Plane Sidetest

Sights from the plane

Seeing the Pyrenees from a plane

The Pyrenees run east to west between Spain and France, so almost every flight between Barcelona and northern Europe crosses them, and each side sees a different part of the range.

Rendered view of snowy Pyrenees ridges from the left window
Barcelona → Paris, left, 16:34
Rendered view of the snowy Canigó massif from the right window
Barcelona → Paris, right, 16:35

Rendered from real satellite imagery and terrain, not photos. Imagery: EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2017), CC BY 4.0. Terrain: Copernicus EU-DEM via Mapzen terrain tiles.

Northbound from Barcelona, the high central Pyrenees (Aneto, 3,404 m, and Pica d'Estats) are to the west of the path, so they are on the left. The Canigó massif, the last big mountain before the Mediterranean, is to the east, on the right.

Southbound, the sides swap. In November and December the peaks are snow-capped, and late-afternoon flights see them in low golden light.

Which side, by route

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