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A compass would probably be of marginal utility if you're flying a "great circle" route across an ocean. For instance, if you were to fly non-stop from Chicago
by hermitdev 8y ago
A compass would probably be of marginal utility if you're flying a "great circle" route across an ocean. For instance, if you were to fly non-stop from Chicago to London, your initial route will have you heading north east, but at the end, you'll be heading south east.
- HarryHirsch 8y agoThat's why ships would follow a loxodrome instead of a great circle route. They'd still arrive in port, though.
- mjlee 8y agoWhile this is true, an aircraft has very critical fuel requirements - taking a longer and less efficient route combined with a faulty navigation system is a factor best avoided.
- ninkendo 8y agoI was about to correct you sand say "no, they'd follow a rhumb line", but then I looked it up and realized they're two terms for the same thing. TIL!