Definition
A woven fabric made from thin strands of carbon fiber, used as the reinforcing material in composite aircraft structures. When layered and bonded with a resin (such as epoxy), it forms a finished composite that is very stiff, very strong, and very light.
Plain English
A cloth woven from carbon threads. It is laid into the shape of a part, soaked with glue-like resin, and hardened to make a light but very strong piece of the airframe.
Context Anchor
Seen in composite aircraft construction, structural repair discussions, and descriptions of how lightweight aircraft parts are built.
Derivation
Carbon fiber' refers to extremely thin filaments of nearly pure carbon. 'Cloth' is used because the fibers are woven together like fabric before being combined with resin. Thinking of it as actual cloth helps -- it is flexible and drapeable until the resin cures.
Why Pilots Care
Carbon fiber composite parts behave differently from aluminum. They are strong but can hide impact damage beneath an undamaged-looking surface, so preflight inspections of composite aircraft require more attention to small dents, cracks, or delamination than a metal aircraft would.
Analogy
Think of fiberglass cloth used in boat repair, but using carbon threads instead of glass threads. The process is similar -- lay the cloth, wet it with resin, let it cure -- but the result is stiffer and lighter.
Intuition Check
Do not think of this as ordinary soft cloth used for covering or decoration. In aircraft composite construction, carbon fiber cloth is structural material once it is bonded and hardened in place.
Example Sentence 1
The wing skin on this trainer is built from layers of carbon fiber cloth bonded with epoxy resin.
Example Sentence 2
Builders orient each layer of carbon fiber cloth at different angles to give the fuselage the required strength in all directions.