FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Have you noticed shorter flight time for East-West flights than reverse?
Thread: Have you noticed shorter flight time for East-West flights than reverse?
View Single Post
Old Sep 28, 2010 | 3:29 pm
  #2  
ralfp
10 Countries Visited
20 Countries Visited
30 Countries Visited
20 Years on Site
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: various cities in the USofA: NYC, BWI, IAH, ORD, CVG, NYC
Programs: Former UA 1K, National Exec. Elite
Posts: 5,487
It could be because the jet stream isn't where it would normally be (a guess). I imagine that schedules are designed to account for the effects of the expected winds aloft. Usually eastbound flights are faster.

http://aviationweather.gov/adds/winds/

A brief bit of research shows that typical schedule times for ORD-LAX are about 4h15m to 4h30m (a bit under 4h flight time) and LAX-ORD is typically scheduled for about 4h (3h10m - 3h50m actual flying time. Flightaware.com is a great place to check actual flight times (it confirms your story).
ralfp is offline  
Reply