If you’ve always wanted to know where your plane was while you’re high up in the sky, looking out the window doesn’t give you the answers all the time. In fact, most of the time you’ll probably be staring at clouds or indiscernible terrain. What about for those times when you don’t have a window seat and can’t look out? WindowsSeat aims to change all that. The latest app from the Portland-based AppOven is an interesting way to find out where you are mid-flight without having to keep asking the cabin crew for updates. But wait – an app on the plane that tracks your flight progress? Won’t that require GPS or a data connection that isn’t allowed on the plane? AppOven solves this problem by making the app independent from any communication radios – it tells your flight path from historical data (that is updated monthly). All you have to do is enter where you depart from, what time your flight leaves, and the arrival destination. And because flight paths are usually fixed and consistent, the app can give you a good estimate of where you are mid flight. You just have to let it know the current flight time, and it will automatically adjust your position on the map. In addition to letting you know where you are, the app also highlights and points-of-interest that you are flying over, so you won’t miss any landmarks or interesting locations.
But because the app relies on its monthly updated historical data, it doesn’t take into account unforeseen weather phenomena, irregular flight paths and other conditions that divert or delay a flight while in air. Fair enough, since you shouldn’t be using communication radios while on a flight – and the app isn’t supposed to be pin point accurate, it’s more of a fun app to let you know where you are so I think it shouldn’t be much of a problem. The app is available now on the iTunes App Store for $6.99.
