Definition
A specialized hand drill with the chuck mounted at a right angle (or near-right angle) to the body of the tool, allowing it to drill holes in confined spaces where a conventional straight drill cannot fit.
Plain English
A drill shaped so the bit sticks out sideways from the handle, used for getting into tight corners where a normal drill is too long to fit.
Context Anchor
Seen in aircraft maintenance, especially when drilling holes inside wings, behind panels, or near structure where there is little room for a normal drill.
Derivation
Angle comes from a Latin word meaning corner. In this term, it points to the corner-like shape of the tool: the drill bit turns from the main body of the drill so it can reach into tight areas.
Why Pilots Care
Pilots who own or maintain their aircraft, and anyone working on sheet-metal repairs, will encounter angle drills whenever holes need to be drilled inside structures where space is too tight for a standard drill.
Intuition Check
An angle drill is not a drill used to measure an angle. It is a drill whose bit is set at an angle to the tool body so it can work in tight spaces.
Example Sentence 1
The mechanic reached for an angle drill to install the new rivets between the wing ribs, where a standard drill would not fit.
Example Sentence 2
During the repair, the mechanic used the angle drill to countersink the holes without removing the adjacent structure.