Aviation Glossary

20 Civil Aviation terms

Hello, my name is Vlad and I'm currently studying at the Ahuntsic College in Montreal in order to get my prerequisites, so I can enter the program of my future job, airline pilot. If this is the case for you too, then take a look at my glossary who contains 20 words that you should already be familiar with. I hope that this blog will help you learn something new about the magnificent job of flying.

Active Runway: Noun; Any runway or runways being used for takeoffs or landings.; Example: ATC: Air Canada 9031, taxi to and hold short runway 24 left using taxiway Alpha. Pilot: Taxi to and hold short 24 left using Alpha, Air Canada 9031.
ATC: Noun; A service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through controlled airspace.; Example: ATC: Air Canada 9031, turn right heading 201, descend and maintain 3000 feet, cleared ILS 24 left. tower on 119.25. Pilot: Heading 201, descend and maintain 3000 for ILS 24 left. Tower on 119.25, Air Canada 9031.
ATIS: Noun; A recorded broadcast available at most airports that includes crucial information about the airport, runways in use and current weather conditions, including visibility.; Example: Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport ATIS: Schiphol arrival information Kilo, main landing runway one eight right, transition level 50, two zero zero degrees, one one knots, visibility one zero kilometers, few 1300 feet, scattered 1800 feet, broken 2200 feet, temperature one five, dew point one three, QNH niner niner five, no significant change, contact Approach and Arrival callsign only, end of information Kilo.
Call sign: Noun; Communication call signs assigned as unique identifiers to aircraft and airliners. For example, Speedbird is British Airways call sign.; Example: Pilot: Heathrow Approach, Speedbird 627 Heavy in on final, runway 09 Right.
Controlled airspace: Noun; Airspace of defined dimensions within which ATC services are provided.; Example: ATC: Air Canada 9031, you are leaving my airspace, contact Boston on 128.155.
Decision Height: Noun; Altitude at which a decision must be made during an instrument approach (ILS) to either continue the approach or to execute a missed approach.
Elevator: Noun; The movable part of a horizontal airfoil which controls the pitch of an aircraft.
Flap: Noun; A movable, usually hinged airfoil set in the trailing edge of an aircraft wing, designed to increase lift or drag by changing the camber of the wing or used to slow an aircraft down during landing.
Flare: Noun; A simple maneuver performed moments before landing in which the nose of an aircraft is pitched up to minimize the touchdown rate of speed.
Flight Level (FL): Noun; An aircraft's altitude at standard air pressure, expressed in hundreds of feet.; Example: ATC: Air Canada 9031, climb and maintain FL 250.
Flight Plan: Noun; Specified information relating to the intended flight of an aircraft, filed orally or in writing with a Flight Service Station or an ATC facility.
Glide Slope: Noun; A tightly-focused radio beam transmitted from the approach end of a runway indicating the minimum approach angle that will clear all obstacles; one component of an instrument landing system (ILS).
IFR: Noun; A set of rules for flights where it can not be assumed that pilots will be able to navigate their aircraft or maintain separation from obstacles, terrain and other aircraft by reference to features outside the cockpit.; Example: Pilot: Montreal Clearance, Air Canada 9031 requesting IFR to Toronto. ATC: Air Canada 9031, cleared IFR to Toronto, fly runway heading, climb and maintain 3000 feet, contact ground on 121.875 when ready.
ILS: Noun; Instrument Landing System, a radar-based system allowing ILS-equipped aircraft to find a runway and land if the weather allows.; Example: Pilot: Montreal Approach, Air Canada 9031 is on final, ILS 24 left. ATC: Cleared to land 24 left, Air Canada 9031.
Spoiler: Noun; A long, movable, narrow plate along the upper surface of an airplane wing used to reduce lift and increase drag by breaking or spoiling the smoothness of the airflow.
SQUAWK: Noun; A four-digit number dialed into the plane's transponder by a pilot to identify his or hers aircraft to air traffic controllers.; Example: ATC: Air Canada 9031, cleared IFR to Toronto, fly runway heading, climb and maintain 3000 ft, ground on 121.875. SQUAWK 4719.
Stall: Noun; A maneuver initiated by the steep raising of an aircraft's nose, resulting in a loss of velocity and an abrupt drop.
Supersonic: Noun; Speed of flight at or greater than Mach 1.0; literally, faster than the speed of sound.
Taxi: Noun; Movement of an aircraft on the ground, under its own power.; Example: ATC: Air Canada 9031, taxi to and hold short runway 24 left using taxiways Alpha, Zulu, Papa Charlie and Quebec.
VFR: Noun; Visual Flight Rules that govern the procedures for conducting flight under visual conditions.; Example: Pilot: Montreal Tower, N275HF is departing straight out, VFR to Quebec.