Definition
The cockpit instruments that display immediate attitude and power changes the pilot is making with the flight controls and throttle. In an analog cockpit, the control instruments are the attitude indicator (showing pitch and bank) and the power indicator (manifold pressure gauge for piston engines, or tachometer/EPR/N1 depending on the powerplant). They show what the airplane is being told to do right now, not what it is actually achieving over time.
Plain English
These are the instruments you look at to see the inputs you're giving the airplane — how much you're pitching, banking, and how much power you're using. They show your immediate adjustments, not the resulting performance.
Context Anchor
Seen when learning the instrument flying scan and deciding which instruments to use first when changing attitude or power.
Derivation
Control' here refers to flight control inputs — pitch, bank, and power. These instruments are grouped together because each one directly reflects a control the pilot is manipulating, rather than the airplane's resulting flight path.
Why Pilots Care
Using control instruments first lets the pilot set the desired attitude and power before checking results on performance instruments, preventing over-correction and loss of control.
Intuition Check
Control instruments do not control the airplane by themselves. They show the information the pilot uses to control the airplane.
Example Sentence 1
To begin the climb, the pilot referenced the control instruments and set the attitude indicator to a 5-degree nose-up pitch with climb power.
Example Sentence 2
During a power change, the pilot first adjusted the throttle while watching the manifold pressure on the control instruments.