Jet WindowWindow seat by route · JFK to LAX
New York JFK to Los Angeles: which side of the plane?
Sun on the left.
The sun is on the left on 4 of the 5 daylight departures we modeled. Sit left for the light and any sunset; sit right to keep the glare off and the ground easier to photograph.
The sun, by departure time
Where the light will be.
Departure times are local to New York. About 5 h 30 min in the air over 2,146 nautical miles.
| Leaving at | Winter (mid-December) | Summer (mid-June) |
|---|---|---|
| 7 a.m. | Left · sun on this side | Left · sun on this side |
| Noon | Left · sun on this side | Left · sun on this side |
| 5 p.m. | Dark the whole way | Right · sun on this side |
| 10 p.m. | Dark the whole way | Dark the whole way |
Out of the window
What you can look for.
Right on the Pacific shore at the edge of the LA basin.
Along the way
- The Great Lakes, big enough to have a horizon of their own on the right, in daylight
- Chicago along the lakefront, the grid running inland on the right
- The Rocky Mountains, rank after rank of them below you, so either side, in daylight
- The Grand Canyon cut into the Colorado Plateau below you, so either side, in daylight
- Las Vegas, an island of light in the dark desert on the right
Arriving in Los Angeles
The Los Angeles basin fills the view, downtown against the San Gabriel Mountains, with the Hollywood Sign for sharp eyes.
Best from the right, because the common west-flow arrivals come in from the east, so the downtown skyline and mountains sit to the north, on the right.
How this was worked out
The same engine as the app.
These answers come from the model Jet Window uses on your phone: the sun's position from the cabin's own horizon at cruise, sampled along the great-circle path, with the landmark and airport notes the app shows. This page has to assume a departure time and a flight time, and a real flight bends with winds, airways and the runway in use. Cloud is not modeled.
In the app, Jet Window works it out for your actual flight, at its real departure time, and tells you when to look.
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