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Assalam 'alaikum
Consider that my flight takes off at 6:00 PM which is normal time for Jama'at of Asr (عصر) prayer in my city these days, and the flight is supposed to take 4 hours. This means that at the time of Maghrib (مغرب) prayer I'll be on board.
So, how can I pray while in an airplane? It is a moving thing.
Also, according to which time would I pray? According to my city's time or the one my plane is flying over at that time?
Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked about a man who was travelling by plane, and he did not know the direction of the qiblah because no one else there knew it either. He prayed and he did not know whether he was facing the qiblah during his prayer or not. Is prayer in such circumstances valid?
He replied: If the traveller in a plane wants to offer a naafil prayer, then he may pray in whatever direction he is facing and he does not have to face the qiblah, because it is proven that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to pray on his camel no matter what direction it was facing, when he was travelling. But with regard to obligatory prayers, it is essential to face the qiblah and to bow and prostrate if one is able. Therefore if a person is able to pray properly when he is in the plane, then he should do so., but if the prayer whose time has come when he is in the plane is one which may be joined with the prayer that comes after it, such as if the time for Zuhr, he can delay it and join it with ‘Asr, and if the time for Maghrib comes when he is in the plane, he can delay it and join it with ‘Isha’. He should ask the flight attendants about the direction of the qiblah if he is in a plane where the direction of the qiblah is not shown. If he does not do that then his prayer is not valid. End quote from Majallat al-Da’wah, issue no. 1757, p. 45.
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As Ansari said You have two options,
1.Try your best to find the qiblah direction.
2.You might be able to figure out the timings of (Fajr, Maghrib, and Isha ) by looking out of the window. For the others estimate if you can.
There are two things here: the direction of the qiblah, and the prayer time.
About the first, you try your best to find the direction. These days it's relatively easy because most international flights (or flights longer than a few hours) have a navigation device in front of each seat which shows you which direction the plane is going. Try using that to find where the qiblah is. If you can do it, great, pray that way. If not, then do the best you can, and Allah SWT doesn't burden a soul more than it can bear. islamqa
Now about the prayer time, for three of the prayers (Fajr, Maghrib, and 'Isha) one can work out looking out the window whether the time for these has started or not. For the other prayers, estimate if you can, plan it out beforehand by looking up the prayer times at the place you will be above at that time, and if you can do neither, do the best you can again islamqa. And if you happen to learn later that you prayed before time, then offer it again.
And finally, Allah SWT has a concession for those who are travelling - you can combine Dhuhr and 'Asr, and you can surely tell looking out the window whether it's daytime or not.
Bismillah Rahmani Raheem For obligatory prayers qiblah is mandatory. If all hope is gone, make ablution and salah whatever the situations are which you are going through. Allah subhanahuthala know the every human being intention and heart. Allah subhanahuthala may forgive all of our sins and bless our beloved prophet muhammad (sallallahu alaihiva sallam), sahabas u and us and all ummathis and grant jannatul ferdous to all .
