Well, that isn't a straight-forward problem. Take Atlanta to Zurich, for example (a Delta flight I have been on). Conventionally, the plane flies up the East c

Well, that isn't a straight-forward problem. Take Atlanta to Zurich, for example (a Delta flight I have been on). Conventionally, the plane flies up the East coast until it clears Nova Scotia, in part because that is approximately the great circle route, but also because pilot training 101 tells you that your flight plan must include nearest emergency landing point for every inch of your route. So for super-sonic flight, that path might be modified to be off-shore enough to keep sonic boom over the ocean, but follow the East coast closely enough that an airport capable of accommodating the plane for an emergency landing is always within a reasonable distance. (Bonus points for being able to fuel up and take off again.) It isn't simply a problem in spherical geometry.