Jet WindowWindow seat by route · SFO to HNL
San Francisco 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 San Francisco. About 5 h 30 min in the air over 2,083 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 25 minutes in | 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.
Out on the edge of San Francisco Bay. On the south shore of Oahu, hemmed by ocean and green ridges.
Leaving San Francisco
Many departures bank out over the Bay, swinging the city and the Golden Gate into view.
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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