Definition
An airfoil-shaped blade attached to the rotating disks of an axial-flow gas turbine engine compressor. As the disks spin, the blades accelerate the air rearward and, working together with the stationary stator vanes behind them, increase the pressure of the air before it reaches the combustion section.
Plain English
A small, wing-shaped blade that spins inside a jet engine to grab air and squeeze it tighter before it gets burned with fuel.
Context Anchor
Seen in turbine engine descriptions, maintenance discussions, and inspections for damage from debris or wear.
Derivation
‘Compressor’ comes from the Latin ‘comprimere,’ meaning ‘to press together.’ The blade does exactly that — it presses air into a smaller space as the engine pulls it through.
Why Pilots Care
Damaged or eroded compressor blades reduce engine efficiency and can trigger compressor stalls or engine failure.
Analogy
Think of a compressor blade like a small, carefully shaped fan blade, but its job is not just to move air. It also helps pack the air tighter before combustion.
Intuition Check
A compressor blade is not a knife-like blade that cuts air. In this context, “blade” means a shaped engine part that moves and compresses air.
Example Sentence 1
During the borescope inspection, the technician found a small nick on one of the compressor blades and flagged it for further evaluation.
Example Sentence 2
A cracked compressor blade forced the crew to shut down the engine in flight.