Here is a valid question that requires answers: Why do government and scientific documents use the term "flat earth" and "flat non-rotating earth"? Below are 3 examples. There are dozens of others but let's concentrate on these three for now. Seriously, why are they using this terminology? Should we not take them literally and instead interpret them metaphorically even though they're used in modern scientific papers? Also
@GodfatherPartTwo, they did not use the term "pancake".
Example 1:
Joseph R. Miletta. Adelphi, MD : U.S. Army Research Laboratory, [2001]
Propagation of Electromagnetic Fields Over Flat Earth
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Conclusion
Example 2:
NASA Reference Publication 1207 [1988]
Eugene L. Duke, Robert F. Antoniewicz, and Keith D. Krambeer Ames Research CenterDryden Flight Research Facility Edwards, California
Derivation and definition of a linear aircraft model
A linear aircraft model for a rigid aircraft of constant mass flying over a flat, nonrotating earth is derived and defined. The derivation makes no assumptions of reference trajectory or vehicle symmetry. The linear system equations are derived and evaluated along a general trajectory and...
ntrs.nasa.gov
From the Introduction on Page 7 of the PDF
Example 3:
Aerostudents.com, Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. Circa [2010]
So are they just teaching with wrong information and wrong assumptions in their Flight Dynamics course but once in the real world, the students and pilots will somehow know to correct what they learned and function properly on a spherical rotating earth as opposed to a flat, non-rotating earth?
Concluding Question - Why is this terminology being used by highly intelligent people in very serious papers where calculations and mathematics are extremely important?