Sit on the Left side of the plane for the best views on flights from Maputo to Chicago. Left side wins both ends of the flight. At takeoff you get Maputo Bay and Inhaca Island, and on arrival into O'Hare you get the Chicago skyline and Lake Michigan. The right side offers little of comparable interest at either end.

During takeoff from Maputo (MPM), sit on the Left side for the best views. Maputo airport's primary departure runway 23 takes you southwest, putting the left side facing southeast toward Maputo Bay and the Indian Ocean coastline. You get a clear view of the bay's wide estuary, the city waterfront, and the Inhaca Island sitting in the bay mouth. Notable sights include: Maputo Bay estuary, Inhaca Island, Maputo city waterfront and port, Katembe peninsula.

When landing at Chicago Ohare International (ORD), sit on the Left side for the best views. O'Hare typically uses runways oriented east-west or northwest-southeast. Approaches from the south or southeast on runway 10L/10R put the left side facing north toward downtown Chicago, Lake Michigan's southern shoreline, and the city grid. The lakefront and skyline are unmistakable on final approach. Notable sights include: Lake Michigan southern shoreline, Chicago downtown skyline, suburban Cook County grid, O'Hare's distinctive multi-runway complex.

The flight from Maputo (MPM) to Chicago Ohare International (ORD) takes Approximately 18-20 hours with at least one stop, typically via Addis Ababa, Nairobi, or a European hub — no nonstop service exists.

The route typically arcs north over East Africa crossing Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa, then over the Sahara Desert and Mediterranean Sea, across Western Europe including the Alps if routing via a European hub, then the North Atlantic, and finally the Great Lakes region of North America. Key geographic features include the Ethiopian Highlands, the Sahara's vast sand seas, the Mediterranean coastline, and the St. Lawrence or Great Lakes corridor depending on the transatlantic routing.