In flight, there’s pointless hope (3)

I believe the answer is:

hop

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'in flight' is the definition.
'hop' can be an answer for 'flight' (thesaurus). I'm unsure of the 'in' bit.

I cannot understand how the rest of the clue works.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for hop that I've seen before include "Cone which flavours beer" , "Move as a frog" , "Climbing plant - jump!" , "Jump about on one leg" , "Dancing party (informal)" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.

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