Aviation Abbreviations Glossary

Please select a letter from below. You will then be presented with a list of aviation terminology beginning with that letter.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

BAA - British Airports Authority.

BAeA - British Aerobatic Association.

BALPA - British Airline Pilots Association.

BAUA - Business Aircraft Users Association.

BCAR - British Civil Air Requirements. Airworthiness standards laid down by the CAA for certification of aircraft on the UK Civil Aircraft Register.

BCP - break cloud procedure.

BCPL - Basic Commercial Pilot's Licence, the minimum qualification necessary in the UK to receive payment for acting as a pilot. Also CPL, Commercial Pilot's Licence, and SCPL, Senior Commercial Pilot's Licence (no longer issued).

beta mode - manually controlled mode for CS propellers on turboprop aircraft enabling reverse pitch to be selected for braking or to aid ground manoeuvring.

BFR - Biennial Flight Review (USA). Holders of U.S. FAA Private Pilot Licences must undergo a flight check with an FAA approved examiner every two years. No UK equivalent.

BGA - British Gliding Association.

BHAB - British Helicopter Advisory Board.

bhp - brake horsepower.

BHPA - British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association.

Bleed air - Hot compressed air taken from turbine engines.

BMAA - British Microlight Aircraft Association.

Bottlang - Loose leaf Euopean airfields manual for VFR operations.

BRG - bearing, the horizontal direction to or from any point expressed in degrees of the compass.

BWPA - British Women Pilots Association.