anywhere else in Europe, especially in a crosswind.

Best time to check this camera

Arrival banks cluster in the late morning and again in the early evening, when most northern European flights land, so those windows give the most traffic. The truly memorable footage happens on windy days, a strong north-easterly funnels over the ridge and produces the sideways-crabbed approaches this airport is known for, and occasionally go-arounds. In stable summer weather the light is best in the first hours after sunrise.

Is it windy at FNC, are landings likely to divert?

If the view is clear:: Normal operations; transfer times to Funchal run about 20 minutes.
If it’s grey or rough:: Strong cross-winds at Santa Cruz are the usual cause of diversions to Porto Santo or Tenerife.

Madeira Airport (FNC) →Live arrivals & departures →Airport transfers →

Location

Santa Cruz · South Coast, Madeira · OpenStreetMap · Google Maps

Questions about this camera

What time are the busiest landings at Madeira Airport?

Traffic concentrates in the late-morning and early-evening arrival banks, when scheduled flights from the UK, Germany, Portugal and the Nordics come in. Saturdays are the heaviest day of the week in the summer season.

Why is the Madeira Airport approach considered difficult?

The runway is short by international standards, sits on an elevated platform above the sea, and is hemmed in by high ground that generates severe wind shear and turbulence in north-easterly conditions. Crews require specific training and certification to fly the approach, which is why the webcam regularly shows crabbed, sideways-looking landings and occasional go-arounds.