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"I can fly. Not jump. Not leap. Fly."
Phoebe to Piper.[src]

Flight, more commonly referred to as flying, is the power to defy gravity and propel oneself through the air at tremendous speeds and heights. Self-propelled flight is by far the fastest way to fly to one's desired destination without having to teleport all the way there.

This power is superior to all other gravity defying powers; as such it automatically grants the user access to several other abilities: Levitation, Hovering, Floating and Rising.

Overview[]

"The Dome magic let you tap into the point your powers will grow to"
Prue explaining to Phoebe why she is able to fly[src]

Users can lift themselves off the ground through sheer act of will or by rising one or both hands into the air: once airborne, he or she can self-propel through the air at tremendous speeds and in any direction he or she chooses.

Besides transportation, the power is especially useful when conducting aerial reconnaissance, evading attacks or escaping capture. It is possible to carry others while flying, presumably this is limited to the strength of the flyer. For example, Phoebe Halliwell was able to carry two normal-sized adults with ease. Another good example of this feat was when a Genie stripped the power of Flight from a Dragon Warlock and granted it to her. When the Dragon Warlock came looking for his stolen power, Phoebe grabbed him and flew him out of the manor. She was able to sustain his weight with only one arm until she dropped him in a park.

While inside the Nexus of the All, Phoebe became able to use her power to its full potential, allowing her to not only fly but was also able to carry Piper and Paige with ease. According to Prue, the dome let her tap into the point her power will grow to, but it will take some time for her power to grow to that level naturally.

It should be noted that before her power grew into flight, Phoebe flew on several different occasions using her own magic, each time was due to her Levitation power temporarily evolving.

Control[]

Natural flight takes time to learn, as one must first learn how to maintain balance and navigate while floating. Some users may also find landing difficult, and will most likely crash land a few times before they are able to land on their feet properly. However, people who naturally possess and use the power of levitation may not require training when their power evolves, because they already have experience of defying gravity. Since flight is activated by arm movements, one can find themselves accidentally ascending in the air by casually raising their arms.

Speed[]

Phoebe'sFirstFlight2

Phoebe can fly ultrasonically

The speed of flight depends on the flyer's level of power and type of ability.

Self-propelled and winged flight can match some forms of teleportation in speed, like orbing. However, a self-propelling flyer can fly much faster than someone using wings due to the lack of physical effort to keep one up in the air and the lack of gravity, as seen when Phoebe flew from San Francisco to Phoenix, Arizona in a blink of an eye, though her powers were unstable at the time due to Prue and Paige accidentally disrupting the balance of the Charmed Ones.

The Dragon Warlock was able to fly at great speed, but he wasn't fast enough to escape the Charmed Ones' vanquishing spell.

Limitations[]

Phoebeflightlimit2

Phoebe discovers her power has a limit

"Guess I can only fly for brief amounts of time."
Phoebe discovers her power has a limit.[src]

After Rennek's defeat, Phoebe took to the air to enjoy her power, but she quickly discovered that she could only use it for brief amounts of time. Prue said it will take some time for her power to reach the level of power she had experienced in the dome naturally.

Supported Flight[]

Supported flight is where a magical being can only fly through some form of magical assistance, be it a pair of wings or a mist of cloud. Compared to the other methods of flight, supported flight is undeniably the most common method of flight, specifically winged flight.

Wings[]

PaigeVampAnimation

Paige as a vampire, flying with wings

The possessor can fly using wings. Winged flight is somewhat rare among demons and only extends to a few good mystical species, such as Fairies and Cherubs. However, some beings have to transform into animals to fly; vampires, being the prime example, turn into bats. The same applies to shapeshifters. However, these winged flyers are no match to the speeds of a powerful non-winged flyer.

Leo Wyatt, a mortal, had a pair of large feathered wings extending from his back, enabling him to fly. Leo could retract his wings into his body by willpower to conceal them, and push them out when he wanted to use them.

Cloud of Mist[]

Flight 7

A Nymph flying in the comics

Nymphs can fly by either surrounding or transforming the lower half of their bodies into clouds of green mist.

The only known display of this type of flight came about in 2009, when Paige, equipped with a phosphorus cauldron, orbed to the Magic Community to collect little bits of magic from all the white magic practitioners in the realm, including Nymphs.

The Nymph Paige visited showed off this ability while she gave Paige some of her magic. It is worth noting that the cloud had leaves falling from it, indicating that the Nymph used the elements of nature to create it, which all Nymphs have power over.

Magical Artifacts[]

These magical artifacts are employed by magical begins who can only fly using an object, which itself can only fly through some form of magical assistance (i.e.): empowerment, enchantments or spells. Magical objects used for this purpose are Broomsticks, Cars, and Carpets.

Broomsticks[]

Main article: Broomstick
Phoebe flying on a broom.

A flying broomstick is a normal broom charged with a witch's magic. It was one of the means employed by witches to transport themselves between locations.[1]

Flying Cars[]

Main article: Flying Cars

Flying cars were used as a form of magical transportation by mortals, in 2009, after Rennek switched magic.

Flying Carpet[]

Main article: Magic Carpet

The carpet can be used as a form of transportation. It flies with the one standing or lying on it to wherever that person wants to go. It can also travel vast distances in a short amount of time. Bosk was the only known being to possess a flying carpet; he used it as a form of transportation. The carpet was later destroyed by Jinny.

List of beings who use(d) Flight[]

Original power
Through power stealing, artifacts, etc.
Through wings, transformation, etc.

Gallery[]

Small triquetra The Flight article has a Photo Gallery.

Notes and Trivia[]

  • Phoebe has used this power on a number of occasions. Once was after she shrunk to five inches, because she was so small and light, she was able to propel herself to fly.
  • When Yen Lo, An Ling and Phoebe entered Limbo, all their Levitation powers advanced to flight.
  • Dragon Warlocks have the power of flight, something one particular Dragon Warlock noted he inherited from his father. His flying power was stolen by a Genie, who then gave it to Phoebe. The power was later returned to the Dragon Warlock when the Genie returned to his confinement to undo the wishes.
  • Phoebe uses the same arm motion to access Flight and Levitation.
  • Neena uses her elemental ability to rip earth from the ground and use it to fly.
  • After Rennek shifted magic to mortals all around the world, some mortals gained the power to fly.

References[]

  1. Popular culture has indicated that, after Phoebe's broom-flying exploit, witches started to use brooms as means of transportation.
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