I usually sleep as normal in first or biz long haul. Can always get 6-7 hours no matter what. Recently I’ve noticed I’m able to fall asleep and sleep relatively well in economy on short haul flights as well...I guess aging is helping me on that front! I’m even considering testing the waters on a long haul flight in economy to see if I sleep well. If so I’ll be able to save tens of thousands a year on travel costs!

In economy: My only shot of sleeping is to take a window seat, and lay my head against the window. I never can get more than a nap in, but sometimes 20 minutes or so is enough to carry me through to a normal bed time at my destination. I haven't done economy transcontenental in 10 or so years though, but I done this one out the Pacific coast - and my home is on the Gulf coast.

In business/first long haul: 2 glasses of wine in the lounge pre-flight, and then a couple of glasses of wine through the meal service. I don't do beer because I don't want to take in that much liquid, and no hard alcohol because I don't want to actually get drunk. I have not tried other supplements. I'm a side sleeper, so getting comfortable in a lay flat is still a challenge to find a good position for my 'bottom' arm. But usually I can find a fair enough position for a few hours of sleep by getting the recline to 90% flat or so. Again, not great sleep but enough to do the job.

Analog books and heavy doses of Pink Floyd.

I eat before I get on the plane, have a glass of wine, dissolve 1/2 of an ambien under my tongue, earphones, eye mask and sleep. I wake up when I want not when they turn those lights on to give you breakfast.

A couple of cocktails, eye mask, and either ear plugs or ear buds playing white noise from my phone. Always a window seat to lean against with a neck pillow.

When I fly internationally out of my home airport, edibles. :)

Chris

Apparently it's a combination of being dark outside and being able to lay horizontally for me. I had an entire half row to myself in Y recently on a late night flight from EWR to SAN on United and I managed to sleep for most of the flight.

On the other hand, I got little sleep on NZ's LAX-LHR flight in J last year. But I blame too much caffeine for that one.

Eat before the flight, bring my own half-sized pillow, eye mask, ear plugs and a sleeping pill in a window seat. I can easily sleep 8-9 hours that way, even in coach.

First, I watch a movie and drink some wine. I always wear comfy clothes and I just have eyemask and earplugs all the time. Sleeping earplugs work so well that you wouldn't even mind the airplane's engine or babies crying. Here are some of the best ones.

You left "Hearos" off your list. Those are my favorite earplugs.

As many have mentioned, earplugs and eyeshades are a MUST, regardless of your class of travel. I sleep like a brick in Y, J and F so no drugs or alcohol needed here :)

I bring a small, inflatable camping mattress that weighs less than two pounds and is the size of a 1 liter Nalgene type bottle. Also bring an inflatable pillow, my own super light ikea blanket, ear plugs, eye mask, and sleep phones sleep headphones. Then maybe ambien/stilnox or melatonin.

Like a log. :D

My methods for sleeping on planes;
1) Upgrade to a lie flat seat - I sleep best when laying down. In economy, I can't sleep much no matter what I do
2) Use eyeshades and noise cancelling headphones.
3) Having some wine helps induce sleep.

LOL. Sleep? On planes? I sleep about as well on planes as an insomniac who just drank a case of Red Bulls.