Sit on the Left side of the plane for the best views on flights from Fairbanks to Chicago. Left side wins at both ends of the flight. During the long cruise over central Canada, the left side also faces generally south and east, offering better views of the Canadian Rockies foothills, the boreal lake country of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and the Great Lakes as the flight descends into Chicago.

During takeoff from Fairbanks International (FAI), sit on the Left side for the best views. Fairbanks typically departs southeast on runway 2L/2R, putting the Alaska Range including Denali to the left (east-southeast). The Tanana River valley and the broad boreal flats are visible below, with the White Mountains to the north on the left side during the climb-out turn. Notable sights include: Alaska Range with Denali visible to the southwest, Tanana River floodplain, Chena River confluence near Fairbanks, White Mountains to the north.

When landing at Chicago Ohare International (ORD), sit on the Left side for the best views. O'Hare most commonly lands from the east or northeast on runways oriented roughly 10L/10C/10R, meaning the aircraft approaches from the east over Lake Michigan. A left window seat gets the Chicago lakefront, Grant Park, and the downtown skyline as the plane descends over the south shore of Lake Michigan before turning inland. Notable sights include: Chicago downtown skyline and Willis Tower, Lake Michigan shoreline, Grant Park and Museum Campus, O'Hare suburban grid of the northwest suburbs.

The flight from Fairbanks International (FAI) to Chicago Ohare International (ORD) takes Approximately 5 hours 30 minutes to 6 hours.

The flight tracks southeast over the Yukon-Tanana uplands, then crosses the Canadian Rockies and their eastern foothills over British Columbia and Alberta, passes over the vast boreal lake country of Saskatchewan and Manitoba with thousands of glacial lakes visible, crosses into Minnesota and Wisconsin over the northern hardwood forests, then descends over Lake Michigan into Chicago