Despite what many people believe, the answer actually has nothing to do with safety. The real answer is because going north may actually provide a shorter route. This is called Great Circle Navigation. Because of the curvature of the Earth, the shortest route between two locations may appear much longer on a flat map.
Why do flights go north?
Planes travel along the shortest route in 3-dimensional space. This route is called a geodesic or great circle. While map projections distort these routes confusing passengers, the great circle path is the shortest path between two far locations. This is why pilots fly polar routes saving time and distance.
Why do flights to Europe go north?
Most people assume this is to remain as close as possible to land in case of an emergency — i.e. keeping close to airports in case a diversion is needed. In fact has nothing to do with emergencies. It’s simply the shortest distance.
Why do planes not fly north to south?
Answer: It is shorter to fly the Great Circle route than a straight line due to the circumference of the earth being so much greater at the equator than near the poles.
Why are flights faster going north?
More specifically, the real answer has to do with a geophysical phenomenon known as jet streams. Jet streams are the reason why planes fly faster across the Atlantic in one way rather than the other.
Why can’t planes fly over the Pacific ocean?
The Pacific Ocean is a massive body of water that will require an extremely large amount of fuel to fly across. Rather than flying directly across the Pacific Ocean, most commercial flights take curved routes because they are actually shorter than shooting straight across a distance.
Is flying over the ocean safe?
However, because of lessons learned from its history and the improvements in aircraft and engine reliability, crossing the oceans is deemed as safe as flying over land. With the rules of ETOPS flying in place, the crew of an aircraft will always know where the nearest diversion airfield is.
Why don’t planes fly over the Atlantic?
Airlines prefer flying over “curved” routes over land instead of traversing oceans. Curved routes over land are generally shorter than straight routes over the ocean.
Why can’t planes fly over Antarctica?
The rough weather conditions and low visibility make it extremely difficult to fly and land a plane over the continent. It is technically possible to fly to Antarctica, but there are very few flights that take the risk of going there.
What is the longest flight in the world?
The longest flight in the world by distance is New York (JFK) to Singapore (SIN) on Singapore Airlines clocking in at 9,537 miles.
Why can’t you fly a plane directly south?
The reason for this is that the earth revolves on its axis, forcing the middle to bulge out slightly. The curvature of the earth and its extra equatorial width mean that curving towards the poles is a shorter distance than flying in a straight line.
Where can planes not fly over?
Permanent prohibited areas
- Thurmont, Maryland, site of Presidential retreat Camp David (Prohibited Area 40 or P-40)
- Amarillo, Texas, Pantex nuclear assembly plant (P-47)
- Bush Ranch near Crawford, Texas (P-49)
- Edwards Air Force Base.
- Area 51.
- Kennedy Space Center.
- Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Georgia (P-50)
Why do planes circle before landing?
Circling. Generally, planes will circle above airports for the same reasons planes sometimes need to perform go-arounds. This could be anything from weather to an incident on the runway. Pilots have to weigh their options between circling for a little while or turning back to land at a different airport.
Why is it slower to fly west?
It is the rotation of the Earth that is causing the longer flight times, but not because it’s moving towards or away from the flying aircraft. It is instead due to its influence on wind patterns – the so-called high-altitude jet streams.
Why do flights never go over North Pole?
The polar regions have special navigation concerns in the form of the magnetic fields which permeate them. These can make it difficult for planes to navigate because the polar areas interfere with magnetic navigational tools.
Why is it slower to fly east to west?
Jet streams are, at their most basic, high-altitude air currents caused by atmospheric heating and the inertia of the earth’s rotation—and they’re the reason why flights from west to east are faster than the same route traversed in the opposite direction.
What is a ghost flight?
A “ghost flight” occurs when airlines continue to fly routes despite having no passengers on board. A lot has been heard about these flights, both during and even before the pandemic, but why exactly do they happen?
What happens if plane flies too high?
Sudden cabin depressurization: A loss of cabin pressure can occur if a plane flies too high, and if that happens, passengers and crew—including pilots—can lose consciousness.
Are pilots scared of turbulence?
Those irregular motions in the atmosphere create air currents that can cause passengers on an airplane to experience annoying bumps during a flight, or it can be severe enough to throw an airplane out of control. “(The pilots) aren’t scared at all. It’s all a part of aviation,” United Airlines pilot Rob Biddle said.
What do pilots see when flying?
Whether flying at night or during the day, pilots need to see some kind of horizon. They use this to determine the airplane’s attitude. At night pilots will turn their gaze from outside to inside and use the artificial horizon. The artificial horizon is normally a simply globe split into two hemispheres.
Why do pilots say heavy?
When a pilot uses the phrase “heavy,” he is reminding ATC that his aircraft is large and requires more separation between it and the aircraft following.