Do planes always take the same route?

Well, not always. You'll probably have noticed if you've ever watched the animated flight map while flying as a passenger that very rarely does a flight take the exact straight line route. The same flight between city pairs could actually fly a considerably different routing from day to day, month to month.



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Flight paths are mapped out before aircraft take off, depending on the shortest and most efficient route, and flight paths can even change during flight depending on weather, wind and jetstreams, to name just a few variable factors.

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Most airlines use a Preferential Bidding System to determine routes. Basically, pilots submit which routes they want to fly (based on location, schedule, etc.) and then a system assigns them routes, with more senior pilots having preference on getting their choices.

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Do pilots actually fly the planes? Pilots typically fly the plane during take off and landing. The pilot manually controls the plane until it reaches the required height.

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Airplane pilots have a great deal of autonomy when it comes to choosing their destination. While they may be assigned certain routes or flights, the pilot ultimately has the final say in where they fly. Pilots can also choose to take on additional flights that are not part of their regular schedule if they wish.

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The Loganair Westray to Papa Westray route is the shortest scheduled passenger flight in the world. Flights on the route are scheduled for one and a half minutes, and actual flying time is closer to one minute. The record for the fastest flight is 53 seconds.

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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.

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Flight plans need to account for the curvature of the earth when they are created. Since the earth is three-dimensional, it would be impossible not to fly in an arc. Another reason that planes would choose to fly in a trajectory that resembles an arc is to account for the amount of traffic that will be in the air.

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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.

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What is the longest flight in the world by distance? The longest flight in the world by distance is New York (JFK) to Singapore (SIN) on Singapore Airlines clocking in at 9,537 miles. What plane can fly the farthest in the world?

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The simple answer is yes, pilots do, and are allowed to sleep during flight but there are strict rules controlling this practice. Pilots would only normally sleep on long haul flights, although sleep on short haul flights is permitted to avoid the effects of fatigue.

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Fatigue is particularly prevalent among pilots because of unpredictable work hours, long duty periods, circadian disruption, and insufficient sleep. These factors can occur together to produce a combination of sleep deprivation, circadian rhythm effects, and 'time-on task' fatigue.

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Summer and winter are the worst seasons for turbulence. Winter has strong winds and blizzards, and summer's hot heat can create unstable air, thunderstorms, and tropical storms. That means flying during the holidays often means more turbulence than other times of the year.

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The middle seat in the final seat is your safest bet
The middle rear seats of an aircraft had the lowest fatality rate: 28%, compared to 44% for the middle aisle seats, according to a TIME investigation that examined 35 years' worth of aircraft accident data.

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Early morning or nighttime flights These red-eye flights mean you can worry less and catch up on much-needed sleep due to a smoother flight and less worrying about turbulence. This is because during the night, wind speeds are typically reduced, and also thunderstorms tend to alleviate overnight.

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