Definition
A short-range radar system used by air traffic control to detect and display the position of aircraft within roughly 60 nautical miles of an airport. It provides controllers with each aircraft's bearing and distance from the radar antenna, allowing them to sequence and separate traffic during arrival, departure, and approach phases.
Plain English
A radar at or near an airport that shows controllers where nearby aircraft are, so they can guide them safely into and out of the airport.
Context Anchor
You may see this term in air traffic control, radar service, and instrument approach discussions near busy airports.
Derivation
Surveillance comes from the French sur- ('over') and veiller ('to watch') -- literally 'to watch over.' The name simply describes what the radar does: it watches over the airspace around an airport.
Why Pilots Care
Controllers rely on it to issue precise vectors and maintain safe spacing; loss of the system can delay approaches or require non-radar procedures.
Intuition Check
Surveillance here does not mean security camera monitoring. It means detecting aircraft positions so controllers can keep track of traffic near an airport.
Example Sentence 1
Approach control used Airport Surveillance Radar to vector the inbound traffic onto the final approach course.
Example Sentence 2
When weather reduced visibility, the approach controller continued sequencing traffic with data from the airport surveillance radar.