As the Crow Flies

An expression meaning the straight-line distance between two places, without following roads, channels or terrain.

At sea, a straight line on a chart is not automatically a safe or practicable route. Land, shoals, traffic separation schemes, restricted areas, weather and tidal streams may require a longer planned track.

Stories that the expression arose from releasing crows aboard ships are widely repeated but lack firm historical support. The phrase should therefore be presented as ordinary figurative language rather than a proven nautical derivation.