aircraft - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

From air + -craft.

aircraft (plural **aircraft or (nonstandard) aircrafts)

  1. A vehicle capable of atmospheric flight due to interaction with the air, such as buoyancy or lift.
    Hypernyms: vehicle, craft < vessel (broad sense)
    Hyponyms: airplane, helicopter, drone, UAV, UAS, glider; see also Thesaurus:aircraft
    Coordinate terms: hovercraft, watercraft, vessel (marine sense), spacecraft, motor vehicle
    light aircraft; aircraft manufacturer; aircraft licence
    • 1949, World Health Organization, Report on the 1st- Session May 10-15‎[1], page 19:
      6.2.3.2.2. For aircraft having pressurized cabins, the disinsection of cabins and annexes, cockpit and annexes, is to be carried out after the embarkation of passengers and crew and the closing of the doors and windscreen[.]
    • 2016 May 4, Nicky Woolf, “Fort McMurray: Canada wildfires force evacuation of oil sands city”, in The Guardian‎[2], archived from the original on 12 November 2025:
      More than 100 provincial and municipal firefighters were brought in, with helicopters and aircraft used to drop water and fire retardant, while bulldozers were digging firebreaks.
    • 2025 April 10, Brad Lendon, “‘Frankenjet’ stealth fighter made from two wrecked warplanes joins US Air Force fleet”, in CNN‎[3], archived from the original on 28 April 2025:
      The US Air Force has 383 F-35As in its fleet, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
      The F-35A is one of the three versions of the US military’s stealth fighter. The Marine Corps flies the F-35B – a short take-off, vertical landing aircraft – and the Navy flies the F-35C, designed for aircraft carrier operations.
    1. (sometimes) One that can carry a person or persons.
      Coordinate terms: drone, UAV, UAS

machine capable of atmospheric flight