Round-trip flights by plane: why are the travel times different?
Why is the flight time eastward different from the flight time westward when flying?
Example: Why is the flight time from Rome to Tokyo different from Tokyo to Rome? There's a difference of about 2 hours and 15 minutes.
When we fly eastward, from Rome or Tokyo, it takes 12 hours and 30 minutes. When we fly westward, from Tokyo to Rome, although our intuition leads us to believe we're getting closer, it takes 14 hours and 45 minutes.
Of course, the outward and return flight routes may be different and slightly alter the flight times, but the main reason is related to another aspect.
It's linked to the Coriolis force.
Our planet rotates on its axis in about 24 hours.
But what happens? The circumference measured at the equator is about 40,000 km; as we move toward the poles, this measurement decreases.
In 24 hours, a person at the equator will have traveled 40,000 kilometers.
A person in Naples will have traveled 30,500 kilometers.
A person further up will travel even fewer kilometers.
So, the speed of someone at the equator is greater than that of someone in Italy, and as we move toward the poles, the speed will decrease.
This difference in speed applies not only to physical objects; as we've already said, it also applies to air.
When air masses move from the equator toward the poles, they will tend to move eastward.
The air mass that starts at the equator, however, tends to maintain its initial speed, so it will travel faster than anything below it. Therefore, it will travel faster and move eastward.
This phenomenon, linked to the Coriolis force, generates jet streams that airplanes exploit to reach their destination more quickly.
When traveling east, these currents are favorable.
When traveling west, however, they hinder the plane's progress.
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