Jet WindowWindow seat by route · LAX to HNL
Los Angeles to Honolulu: which side of the plane?
Sun on the left.
The sun is on the left on 5 of the 6 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 Los Angeles. About 5 h 45 min in the air over 2,218 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. | Left · sunset 10 minutes in | Right · sunset about 5.5 hours in |
| 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. On the south shore of Oahu, hemmed by ocean and green ridges.
Leaving Los Angeles
Straight out over the Pacific and Santa Monica Bay; Catalina Island rides offshore on a clear day.
Arriving in Honolulu
Diamond Head crater and Waikiki along the south shore, the harbor and downtown, Pearl Harbor just west of the field, and the green Koolau range behind the city.
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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