Definition
An air traffic control position, and its associated radio frequency, that issues IFR clearances and certain VFR departure instructions to pilots before they taxi for departure. At towered airports, clearance delivery is typically the first ATC contact a departing pilot makes.
Plain English
The controller (and frequency) you call before taxiing to receive your departure instructions.
Context Anchor
Seen in airport frequency listings, airport diagrams, and pre-taxi cockpit procedures at many towered airports.
Derivation
The position literally 'delivers' the 'clearance' — the formal permission and routing instructions from ATC — to the pilot before flight. The name describes exactly what the controller does.
Why Pilots Care
Receiving the correct clearance prevents route deviations, airspace violations, and delays once airborne.
Intuition Check
Do not read “delivery” as a physical delivery of an object. Here it means the controller or frequency that gives the pilot the official flight clearance.
Example Sentence 1
Before taxi, the pilot contacted clearance delivery on 121.9 to receive the IFR clearance to the destination airport.
Example Sentence 2
After reading back the clearance from CD, the crew taxied to the runway with the approved departure instructions.