The first thing that stands out is that you are going out with BMI and coming back with Onur Air, so perhaps they are using different types of plane.

The other thing is air traffic control slots, there may be different routings.

And there's always each airlines policy on how it advertises it's times. Some pad them out to appear more punctual (Swiss advertise 2 hours Manchester - Basel when it only takes 100 minutes) or to make sure people get to the gate on time.

Is that actually right, Fionay?

The difference between the outbound flight is 6 hours 35 mins, difference between return is 3 hours 10 mins.

If Turkey (I think) are 2 hours in front of UK, then the outbound flight takes 4 hours 35 mins, the inbound 5 hours 10 mins.

Usually, westbound flights (which your return flight obviously is) take a little longer because of headwinds.

Of course, I had a few beers watching the footie last night so my calculations could be fatally flawed.....

Prettypollycat wrote:

Is that actually right, Fionay?

The difference between the outbound flight is 6 hours 35 mins, difference between return is 3 hours 10 mins.

If Turkey (I think) are 2 hours in front of UK, then the outbound flight takes 4 hours 35 mins, the inbound 5 hours 10 mins.

Usually, westbound flights (which your return flight obviously is) take a little longer because of headwinds.

Of course, I had a few beers watching the footie last night so my calculations could be fatally flawed..... :glynis

5 hours 10 mins is 35 mins more than 4 hours 35 which is what I was querying or maybe I have misunderstood your post I don't even need beer to get confused lol

fionay,

There's about 35-40kn difference in aircraft cruising speeds; Bmi A320 ~445kn, OHY A300B4 ~480kn. That would account for a bit of a difference but the main one is the flying conditions on the day, ie wind direction and strength. Aircraft move through the air in a similar fashion to how boats do in water, they aren't like cars. They move through a fluid which itself is dynamic, effecting the aircraft (or boat) speed and direction. This can either help or hinder progress depending if it's a tail, head or side wind that needs to be compensated for. Flight times are calculated using a flight model with average wind conditions that can be expected for the flight plan. The actual route differs slighty as well with assigned tracks for eastbound traffic, and those for westbound (which tend to be a bit further south) so traffic moving in different directions don't conflict. You would generally route across europe to Greece and down the Turkish coastline outbound. Inbound is generally across the Med to Venice then through central europe.

Darren

When we went to Turkey 2 years ago with Thomas Cook it took 3 hours 48 minutes from Newcastle to Antalya.I suppose we had a tail wind.

Jay Trip,

That would have been aboard a Boeing 757-200 which are rocket ships compared to the A320. They cruise at close to 500kn. A bit of wind from the rear is always a bonus though On the way to Antigua in March, we had such a tail wind at one point we ended up landing 45 minutes ahead of schedule. The ground speed was over 650kn with 75kn behind us!

Darren

Does one not go more quickly westwards because the earth is rotating east? This surely makes a difference on long haul flights? Or have I got my rotation directon wrong?

ukbill,

Flights westbound are generally longer because of prevailing wind conditions. Eastbound flights have a helping hand because of tail winds. For example:

MAN-SFB (A332): Flight time 9hrs 20 mins
SFB-MAN (A332): Flight time 8 hrs 30 mins

Darren