Most commercial airlines that travel between East Asia and the Americas avoid flying over the Pacific Ocean due to high costs and safety concerns, such as the risk of flying during stormy weather.

Airlines definitely do fly west, but it often takes longer and consumes more fuel than flying east because of the Jet Stream. The Jet Stream is a high-altitude, fast-moving "river of air" that flows from west to east due to the Earth's rotation and the atmospheric temperature differences between the poles and the equator. When a plane flies east (e.g., from NYC to London), it hitches a ride on this tailwind, which can reach speeds of over 200 mph, significantly boosting the plane's ground speed. Conversely, when flying west (e.g., from London to NYC), the aircraft must fly into a headwind, which pushes against the plane and slows it down. To minimize this effect, pilots and dispatchers use sophisticated weather modeling to plan routes that "dodge" the strongest parts of the jet stream when going west, often flying at different altitudes or taking more northern or southern tracks. This is why a flight from London to New York can take up to 8 hours, while the return trip might only take 6.5 hours. While flying west is less "efficient," it is a standard part of global aviation; the extra time is simply a baked-in physical reality of our planet's atmospheric dynamics.