fuel stop

[AirbusA321]

Is this dialog OK or does it need improvement?

Will there be fuel stops?
- Yes but if the creek don't rise only one in Taipeh.
How long will it take all in all?
- 16 and a half hours at best. Maybe a bit longer depending on up- or tailwinds.
Can we at least leave the plane in Taipeh to stretch one's legs and take photos?
- No, sorry, that's not possible. Please take an aspirin to avoid thrombosis.

 

[GoesStation]

Please don't write if the creek don't rise. This is an idiom which some people around where I live may use but which sounds absurd from a foreign learner.

What are "up-winds"? Just write "depending on the winds". You can add "aloft" if you want it to sound slightly technical.

 

[Skrej]

I'm guessing 'up-winds' is supposed to be 'headwinds'.

The full colloquialism, which as Goes mentioned is very folksy to the point it's almost a cliché, is "(The good) Lord willing and the creek don't rise." It's usually used a rejoinder when someone asks if something is possible or likely to occur in the near future.

I've only used the expression a few times in my life, always in an attempt to be humorous or facetious.

That being said, it never fails to elicit a delightful "What the #%^#?" or "Are you &%^# kidding me?" look on somebody's face, especially if they've never heard it before.

 

[AirbusA321]

What are "up-winds"?

It means that you fly against the wind. That makes the ground speed decrease. More fuel is needed then and, as RobertJ already mentioned, the flight takes longer.
For example, medium range jets flying from the Canary Islands to Scandinavia or vice versa sometimes need a fuel stop, sometimes not.

 

[GoesStation]

Aircraft contend with headwinds, tailwinds, and crosswinds. When you're flying into the wind, you have a headwind.

 

[Tdol]

Is Taipeh Taipei? I have only seen the latter used in recent years.

 

[bubbha]

Is this dialog OK or does it need improvement?

Will there be fuel stops?
- Yes but if the creek don't rise only one in Taipeh.
How long will it take all in all?
- 16 and a half hours at best. Maybe a bit longer depending on up- or tailwinds.
Can we at least leave the plane in Taipeh to stretch one's legs and take photos?
- No, sorry, that's not possible. Please take an aspirin to avoid thrombosis.

Taipei, not Taipeh. I should know. I live there.

Also, I've never heard the idiom "if the creek don't rise" in my life.

 

[GoesStation]

I've never heard the idiom "if the creek don't rise" in my life.

It's a folksy idiom used in a lighthearted way where I live on the edge of the Appalachian Mountains, usually in the longer expression "Lord willing and the creek don't rise." This expresses the same idea as normalement in French or insh'allah in Arabic: we'll do it unless circumstances prevent it.

The people who originated it often live in narrow hollows ("hollers" in their dialect) where they have to cross a creek to get in or out. The creek may rise above the point where it can be crossed after a heavy rain. As late as the mid-Eighties some small roads in southern Indiana had s-shaped fords that crossed creeks. You could easily drive across them in normal conditions, but if you drove onto one when the water was high, you'd risk being swept away. I don't know whether any of these fords are still in service.