Learn English – The word for “make (a plane) take off”

word-request

A pilot can land an airplane and an airplane can land. 'Land' is both transitive and intransitive.

What about 'take off'? I looked it up but there is just one example as an intransitive verb.

'The plane took off from Heathrow.'

A pilot can (make a plane take off).

What is the one word to replace what's in bracket?

Thanks

Best Answer

According to the Concise Oxford Dictionary, you can use take off about either a plane or a pilot: in other words, it is correct to say

The pilot took off.

So the sentence in your comment would work as

He took off, but couldn't fly the plane for a long time and had to land it a minute later.

As you said, take off is definitely intransitive, so you cannot say something like

Have you ever taken off an Airbus 380?

You would have to say

Have you ever piloted an Airbus 380 at take off?

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