Flat earthers never say that there are never flights over the north pole, just that they don't do it for commercial routes and/or on a regular basis. It's really not all that funny.

I'm not really understanding why it is necessary for the earth to be round to go from point to point.

If you want to talk about flying, one interesting point is that planes would have to continually point their noses downwards in order to account for the curvature.
 
I know you said you don't want to much maths, but to show this it is really necessary. They fly at high speeds. The curvature of the earth is such that if after 120 miles there is a drop of 1.8 miles. If you are doing that at 500 miles an hour (or faster if you are in concorde - 1354mph) that is is an incredible drop. Just think about it. Yet pilots NEVER speak about having to do this.

Tom, I can't say that I personally gave a lot of thought to your plane hypothesis, due to my own ignorance, however I discussed it with my pilot friend at length. I believe that I have borrowed his knowledge for the last time. He is not as curious about these Issues, and was amused that you claimed Pilots don't discuss this ("pilots NEVER speak about having to do this" is what you stated). He said it is discussed and taught repetitively in flight school before one even leaves the ground. Anyway, the following is a response he gave me trying to make it simple for a simpleton like me.  " There isn't an adjustment for altitude, it naturally follows the curvature of the earth. This is because the aircraft flies through the atmosphere which also follows the curvature. The aircraft is usually flown along the "density altitude." As long as the aircraft is flown at a certain altitude it will follow the earth's curvature (as the atmosphere is "attached" to the spherical earth) as the altitude is measured from the surface, which is curved, and not a plane. The weight of the aircraft always acts towards the center of the earth, and is matched (in level flight) by the lift of the wings. You trim for level flight by finding the pitch attitude where your speed and altitude remain constant (or at least stable). That attitude might be a touch more nose-down than it would be if the earth were flat, but it is imperceptible. Bottom Line: Pilots follow the air pressure gradient trying to keep the aircraft at a set air pressure. This pressure is used rather then a GPS or "straight flight" because its one of the many factors that effects flight efficiency. Speed vs air resistance vs load bearing capacity of the aircraft. They fly in a pressure range that is going to cost the least to accomplish the flight goal. By flying in this specific range of pressure, they maintain a reasonably constant height from sea level. Since sea level pressure is curved along with the earth, they then follow automatically the earth's curvature.

I see your point that you made and I trust this particular answer to the question. I do not think this is the most obvious question either way. It remains my contention that you could not fly around the world heading in the same direction (east or west) and end up back at your starting point unless the earth was spherical. At least it appears that way to me. If the earth were flat at some point the plane would fly over the edge of flat earth into nothingness unless the flat earth were perpetual in length; however you still would not return to your starting point in a perpetual flat earth. You would be forced to "turn around"and go an equal length in the opposite direction to accomplish this. At least that is my perception of the issue.  

SVincentL

Thanks for having the maturity to discuss this issue in a civil manner. Believe me, this is to be noted.

When I said pilots don't speak about this, I meant publicly.

Here is a link to once of the most accurate flat earth maps of the world. There is some legitimate debate among flat earthers about it, but it gets the point across:

https://fedora.digitalcommonwealth.org/fedora/objects/commonwealth:7h149v867/datastreams/access800/content

Since pilots admit (a pilot said to another flat earth friend of mine) that they do not commercially fly across the north pole, the routes look silly, but essentially it is simply from point to point around the "centre" of the earth as you see on this map. That's simply how it is done.

As for the explanation given by your friend, it is a little convenient. It is a little bit strange to say that you would not feel the drop especially when you are going on the high speed planes.

The air pressure argument is very odd, and while I understand it from the perspective of altitude, it doesn't really argue much against the point I am making.

I posted this over on the other thread, but I think it is important that you break from the round earth circular logic. Proofs of the flat earth are based on the earth principally, not the sky, nor even the numerous curiousities which we are discussing. If all flat earthers could understand this, then the movement would be a lot more credible.

Here is the video to ponder:




As for your last post, I personally would say that high flying aircraft are plausible ( and the images that come from them). Certainly satellites are not.
 

Thanks Tom, I will watch the videos and get back with you on this.

Neil; I just spoke to my friend and he told me that you do not have to constantly change directions to remain directly over the equator.

He also said that he has, in fact flown over the North Pole, for whatever that is worth. On a humorous note he added that he suspected the moon was actually made of cheese. I apologize if that sounds condescending. I realize that flat earthers do have their opinions and defenses of their position. I find all of this quite interesting, probably due to my skepticism on moon landings. But that is another story. Thanks Neil...

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Thank you - one does not have to constantly change directions to remain directly over the equator.
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Simple question, straight answer. Very nice. Much obliged.
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Neil I was referring to the fact that when my friend traveled around the world they zig zagged (as from London to Germany etc.) but always flew east. He indeed also told me that he could fly over the equator without moving left or right. It was two separate issues.

Neil I was referring to the fact that when my friend traveled around the world they zig zagged (as from London to Germany etc.) but always flew east. He indeed also told me that he could fly over the equator without moving left or right. It was two separate issues.

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Flying over the equator is something that few pilots ever do, nonetheless anyone familiar with navigation of aircraft and ships knows that it's not necessary to compensate by course correction when moving along the equator, either at sea or over the equator by air. No turning is necessary to remain on course at the equator.
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However, when trying to sail (or fly) for example from Japan due east to California by remaining on the 34th parallel, one must constantly make course adjustments to stay on course 34 degrees north of the equator, because the 34th parallel is a curved line on the ground (or surface of the ocean). In other words, even though the course (34 deg. north) is PARALLEL to the equator (where no turning is necessary to remain on course), the vessel (or plane) has to continually turn LEFT a slight amount in order to remain eastbound on the 34th parallel. If corrections are not made every few minutes, in short order the craft will be off course, drifting toward the equator. If no corrections are made at all, the vessel or plane will not reach California, but will end up approaching South America instead.
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On the south side of the equator, the opposite condition exists, such that traveling eastward for example from Australia to Chile along the 33rd parallel south, the ship (or plane) must continually adjust its course by turning to the right a small amount. If no such correction is made, the course will drift north all by itself, automatically, and will take the vessel (or aircraft) to North America instead of to Chile.
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Even though the course begins due east, parallel with the equator, and proceeds due east, parallel with the equator, the rudder must be turned to the right to keep the vessel from drifting toward the equator.
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This is very basic navigation. All navigators who know anything at all about navigation, know this.
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Putting all this together, the equator then appears as a straight line on the ground (or surface of the ocean), as far as the eye can see, and a very fast aircraft flying over the earth could follow this very straight line on the ground as if it were a line painted on an airport runway that goes on to the horizon.
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However, all parallels north of the equator would appear as if a curved line on the ground. In the northern hemisphere, they would curve to the left ahead, and in the southern hemisphere they would curve to the right (both of these going eastward, again).
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To be clear, all parallel "baselines" in the northern hemisphere curve to the left up ahead if you're headed east, but if you turn around and face west, they all curve to the right up ahead in the distance.
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Likewise, in the southern hemisphere, they curve to the right in the distance ahead if you're facing east, but (180 degrees behind you) when you turn around and face west, the parallel baselines in the distance curve to the left.
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These lines of parallel are not great circles like the equator is, and that is why they curve in the distance toward the horizon. Any great circle route when viewed IRL, even with a telescope, appears as a straight line in the distance toward the horizon.
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Here is a map showing the Michigan Base Line and Meridian, names circled in red. Look at your screen sideways  and observe how Base Line curves ever so slightly to the left going east and to the right going west:



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It's not too hard to imagine that without instruments it is pretty hard to see this curve because it is so gradual and broad. Remember, it is a curve with the center at the north pole, so with the naked eye, it's going to appear to be a straight line. You'd have to go to a high lookout point and see into the distance with a telescope on a VERY clear day, before you would see any curve.
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The following map shows at least 3 Base Lines, two in California and one in Arizona. You can peek sideways at these as well and observe their curve right on your Internet device screen. The Baseline in San Bernardino County (the largest county in the entire United States) is the centerline of Base Line Street, "San Berdoo":
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The next exhibit in evidence is a map showing the three Base Line and Meridians in California used to identify real estate property lines, San Bernardino Baseline and Meridian, Mt. Diablo Baseline and Meridian (near San Francisco) and the Humboldt Baseline and Meridian (near Humboldt), complete with longitude and latitude in degrees, minutes and seconds:


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The centerline of Base Line Street, San Bernardino, is this very line used for land surveys.
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It's kind of a crude map, but even here if you look from the side you can see the curvature of the two southern Baselines. The Humboldt one is too short, only about 100 miles on the map. By definition, the meridian lines, having the same bearing west of Greenwich, would be accurately shown as straight lines, however, since California is so long north to south, some curve has crept into the map in the San Berdo. region. Curiously, even though the Mt. Diablo Meridian is longer, it appears to be straighter on this map.
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