Which side of the plane should I sit on to avoid the sun from Addis Ababa (ADD) to Dubai (DXB)?
On this route the shady side depends on the date as well as the time of day. Add a departure date to see yours.
Which side of the plane should I sit on to avoid the sun from Addis Ababa (ADD) to Dubai (DXB)?
On this route the shady side depends on the date as well as the time of day. Add a departure date to see yours.
Which side of the plane should I sit on to avoid the sun from Addis Ababa (ADD) to Dubai (DXB)?
On this route the shady side depends on the date as well as the time of day. Add a departure date to see yours.
Addis Ababa → Dubai
A medium flight from Ethiopia to United Arab Emirates. Dubai is 1 hour ahead. Don't forget to adjust your watch on arrival!
This route crosses the Tropic of Cancer, the northernmost latitude where the sun passes directly overhead.
The new flower
Addis Ababa sits at over 2,350 meters (7,700 feet) on the Ethiopian highlands, one of the highest capital cities in the world, with a climate far cooler than its tropical latitude would suggest. The city's light rail network doesn't reach Bole Airport, so taxis and ride-hailing cover the trip. It serves as the diplomatic capital of Africa, hosting the African Union's headquarters and a large diplomatic community. The altitude can be noticeable to visitors, especially with any physical exertion in the first day or two.
Surrounding hubs
| 1,550 km / 963 mi | |
| 1,763 km / 1,095 mi | |
| 1,964 km / 1,220 mi |
The city that rose from the desert
Dubai is a coastal city on the Persian Gulf that grew in a few decades into a dense spine of towers strung along a single highway. Most of what visitors come for sits near the water or that main road: the beaches, the malls, Dubai Creek, the old trading waterway, and the tallest building in the world. It is hot for much of the year and built around cars and taxis, though a driverless metro runs the length of the city. Distances look short on a map but stretch out in the heat.
Nearby airports
| 116 km / 72 mi |
Surrounding hubs
| 574 km / 357 mi | |
| 855 km / 531 mi | |
| 874 km / 543 mi |
Find out which side of the plane to sit on.
Pick your airports, set your departure time, and you're done.
We calculate the sun's position based on your flight path and departure time, then tell you which side of the plane gets direct sun and which stays shaded. No guessing, just math.
Enter your flight
Pick your departure and arrival airports and set your departure time at the departure airport. FlightSide estimates the duration and you can adjust it if you know the exact schedule.
We track the sun along your route
Your flight path is broken into hundreds of points. At each one we check where the sun is and which side of the plane it faces.
You get a recommendation
Which side of the plane to sit on, left or right, depending on whether you'd rather avoid the sun or enjoy it. The percentages and the map are there if you want to see why.
Want to go deeper? Accuracy, edge cases, polar routes — see the FAQ →
Notes from the product.
Small updates, route observations, and clearer explanations for how the app keeps evolving.
Over the top, and other ways to fly
FlightSide now has Explore, a map of popular flights grouped by the path they fly, and a Guide with step-by-step walkthroughs for checking, sharing and using FlightSide offline.
Type less, wait less, wonder more
Airport search now understands metro codes and old city names, FlightSide loads noticeably faster, and a new Feeling lucky button chooses a flight for anyone without one in mind.
A closer look at the route, not just the seat
FlightSide now shows the two cities and key details about the flight alongside the seat recommendation: confirm you picked the right airports, read the time change off two clocks, and check the return leg.