Originally Posted by
FlyingSloth
Due to my situation of being in Singapore during a pandemic and having to travel back to the United States in mid-June, there is only one flight option that works during this time due to most other flights being cancelled. It is a flight route and schedule that I would have never considered in pre- pandemic times. It is a 16 hour non stop flight from Singapore to California.
So, SQ38. Departs SIN at 19:40, arrives LAX at 20:35. Flight time of 15:55.
5) Finally, it's not a small aircraft type but it is smaller than planes I have taken the past for longer flights. I know it's partially psychological, but I have been fortunate and always felt safer on larger aircraft with four engines, for example. This is a medium wide body aircraft with two engines. It's an Airbnb A350-900, whereas in the past I managed to do longer flights (9 - 12 hours) on bigger aircraft such as 380-800s, 747s, and 777-300ERs.
I've flown six legs of a similar routing. My flights were on an Airbus A340-500*. That's about the same size as the A350-900, except the A340 fuselage is narrower. I've never been on an A350, but I suspect it will feel like a big aircraft to you, just slightly narrower (0.2m) than the 777's you've been on.
* Actually, one eastbound leg was on an A340-600. I better not say why that's interesting.
2) The flight goes directly over the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and perhaps there may be a lot of turbulence. I get scared easily when a flight does not go over and does not stay close to land and looking at FlightAware and FlightRadar this route goes directly over the middle of the Pacific Ocean, not near any land.
The routings shown on those sites may be "artists interpretations." If the flight follows the Great Circle Route, then it will fly over the Philippines, offshore from Japan, offshore from Russia, offshore from Alaska, offshore from Canada, and offshore from the USA west coast, never being far from land. The routing of an individual flight though may vary due to weather conditions. However, for an eastbound flight, the airline likely wants to make use of the jet stream found at northern latitudes - going across the middle of the Pacific won't catch those winds.
I suggest you book a seat on the left side of the aircraft. There's a chance you might see land in that direction. On one of the eastbound flights, an hour before landing, I could actually see my neighborhood in Northern California.
My westbound flights also followed the Great Circle Route. When I was in a seat on the right side of the aircraft, I could see the lights of Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.
3) The flight is also entirely at night, so it will be dark the entire time flying over the ocean for 16 hours. This scares me greatly.
Good news! The flight is actually mostly during daytime! Remember, the airplane will be going one way, and the sun the other way. From your perspective you'll experience a sunrise and a sunset during the flight. Actually, given the summer travel date, the airplane will land at dusk.
There's a chance the cabin crew will make everyone close their window shades. (Grrr!) I suggest you book a window seat and bring aboard a thick blanket and some tape. Explain to the crew that you are afraid of the dark. Then tape the blanket around the window and drape it over your head. This way you get natural sunlight while not bothering other sleeping passengers.
On one of my eastbound flights, I had access to a lavatory with a ... window! When I got sick of hours of the dark cabin, I could duck into the lavatory and soak up some bright sunshine for a few minutes.
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Here's how I dealt with jet lag on my eastbound flights (my departure/arrival times were very similar to yours):
On two flights, I made sure to have been up early on the departure day, and took no naps during the day. After departure, we were served dinner. After that, I promptly took a nap. That meant I slept during the time the aircraft flew in the dark. I woke up around "sunrise". Even though the blinds were closed, I could tell it was light outside. I made sure to blast myself with light from the IFE and overhead lights. This told my body that it is daytime. I then stayed awake until landing. After arrival, I checked into an airport area hotel for the night. Voila - no jet lag at all! I took a midday feeder flight home.
On one flight I stayed on the departure time zone. I slept as long as I could during from the start of the flight. Then, upon landing, I roamed LAX's TBIT all night waiting for a 6AM flight home. I dealt with the time zone changes at home.
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And oh, be careful booking your hotel and further flight. You'll be crossing the dateline. But the flight takes the better part of a day. This makes it confusing as to the arrival date!