Autothrottle or Autothrust system
AAL
Above Airport Level
AC
U.S. FAA Advisory Circular
ACAS
Airborne Collision Avoidance System (see also TCAS)
ACP
Audio Control Panel (see also DCDU)
ADC
Air Data Computer
AFE
Above Field Elevation
AFL
Above Field Level (e.g., 1000 ft - height AFL)
AFM
Airplane Flight Manual (approved by certification authorities)
AFS
Automatic Flight System, this includes the flight director (FD), the autopilot (AP), the autothrottle/autothrust system (A/THR) and the flight management system (FMS)
AGL
Above Ground Level (e.g., 1000 ft - height AGL, indicated by the radio altimeter or computed by subtracting the terrain elevation from the altitude above MSL)
AIM
U.S. FAA Aeronautical Information Manual (previously called Airman Information Manual)
AIP
Aeronautical Information Publications
(published by ICAO member states)
ALA
Approach-and-Landing Accident
ALAR
Approach-and-Landing Accident Reduction
ALS
Airport Lighting System
ALTN
Alternate
AMC
Acceptable Means of Compliance (for compliance with JAR-OPS 1)
AOM
Aircraft Operating Manual (established by operator)
AP
Auto Pilot
APP
Approach control frequency
Approach Gate
A point in space with a defined configuration and energy state
(see also Stabilization Height and Next Target)
ARTCC
Air Route Traffic Control Center (usually referred to as "Center")
ASAP
Aviation Safety Action Partnership
ATC
Air Traffic Control
ATIS
Automatic Terminal Information Service
ATM
Air Traffic Management (one of the two components of FANS, see also FANS and CNS)
BASIS
British Airways Information System
BRG
Bearing (e.g., bearing to a waypoint or navaid)
CAP
U.K. Civil Aviation Publication
CAPT
Captain (see also PIC)
CAST
Commercial Aviation Safety Team (international industry task force led by U.S. FAA)
Causal Factor
A causal factor is an event or item judged to be directly instrumental in the causal chain of events leading to an accident (source: Flight Safety Foundation)
CAWS
Collision Avoidance Warning System (see TCAS)
CDU
Control and Display Unit (see also MCDU)
CFIT
Controlled Flight Into Terrain
Checklist
See also QRH
Circumstantial Factor
A circumstantial factor is an event or an item that was judged not to be directly in the causal chain of events [leading to an accident] but could have contributed to the accident (source: Flight Safety Foundation)
CNS
Communication, Navigation and Surveillance (one of the two components of FANS, see also FANS and ATM)
CONF
Configuration (e.g., slats, flaps, roll spoilers, ground spoilers, ...)
CORR
Correction (e.g., wind or configuration correction on final approach speed)
CPDLC
Controller Pilot Data Link Communications
CRM
Crew Resource Management
DA(H)
Decision Altitude (Height)
DCDU
Data Communications Display Unit
DDG
Dispatch Deviation Guide (see also MMEL and MEL)
DIR TO
Direct route to [a waypoint]
DIST
Distance
DME
Distance Measuring Equipment
DNA
French Direction de la Navigation Aerienne
ECAM
Electronic Centralized Aircraft Monitor
EFIS
Electronic Flight Instruments System
EGPWS
Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (see also TAWS)
EGT
Exhaust Gas Temperature
ETOPS
Extended Twins Operations
F/O
First Officer
FAA
U.S. Federal Aviation Administration
FAF
Final Approach Fix
FANS
Future Air Navigation System (see also CNS and ATM)
FAR
U.S. Federal Aviation Regulations
FBS
Fixed Base Simulator
FCOM
Flight Crew Operating Manual (established by Airbus)
FCU
Flight Control Unit (i.e., AP/FD interface)
FD
Flight Director
FDF
Final Descent Fix
FFCC
Forward-Facing-Crew Cockpit
FFS
Full Flight Simulator
FIR
Flight Information Region
FL
Flight Level
FMGS
Flight Management and Guidance System
FMA
Flight Modes Annunciator
FMGES
Flight Management, Guidance and [flight] Envelop [protection] System
FMS
Flight Management System
FOQA
Flight Operations Quality Assurance
FSF
Flight Safety Foundation
ft
Feet
GA
Go Around
GAIN
Global Analysis and Information Network
GCAS
Ground Collision Avoidance System
GND
Ground control frequency
GNSS
Global Navigation Satellite System
GPS
Global Positioning System
GPWS
Ground Proximity Warning System
GS
Glide Slope
GW
Gross Weight
HAT
Height Above Touchdown
HF
High Frequency
HIRL
High Intensity Runway Lighting
HSI
Horizontal Situation Indicator
hPa
Hectopascals
IAF
Initial Approach Fix
IAP
Instrument Approach Procedure
IAS
Indicated Air Speed
ICAO
International Civil Aviation Organization
IEM
Interpretative and Explanatory Material
(for compliance with JAR-OPS 1)
IF
Intermediate Fix
IFR
Instrument Flying Rules
ILS
Instrument Landing System (see also GS and LOC)
ILS-DME
Instrument Landing System with collocated Distance Measuring Equipment
IMC
Instrument Meteorological Conditions
in.Hg
Inches of Mercury (unit for pressure measurement)
INFO
Information service frequency
IOE
Initial Operating Experience (Line Training)
IRS
Inertial Reference System
JAA
European Joint Aviation Authority
JAR
European Joint Aviation Regulations
JAR-AWO
JAR - All Weather Operations requirements
JAR-OPS
JAR Operations requirements
JSAT
U.S. CAST Joint Safety Analysis Team
JSIT
U.S. CAST Joint Safety Implementation Team
JSSI
European Joint Safety Strategies and Initiatives
kt
Knots
LAAS
GPS Local Area [accuracy] Augmentation System
LAHSHO
Land and Hold Short operation
Lateral Navigation
FMS managed lateral navigation (i.e., NAV mode)
LDA
LOC-type Directional Aid
LLWAS
Low Level Windshear Alert System
LOC
Localizer
LOC BCK CRS
Localizer back course
LOFT
Line Oriented Flight [simulator] Training
m
Meters
MAP
Missed Approach Point
MCDU
Multi-purpose Control and Display Unit (see also CDU)
MDA(H)
Minimum Descent Altitude (Height)
MEA
Minimum Enroute Altitude
MEL
Minimum Equipment List (operator' customized version of MMEL)
METAR
Meteorological Airport [observation] Report
MMEL
Master Minimum Equipment List (approved by operational authority)
Mode
Type of guidance used to guide the aircraft towards a target or set of targets, or along a vertical flight path and/or lateral flight path
"Selected modes" refers to the modes armed or engaged by the pilot on the FCU
"Managed modes" refers to FMS vertical navigation and lateral navigation
MSA
Minimum Safe Altitude or Minimum Sector Altitude
MSAW
Minimum Safe Altitude Warning (provided by ATC)
MSL
Mean Sea Level (e.g., 1000 ft - altitude above MSL, indicated by the barometric altimeter when set to QNH)
NATS
U.K. National Air Traffic Services
Navaid
Navigation Aid (e.g., NDB, VOR, VOR-DME, LOC, ILS,...)
ND
Navigation Display
NDB
Non Directional Beacon
Next Target
Any required element or combination of one or more of the following elements:
A position,
An altitude,
An aircraft configuration,
A speed,
A vertical speed, and/or
A power setting.
NEXT WPT
The waypoint located after the TO WPT
nm
Nautical miles
NOTAM
NOtice To AirMen
OAT
Outside Air Temperature
OCA(H)
Obstacle Clearance Altitude (Height)
OM
Outer Marker
PA
assenger Address system PAPI
recision Approach Path Indicator PF
ilot Flying PFD
rimary Flight Display PIC
ilot In Command PIREPS
ilot REPorts PNF
ilot Not Flying The PNF is sometimes referred to as the Pilot Monitoring to enhance his/her role in terms or monitoring, cross-check and backup
QAR
Quick Access Recorder
QFE
Actual atmospheric pressure at airport elevation
Altimeter setting required to read a height above airport elevation
QNH
Actual atmospheric pressure at sea level, based on actual atmospheric pressure at station
Altimeter setting required to read an altitude above mean sea level (MSL)
QRH
Quick Reference Handbook
R/I
Radio / Inertial navigation
RA
Depending on context:
Radio Altimeter, or
Resolution Advisory (see also TCAS)
RA DH
Radio Altimeter Decision Height
Raw Data
Raw navigation data: bearing and/or distance from aircraft to the tuned navaid
REIL
Runway End Identification Lights
Reversion
A mode reversion is a manual or automatic changeover from one AP mode to another mode (usually, a lower level of automation) resulting from:
- a pilot action (e.g., the selection of a lower level of automation or the disengagement of a mode for manual reversion to the AP basic mode); or,
- a system built-in condition (e.g., a guidance limit or an active flight envelope protection); or,
- a failure or temporary loss of the engaged mode.
RMI
Radio Magnetic Indicator
RNAV
aRea NAVigation (i.e., lateral navigation based on defined waypoints)
RNP
Required Navigation [accuracy] Performance
RVR
Runway Visual Range
RVSM
Reduced Vertical Separation Minima
SAT
Static Air Temperature
SDF
Simplified Directional Facility
SID
Standard Instruments Departure
SOPs
Standard Operating Procedures
Stabilization Height
The height above airfield elevation or the height above touchdown (HAT) at which the aircraft should be stabilized for the approach to be continued; the stabilization height should be:
- 1000 ft in IMC
- 500 ft in VMC
STAR
Standard Terminal ARrival
STD
Standard altimeter setting (i.e., 1013.2 hPa or 29.92 in.hg)
TA
Traffic Advisory (see also TCAS)
Target
A guidance target (e.g., a speed, heading, altitude, vertical speed, flight path angle, track, course, etc) selected by the pilot on the appropriate panel (FCU, FMS CDU or keyboard)
TAS
True Air Speed
TAWS
Terrain Awareness and Warning System
TAWS is the term used by the European JAA and the U.S. FAA to describe equipment meeting ICAO standards and recommendations for ground-proximity warning system (GPWS) equipment that provides predictive terrain-hazard warnings
TCAS
Traffic Collision Avoidance System (see also ACAS)
TDWR
Terminal Doppler Weather Radar
Weather radar capable of detecting areas of wind shear activity
TDZ
Touch Down Zone
TDZE
Touch Down Zone Elevation
TERPS
U.S. Standard for Terminal Instrument Approach Procedures (FAR - Part 97)
TO WPT
Waypoint of the F-PLN flight plan considered by the FMS for immediate lateral navigation guidance (in case of incorrect flight plan sequencing, the TO WPT may happen to be behind the aircraft)
TOD
Top Of Descent
Transition
A mode transition is a manual or automatic changeover from one AP mode to another mode, resulting from:
- a pilot action (e.g., the selection of a new mode on the FCU, as appropriate for the task or following an ATC instruction); or,
- an automatic mode sequencing resulting from a prior mode selection involving several mode changes in sequence (e.g., altitude capture changeover to altitude hold or selected heading changeover to localizer capture then to localizer tracking)
V APP
Final Approach Speed
V MCL
Minimum control speed in landing configuration with the critical engine inoperative
V REF
Reference approach speed (also referred to as threshold reference speed or target threshold speed)
V stall
Stalling speed (in a specified configuration)
V/S
Vertical speed or AP Vertical Speed mode
VASI
Visual Approach Indicator
VDP
Visual Descent / Decision Point
Vertical Navigation
FMS-managed vertical navigation
VFR
Visual Flying Rules
VHF
Very High Frequency
VMC
Visual Meteorological Conditions
VOR
VHF Omni Range
VOR-DME
Collocated VOR and DME navaids
WAAS
GPS Wide Area [accuracy] Augmentation System
WMO
World Meteorological Organization