Sleeping on airplanes

[Frodo]

And by 'sleep' I mean a good, long, deep, refreshing sleep. 

I could never manage to. 

[DC Al Fine]

And by 'sleep' I mean a good, long, deep, refreshing sleep. 

I could never manage to. 

Not by your definition, but I've always managed to get a few hours of poor, fitful sleep on long flights.

[Mr. Morden]

No, not a good sleep.  Not even on the 14 hours flights between Sydney and LAX.  That's why when I lived in Australia, the #1 medium on which I watched movies was airplanes.  That'll probably changed now that I'm back in the US though.

[SATW]

Yes. I can usually sleep on a flight that's longer than an hour. I've only flown on two long flights (about about 11 hrs each) in the last few years and I spent half of both flights being asleep.

Most of my flights are ~5 hours, though. I usually take an hr or 2 hr nap or so and than just hang out the rest of the time.

[DC Al Fine]

No, not a good sleep.  Not even on the 14 hours flights between Sydney and LAX.  That's why when I lived in Australia, the #1 medium on which I watched movies was airplanes.  That'll probably changed now that I'm back in the US though.

How did you stay interested? I had an eight hour daytime flight a while ago. After the third movie in a row, I couldn't even stay interested in that.

[Mr. Morden]

No, not a good sleep.  Not even on the 14 hours flights between Sydney and LAX.  That's why when I lived in Australia, the #1 medium on which I watched movies was airplanes.  That'll probably changed now that I'm back in the US though.

How did you stay interested? I had an eight hour daytime flight a while ago. After the third movie in a row, I couldn't even stay interested in that.

I mean, on those long international flights they give you the personalized video things, where you can pick from a list of 50-100 movies.  I tend to go to the airline website in advance of the flight, to see what movies they'll have available, and then I check the reviews on the ones that look interesting to me.  Usually, finding 5 movies I'm interested in watching isn't a problem.  Sometimes it is, but usually I'm fine.  Sure, it might get a little boring after a while, but what's the alternative?  Long flights are boring.

[Frodo]

No, not a good sleep.  Not even on the 14 hours flights between Sydney and LAX.  That's why when I lived in Australia, the #1 medium on which I watched movies was airplanes.  That'll probably changed now that I'm back in the US though.

How did you stay interested? I had an eight hour daytime flight a while ago. After the third movie in a row, I couldn't even stay interested in that.

I mean, on those long international flights they give you the personalized video things, where you can pick from a list of 50-100 movies.  I tend to go to the airline website in advance of the flight, to see what movies they'll have available, and then I check the reviews on the ones that look interesting to me.  Usually, finding 5 movies I'm interested in watching isn't a problem.  Sometimes it is, but usually I'm fine.  Sure, it might get a little boring after a while, but what's the alternative?  Long flights are boring.

Do you bring books and magazines with you as carry-on luggage like I do?  It helps reduce the strain on your eyes from watching movies. 

[SATW]

When I flew on Brussels airlines they had games and music on their flights along w/ movies. So I jammed out to music whenever i got bored w/ the movies.

[muon2]

I've never had trouble sleeping in vehicles whether cars, buses, trains, or planes. On overseas flights I try to plan my daily schedule to get the most out of the sleep time available.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Almost never have, and I've been on almost a dozen 11-hour flights.

[Mr. Smith]

Easily, especially on red-eyes when I'm already exhausted....I've even booked red-eyes specifically to do that.

Passed out both ways Oakland-Long Beach, and that's only an hour.

But then, I'm a light sleeper.

[Mike Thick]

I just can't sleep on planes. Period. I've never been able to get so much as a minute of shuteye.

[Virginiá]

It depends what seat I'm in and who is around me. If it's a window seat, sure. If I'm surrounded by friends/family, sure. If it's an aisle seat, probably not. I don't sleep if I am sandwiched between two strangers, though.

[kyc0705]

I managed to sleep through most of a red-eye from LAX to PHL last month, but that was definitely a rare occurrence.

[politicallefty]

No, I can't. Last time I flew (late last year), I had a total of about two hours of sleep in the past two days prior to flying. I was wide awake the entire time. Granted, that was just a few hours flying across the country. I've also done the West to East red-eye and I still don't sleep. I do like night flights though. They just feel calmer and the darkness is good for watching TV shows and whatnot on my iPhone and iPad.

[DavidB.]

I generally do sleep on airplanes if the flight takes more than 1.5 hours, but only when I have a window seat (which I usually reserve in advance) -- I don't like bothering the person next to me or falling into the aisle. I usually have one or two alcoholic drinks, turn on the music and then take a nap until I arrive. Longest flight I've been on was only 8 hours, though. Most of my flights are 3-5 hours.

[Vosem]

Never. Even after 30 hours or so staying awake on a transcontinental flight I've been utterly unable to get a single minute. But I'm a habitual insomniac in any case.

[Illiniwek]

I used to be able to. Generally can't anymore.

I might be freaked out ever since I sat next to a hot girl on the plane once and REALLY didn't want to embarrass myself falling asleep on top of her.

[Xing]

If it's a long enough flight at the right time, yes. Flights from Seattle to Taipei leave at 1 or 2 AM, and they turn off the lights at 3/4 AM, so I can generally get a good amount of sleep on those flights.

[politicallefty]

If it's a long enough flight at the right time, yes. Flights from Seattle to Taipei leave at 1 or 2 AM, and they turn off the lights at 3/4 AM, so I can generally get a good amount of sleep on those flights.

3/4 AM? Every flight I've ever been on turns off the lights when the sun goes down.

[morgieb]

Haven't been on a flight longer than about 3 hours so it's hard to assess. But in long car rides I can't, so it's doubtful.

[#TheShadowyAbyss]

I slept like a baby when I flew from Orlando to Amsterdam on the way to Amman when I visited Jordan a few years back.

[Mr. Morden]

If it's a long enough flight at the right time, yes. Flights from Seattle to Taipei leave at 1 or 2 AM, and they turn off the lights at 3/4 AM, so I can generally get a good amount of sleep on those flights.

3/4 AM? Every flight I've ever been on turns off the lights when the sun goes down.

For long international flights where you're crossing many time zones, the airline tends to create its own definition of "night" which doesn't synch exactly with when the sun is down.  Usually, for such long trans-Pacific flights, they keep the lights on for the first hour or two at least, regardless of what time the plane took off.  I mean, on a flight from LAX to Sydney for example, it might be dark outside for ~14 hours out of a 15 hour flight.  They're not going to keep the lights off for the whole time.

[Xing]

If it's a long enough flight at the right time, yes. Flights from Seattle to Taipei leave at 1 or 2 AM, and they turn off the lights at 3/4 AM, so I can generally get a good amount of sleep on those flights.

3/4 AM? Every flight I've ever been on turns off the lights when the sun goes down.

Mr. Morden answered this pretty well, but also, if they were to go by when the sun goes down, that would mean that they'd have to have the lights off starting right at the beginning of the flight, which wouldn't be a wise idea. They usually provide a meal when the flight reaches cruising altitude, and then turn the lights off.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

How did Jack Ryan vote?