Question by Krista: Why do planes going to Moscow from Alaska fly east when it would be faster to just continue going west?
Or maybe a better question is, do planes fly from Alaska to Moscow going west? It seems like it would be faster that way. Inquiring minds want to know! Thanks!
Answers and Views:
Answer by thankyoumaskedman
The shortest distance between Anchorage and Moscow is almost right over the north pole, due north and then due south. If the actual route is shifted more east, it may have to do with what kind of ground support is available.
Answer by Comicbook Reader
That would require flying through some pretty restricted airspace and incredibly unstable nations. The dangers of doing this would be very high.
The weather and wind are quite extreme going west so that would cost more in fuel. Airlines will normally take a route that doesn’t present so many unstable factors – extreme cold, extreme winds coupled with not a lot of emergency places to land makes a inhospitable route.
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iansand says
Get a globe of the world and look (on the globe – not a flat map) at the shortest route.
Alex says
Planes don’t fly from Alaska to Moscow. There are no direct flights along that route.
The shortest route for commercial flights is Moscow->Finland->Iceland->Alaska. It’s about 12.5 hours in the air.
If there was a direct flight, the shortest distance would be almost due north (until it becomes south). It would take ~8 hours.
Burt. says
It would be much shorter and faster to go north from Alaska.