Eli5 Why do European flights flight paths to the U.S go via the UK and not just straight across the ocean?

Question

Eli5 Why do European flights flight paths to the U.S go via the UK and not just straight across the ocean?

In: Other

Answer 1

The Earth is not flat, like a map.

The Earth is a sphere, and those “great circle” paths are the shortest direct path on a sphere.