Sunseat

Which side of the plane gets the sun?

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Pick two airports and a departure time to see where the sun will be from your seat.

Try one of these:

LAX → JFK, morning JFK → LHR, overnight SFO → HND DXB → SYD

Popular routes

  • CJU → GMP
  • GMP → CJU
  • CTS → HND
  • HND → CTS
  • FUK → HND
  • HND → FUK
  • HND → OKA
  • OKA → HND
  • HND → ITM
  • ITM → HND
  • MEL → SYD
  • SYD → MEL
  • BNE → SYD
  • SYD → BNE
  • BNE → MEL
  • MEL → BNE
  • MEL → PER
  • PER → MEL
  • PER → SYD
  • SYD → PER
  • ADL → MEL
  • MEL → ADL
  • AKL → WLG
  • WLG → AKL
  • All routes
  • How it works
How accurate is this?

Sun positions are exact; the flight is an estimate. Three things move the answer:

  • Route. We assume the shortest (great-circle) path. Real flights bend for jet streams, airways and closed airspace. A few degrees rarely changes the side, but it can when the sun is nearly ahead or behind.
  • Timing. Delays, holding and a faster or slower crossing shift every sunrise and sunset along the way. Wind alone can change a long-haul flight by an hour.
  • Altitude and weather. At cruise the horizon sits about 3° below level, so the sun rises earlier and sets later than on the ground, which we account for. Cloud below can't hide the sun, but it reflects strong glare up through the windows; climbing or descending through cloud softens the light.

More on how this works

Airport data © OurAirports (public domain); route list derived from OpenFlights (ODbL).