The wind component averages out over time or is slightly in favor of the aircraft because you would aim for optimal wind by selecting a preferred altitude. But

The wind component averages out over time or is slightly in favor of the aircraft because you would aim for optimal wind by selecting a preferred altitude. But air miles and car miles are not equal. The car route is nearly always longer, even in flat terrain roads don't usually go in a straight line to the destination. Adding in mountains or water makes that worse for the car. For example driving Amsterdam to Barcelona is 1554km according to Google Maps. The flightplan route is 1236km and usually the really flown route is a bit shorter if ATC allows. That's 20% less miles for the airplane.