I’m sitting in business class on a Delta 777 en route from Beijing to Detroit, flying at 35,000 feet over a stunningly beautiful Arctic seascape of ice and snow. The only reason I know this is because I went up to the flight attendant area and looked out their windows. The cabin I am sitting in is dark, as my fellow passengers sleep (mostly), read, or play solitaire.
Am I the only one who wants to look out the window? We’re at 72 degrees latitude, well north of Alaska, and I (and everyone on the plane, I suspect) will never, ever get to see this place other than on a plane. Yet no one seems interested. The flight crew certainly isn’t, although they did allow me to look out the galley window. I asked if it would be “rude” to raise my window blinds, and they opined that it would. (They also informed me that since we were taking a “polar route” we would be passing over the North Pole – doubtful.)
OK, I see some reasons to keep us in the dark. Half the plane can’t see out the window (more than half in the back). It makes sense to sleep in this direction – and an open window would make it hard for some people to sleep - but the cabin was just as dark on the way over to China, when it made no sense to sleep.
But I’m just curious – am I the only one who loves to look out the window and finds the usual practice a bit irritating?
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I'm with you-- I do love to look out the window, especially on the North America to Asia flights (my favorite part is over Kamchatka / Siberia), but rarely open my own windows because I know people dislike it. Interestingly I used to fly ORD-HKG a lot and used to always wonder what Khabarovsk was like, a city that we'd almost always fly over. Two years ago i finally found out when I did the Trans-Siberian and stopped in KHV for a few days-- a really fascinating city!
When I do need to sleep, i also am guilty of getting irritated when others insist on keeping the windows open (though I'm not sure why-- the eyeshades do a pretty good job of keeping the light out!)
Often I find that First/Business class windows are closed while Economy class ones are open so I'll walk back to Economy and look out the windows at the exit rows back there.
What I really think is strange is when all the windows are closed during takeoff and landing-- i recently flew EWR-DEL on UA-- I was in the aisle seat so couldn't reach the window to open it, but thought it odd that not one person wanted to look out the window taking off on very clear night with undoubtedly stunning views of NYC. very weird. and the number of people that miss the views of central London on the RHS of the plane when landing at Heathrow; no matter how many times I see it, i never get tired of it.
As A pilot myself, I always tend to want to look out the window from gate push back til we clear through 10,000 feet, just because I am a control freak and like to be able to see what is happening, however once in the air everything pretty much looks the same from 35,000 feet, especially when flying the polar route. Once we are on final approach and we start maneuvering for landing, I also like to look out the window then to see what is going on, all the way until we park at the gate. That's just me though.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jojojo
I’m sitting in business class on a Delta 777 en route from Beijing to Detroit, flying at 35,000 feet over a stunningly beautiful Arctic seascape of ice and snow. The only reason I know this is because I went up to the flight attendant area and looked out their windows. The cabin I am sitting in is dark, as my fellow passengers sleep (mostly), read, or play solitaire.
Am I the only one who wants to look out the window? We’re at 72 degrees latitude, well north of Alaska, and I (and everyone on the plane, I suspect) will never, ever get to see this place other than on a plane. Yet no one seems interested. The flight crew certainly isn’t, although they did allow me to look out the galley window. I asked if it would be “rude” to raise my window blinds, and they opined that it would. (They also informed me that since we were taking a “polar route” we would be passing over the North Pole – doubtful.)
OK, I see some reasons to keep us in the dark. Half the plane can’t see out the window (more than half in the back). It makes sense to sleep in this direction – and an open window would make it hard for some people to sleep - but the cabin was just as dark on the way over to China, when it made no sense to sleep.
But I’m just curious – am I the only one who loves to look out the window and finds the usual practice a bit irritating?
seconded! although to me, the absolute craziest are those who leave their shades town on takeoff and landing. absolutely baffling.
I am not really sure if this should be in the Delta forum, but I am with you all. I LOVE to sit and look out of the window and keep my camera with me just in case something worth getting a shot of comes up. I got some beautiful shots of Greenland a couple of years ago...
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"I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it." - GBShaw
Oh, God, I'm like a little kid when I look out the window. I haven't flown anywhere especially exotic, but I always try to look for things like the Statue of Libery over New York, the Pentagon and the Washington Monument over DC, the 'Shoe over Columbus, Ohio, and my house whenever I am coming back into BOS.
My seatmates probably don't appreciate all of my bobbing back and forth as the plane moves, but I sit in the single seat in so many RJs that I usually don't have to worry about it.
I too love to look out the window and am obsessed with it until we clear 10,000 feet. I hate not having a window seat for take-off/landing; I need to know what's 'going on' and what runway we are using.
Sometimes I have a isle seat, the person by the window on a flight had the window shade down for the entire flight, takeoff, inflight, and landing. Why do some people think because they are sitting by the window they can control keeping the shade up or down. I love looking out the window especially in clear skies. When I do have a window seat the shade is always open.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by buckeyefanflyer
Sometimes I have an aisle seat, the person by the window on a flight had the window shade down for the entire flight, takeoff, inflight, and landing. Why do some people think because they are sitting by the window they can control keeping the shade up or down. I love looking out the window especially in clear skies. When I do have a window seat the shade is always open.
Fixed that isle/aisle thing for you.
Seriously, you believe control of the window shade is a group function subject to negotiation with your seatmate?
Mods, why is this topic even residing in the DL forum?
I like looking out the windows. Coming back on a redeye from NRT once, we flew through a massive storm. I was spellbound - it was like flying through colossal canyons of clouds with lightning flashing - one of the most amazing 'airshows' I have ever seen.
Sadly, I usually fly coach, and when I do, I avoid windows like the plague. However, I used to fly PHX to SEA regularly, and I always booked a window, even in Y. I never seem to tire of watching the Grand Canyon and Mt. Rainier from the air.
I'm torn about opening the window shade when the cabin is dark. It is annoying, particularly when you're reading or watching a movie.
Re: keeping the window open in a fully dark cabin - had a friend who was afraid of flying. Part of the fear was a bit like claustrophobia, and she needed to keep the window open to keep from freaking out.
