Thread: what is the difference between лететь и летать?

Originally Posted by krobatshov

yep

I have to add the following:
летать is used if someone has no target, like flying around etc.
whereas лететь understands that smbdy has a target, like he's flying to the north...

Then why Russians says for example


<< Самолет летит над океаном >> ??

Originally Posted by klopp

Then why Russians says for example


<< Самолет летит над океаном >> ??

I think that's a lot about usage. Since planes have limited fuel then it's expected that if they fly over the ocean then there must be a destination. That would make the usage "determinate".
A bird flying over the ocean could have no specific destination but that's not usually true for a plane.

It's simpler to think of it that лететь is used when you are talking about something flying in a specific direction (usually at a specific time) and летать is used in every other sense of the word. Самолет летит над океаном means "right now there is a plane flying above the ocean". But in another context you could say самолеты летают - for example: я живу рядом с аеропортом - самолеты часто летают над моим домом. You might also use самолеты часто летят in this sentence, but it would have an unusual meaning, like planes always fly in the same direction above your house.