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Window Seat

Chicago → Long Beach

MDW–LGB · Chicago Midway International Airport to Long Beach Airport

Best bet

Right side

Slight edgeEnough to break a tie, not enough to change seats over.

It is close. The right edges it, mostly on San Juan Mountains, but the left is not a bad seat.

Flight paths move around. Treat this as the better bet, not a promise.

What you might see

In flight order, with distance measured from the representative route.

MDW to LGB: where each landmark sits relative to the routeA diagram of the representative route running left to right, with the departure airport at the left and the arrival airport at the right. Landmarks on the left side of the aircraft are plotted above the route line and landmarks on the right side below it, each at its distance from the route. The numbered list below this diagram carries the same information as text.MDWLGBLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE123456789
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 64 miles); the shaded ends are the 40-mile zones around each airport where the runway in use decides the view. Numbers match the list below. Hollow markers didn't count toward the recommendation.

  1. Pikes Peak

    RightHalfway26 mi off the route

    Pikes Peak is about 26 miles off the right, around the halfway mark.

    Good possibility

  2. Sangre de Cristo Mountains

    LeftHalfway49 mi off the route

    Around the halfway mark, Sangre de Cristo Mountains sits roughly 49 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  3. San Juan Mountains

    RightThree quarters21 mi off the route

    Look right about three quarters of the way for San Juan Mountains, about 21 miles out.

    Good possibility

  4. Monument Valley

    Either sideThree quarters6 mi off the route

    Monument Valley passes almost directly beneath about three quarters of the way, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Strong candidate

  5. Lake Powell

    RightThree quarters33 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Lake Powell sits roughly 33 miles to the right.

    Distant possibility

  6. San Francisco Peaks

    LeftThree quarters64 mi off the route

    Look left about three quarters of the way for San Francisco Peaks, about 64 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Grand Canyon

    Either sideThree quarters7 mi off the route

    Grand Canyon passes almost directly beneath about three quarters of the way, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Strong candidate

  8. San Gorgonio Mountain

    LeftNear the end17 mi off the route

    Late in the flight, San Gorgonio Mountain sits roughly 17 miles to the left.

    Good possibility

  9. San Jacinto Peak

    LeftNear the end38 mi off the route

    Look left late in the flight for San Jacinto Peak, about 38 miles out.

    Distant possibility

The sun

Flying soon? Add your date and departure time and we'll work out where the sun should be, and which side gets less of it.

Airport codes or city names. SEA, Seattle, and Seattle-Tacoma all work.

Skip the date and you still get the landmark answer. Add it and we work out where the sun will be, using the departure airport's local time.

The route we used

1,738 mi
Great-circle distance
262°
Course out of MDW
243°
Course into LGB
7
Landmarks that counted

That is the shortest path between the two airports, used as a representative corridor rather than a flight plan. The first and last 40 miles are treated as uncertain, because that part of the flight is shaped by the runway in use and the published departure or arrival procedure. Anything in those zones is listed and marked, never counted toward the recommendation.

Left and right, from where?

Left and right are from your perspective sitting in the cabin, facing the front of the aircraft. Seat letters are not a reliable guide to which side you are on, because aircraft are configured differently.

Why this isn't guaranteed

Flights don't follow the same path every day. Runway configuration, weather deviations, traffic, and air traffic control all move the track around, and none of it is knowable in advance. We also have nothing to say about cloud cover, which is the other thing standing between you and Mount Rainier. The full method.

Flying the other way?

Long Beach → ChicagoLeft side

Calculated from scratch, not by flipping this one. The landmarks arrive in the opposite order, the sun is somewhere else entirely, and the answer changes with them.

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