Definition
A former U.S. federal funding program, authorized under the Airport and Airway Development Act of 1970, that provided grants to public agencies for planning and developing public-use airports. ADAP was replaced in 1982 by the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), which continues that role today.
Plain English
An older government program that gave money to help build and improve airports. It no longer exists — it was replaced by a newer program called the Airport Improvement Program.
Context Anchor
Seen in FAA acronym lists and in discussions of airport planning, airport funding, or airport development history.
Why Pilots Care
Knowing ADAP is a historical term prevents confusion when reading older source material. Current airport funding discussions use AIP, not ADAP.
Intuition Check
ADAP is not an in-flight aid for pilots. Here, “aid” means financial help given to airports for development projects.
Example Sentence 1
The runway extension at the small regional airport was originally funded under ADAP in the late 1970s.
Example Sentence 2
Pilots today fly on infrastructure originally built with ADAP grants before the program was replaced.