Why Do Flights Take Longer Routes Instead Of Straight Lines?

Airlines routinely adjust routes to take advantage of favourable winds, even if that means flying a path that looks longer.
Wall Street Journal

Paths of American Airlines Flight 5342 and Black Hawk Helicopter

Here is a diagram showing the flight paths of American Airlines flight 5342 and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter before they collided before 9 p.m. on Wednesday, with the wreckage from the two ...
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NTSB Hearing Day 1: DCA flight path posed challenges, but wasn’t changed due to government priorities

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - Wednesday marked the beginning of a three-day National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) hearing on the causes behind a crash between American Airlines Flight 5342, which took ...