[Grammar] Flight From San Francisco To Seattle

[learningspirit]

I have a question about the usage of "flight" here:

ON Monday, June 17, at 6:30 a.m., Robin Wolaner boarded a flight from San Francisco to Seattle.

It appears that "flight" here means an airplane.

Since most people don't write:

an airplane from San Francisco to Seattle

,but write instead:

an airplane flying/going from San Francisco to Seattle

Would adding "flying" to the original example, like this:

ON Monday, June 17, at 6:30 a.m., Robin Wolaner boarded a flight flying from San Francisco to Seattle.

be better?

 

[tedmc]

You just say: board/take a flight from X to Y.

not a teacher

 

[bhaisahab]

The original sentence is correct and natural.

 

[Tdol]

Would adding "flying" to the original example be better?

Not to me- what does it add as we already know that flights fly?

 

[Matthew Wai]

May I say that it adds redundancy?

Not a teacher.

 

[SoothingDave]

Since most people don't write:

an airplane from San Francisco to Seattle


You are arguing facts not in evidence. Most people would say that exact thing.

This same question came up last week about a boat to somewhere. Was that you asking that question?

This is indeed natural. We don't have to say that a plane is flying. People know that.

 

[Olympian]

I have a question about the usage of "flight" here:



It appears that "flight" here means an airplane.

...

***** Not a teacher *****

I have noticed that some people in India tend to use the word 'flight' to refer to any airplane (not only a scheduled airline flight).

I did a quick search on thefreedictionary.com and it gives many meanings of the word 'flight', and one of them is:
A scheduled airline run or trip into space: Example - the 7:00 flight to New York; the next flight of the space shuttle.

Later (below on the page), it says:
an airplane making a scheduled trip

If it is referring to an airplane making a scheduled trip, is it correct when some people say 'the flight fell down'?Usually, I read something like 'the aircraft/plane fell from the sky' or 'the aircraft/plane fell to the earth', but not 'the flight fell from the sky'. So, I take it that - if it says 'the flight fell/crashed', then it is a scheduled run, but if it says 'the aircraft/plane fell/crashed', then it may or may not be a scheduled run.

It this understanding correct?

If it is more appropriate I will submit this as a separate question.

Thank you

 

[learningspirit]

Is:

an airplane from San Francisco to Seattle

standard English compared to:

an airplane flying from San Francisco to Seattle

?

 

[tedmc]

The standard English is "one takes a flight from SF to Seattle " or "one flies from SF to Seattle".
The word "airplane" is not used much as it is understood.

not a teacher

 

[Raymott]

The word "airplane" is not used much as it is understood.

And it's 'plane' if it's anything. A child might say 'airplane'. It's also an 'aeroplane', (hmm, that gets a red line under it. But in all normal circumstances, it's a 'plane'.

 

[learningspirit]

@Raymott

Do you think that:

an airplane from San Francisco to Seattle

is standard English compared to

an airplane flying from San Francisco to Seattle

?

Does that mean I could write:

He boarded a bus from San Francisco to San Jose.

instead of :

He boarded a bus going from San Francisco to San Jose.

?

 

[Matthew Wai]

I deem 'flying' and 'going' redundant, but I am not a teacher.

 

[SoothingDave]

@Raymott

Do you think that:



is standard English compared to



?

Does that mean I could write:



instead of :





?

Yes! Didn't you ask this last week about a boat? Then a plane, now a bus. The answer is always the same.

 

[learningspirit]

So, "a bicycle from San Francisco to San Jose" is also good English compared to "a bicycle going from San Francisco to San Jose"?


P.S. I didn't post a question asking about boats. It must have been someone else.

 

[Raymott]

You need to use full sentences. "... a bicycle from San Francisco to San Jose" might or might not be right.
"I rode a bicycle from San Francisco to San Jose." - Sure.
"I rode a bicycle going from San Francisco to San Jose." - No.
"I saw a bicycle going from San Francisco to San Jose." - Yes.
"I painted a bicycle from San Francisco to San Jose." - No

 

[learningspirit]

@Raymott

How about these four sentence pairs:

1a. The accident involved a bus from San Francisco to San Jose.
1b. The accident involved a bus going from San Francisco to San Jose.

2a. The accident involved a bicycle from San Francisco to San Jose.
2b. The accident involved a bicycle going from San Francisco to San Jose.


It seems that 1a and 2a are wrong.

 

[bhaisahab]

1a is fine. 2a is probably not.

 

[learningspirit]

There seems to be some special quality to a bus or a flight (in the sense of an airplane), so that these:

1. a bus from San Francisco to San Jose
2. a flight (airplane sense) from San Francisco to San Jose

are correct standalone noun phrases. But this, using a bicycle:

3. a bicycle from San Francisco to San Jose

is not a correct standalone noun phrase for some mysterious reason. Hmmm.....

 

[MikeNewYork]

For 3, you can say "a bicycle trip from San Francisco to San Jose".

 

[SoothingDave]

There seems to be some special quality to a bus or a flight (in the sense of an airplane), so that these:

1. a bus from San Francisco to San Jose
2. a flight (airplane sense) from San Francisco to San Jose

are correct standalone noun phrases. But this, using a bicycle:

3. a bicycle from San Francisco to San Jose

is not a correct standalone noun phrase for some mysterious reason. Hmmm.....

The "mysterious reason" is that bikes are not means of public transit. They are personal devices. They're not usually used for interurban travel, either.