The Reason Airplane Windows Are Round

Viewing the scenery out an airplane window is one of the most enjoyable things about air travel. You may have never thought about the shape of the windows, but there is a good reason why airplane windows are round. You may be surprised to learn that they came about because of a series of tragic, unfortunate events.

We sometimes take for granted the many engineering feats that make our current forms of transportation feasible. One of these is the seemingly innocuous round window on jet airliners and other pressurized aircraft. If it weren’t for the engineering in these windows, every flight in the air would be a recipe for disaster.

In 1952, a revolution in air travel took place. The British made de Havilland Comet became the world’s first production jetliner. The Comet made long-range, high-altitude travel possible in a short amount of time and intended to change the face of commercial air travel.

On May 2, 1952, a de Havilland Comet owned by the British Overseas Airway Corporation made a maiden flight from London to five different stops before landing in Johannesburg, South Africa. The airplane cruised at 35,000 feet and went faster than any other commercial aircraft up to that time. The British Overseas Airway Corporation ended up ordering eight of the new aircraft, and other airline companies followed suit.