The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word HEDGE-HOP
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
H
E
D
G
E
-
H
O
P
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "fly near the ground" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case fly near the ground = hedge-hop.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
Crossword Answer definitions
HEDGE-HOP verb- To fly low in an aircraft.