flight route question

There are a set of organized tracks across the Pacific that change daily based on the jetstream/winds. That could explain what you are seeing.

 

What Tim said...... Every once in a while the jet stream just happens to be going exactly where you need it and it can carve a lot of time off a flight and/or just save a lot of gas. Just googled this up on my phone real quick to show the jet stream off a bit.


Weather Model - North Pacific Jet Stream Wind and 250 mb Pressure (STORMSURF)

 

I would bet the first picture (with a more northern route closer to land) is a shorter distance than the second one that appears to be more of a straight line. This is because the earth is actually a sphere (or close to it). The shortest distance between two places will look like an arc on a flat projection.

 

Being near land has nothing to do with it.

The first is a "Great Circle Route" and is shorter than the second route plotted on a globe.
(stretch a string between start and end on a globe... it will more closely follow the first route and will be the shortest distance.)

 

That's why flights from here (ATL) to London don't fly directly across the Atlantic, but instead fly over Washington, New York and Boston en route.

And flights from LAX to London fly north, over Seattle!

 

On a flight to London from Seattle I think that I remember that we went over western Canada, Northwest territories, Greenland, Ireland, and middle UK. It was 20 years ago so it might be a little off.

 

A friend of mine flew from Atlanta to/from Hong Kong this past week. He said that each flight profile was different, matching fairly closely each of the two maps shown above.

 

They can be as far as 5+ hrs flying time on single engine from land.
EASA certifies A350 XWB for up to 370 minute ETOPS | Airbus Press release

 

I flew from Anchorage to Japan a few years ago. Wake up, drive to airport, fly to Seattle, hop to Portland for the overseas jet, take northern route to Japan. 9 hours after waking up, I was directly over my house.

Of course, when I flew home, I landed the day before I took off.

 

LOL

 

Great story... ha...

 

Not quite the same, but a number of years ago, to fly from ATL to SEA, I drove to Birmingham first, about 2-1/2 hours west of here. Why? Because, at the time, Southwest flew out of BHM but not ATL, and I was able to get a flight from BHM to SEA at half the price (and on Delta!).

The irony is that the first leg of this BHM to SEA flight was - BHM to ATL! So I was flying back to Atlanta over the same route that I had driven to get to Birmingham in the first place. Then at ATL I boarded the same nonstop flight that I could have taken directly - at twice the price. Was it worth the 2-1/2 hour drive? I think so.

(One other thing - because of weather over Atlanta, the flight from Birmingham took about 1-1/2 hours, not really all that much less than the drive over had taken!)

 

Really ?? what airline fly's that route then ?? That would have to be some odd weather to cause that route I would think.. Normally, LA-Vegas-Mid west-Great Lakes-Canada-Ocean..Southern Ireland then Up the Bristol Channel over south western England LHR..


https://flightaware.com/live/flight/ANZ2/history/20150625/2355Z/KLAX/EGLL