Plain English Meaning

Feeling sick while flying — typically nauseous, dizzy, sweaty, or pale — because the body's balance system and the eyes are sending the brain mismatched signals about motion.

Full Definition

A form of motion sickness brought on by flight, in which the inner ear's sense of motion conflicts with what the eyes see, producing symptoms such as nausea, sweating, dizziness, paleness, and sometimes vomiting. It is a normal physiological reaction, not a sign of weakness or lack of aptitude, and is especially common in early flight training.

Context Anchor

Encountered during flight training when a learner becomes physically uncomfortable in the aircraft, especially during early lessons, turbulence, or repeated turns.

Derivation

A straightforward combination of 'air' and 'sickness,' coined to parallel older terms like seasickness and carsickness. Knowing the family of terms helps: all the same underlying motion-sickness , just in different vehicles.