Sunseat

Which side of the plane gets the sun?
h m

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

Beijing to Bangkok: which side of the plane gets the sun?

On Beijing to Bangkok, the shady side depends on when you fly: check the table for your departure time and season.

Best side for shade

Departure time is local at PEK. Seasons use the solstices and equinoxes.
DepartingMarJunSepDec
Morning07:00RightRightRightRightsunrise left
Midday12:00LeftLeftLeftRight
Afternoon16:00Leftsunset rightLeftsunset rightLeftsunset rightLeftsunset right
Evening20:00Eithermostly darkEithermostly darkEithermostly darkEithermostly dark

The route starts out heading south-southwest. When it happens during the flight, the sunrise is on the left, and the sunset is on the right.

About this flight

Beijing (PEK) to Bangkok (BKK) is about 3,317 km on the shortest path, typically around 4h 25m gate to gate. Set your exact departure time above to see where the sun is minute by minute.

How accurate is this?

Real flights don't fly exactly the shortest path, and delays and winds shift the timing, so treat sunrise and sunset times as approximate. At cruise altitude the sun sets 10 to 20 minutes later than on the ground. A bright cloud deck below can reflect glare in on either side. More on accuracy.

Related routes

  • BKK → PEK (return)
  • PEK → SHA
  • PEK → CAN
  • PEK → SZX
  • PEK → CTU
  • PEK → HGH
  • PEK → HKG
  • PEK → CDG
  • PEK → PVG
  • All routes
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).