Definition
The deadline by which new or revised instrument flight procedure data must be received in order to be processed, charted, and published in the next scheduled revision cycle. Information submitted after the cutoff time is held over for the following cycle.
Plain English
The last day data can be sent in if it is going to make it into the next published update. Anything that arrives after that day waits for the next round.
Context Anchor
Seen when reading about how instrument procedures, charts, and navigation databases are revised and published on a schedule.
Derivation
From 'cut off,' meaning to stop or close something at a set point. Here it marks the point at which submissions for a publication cycle are closed.
Why Pilots Care
Missing the cutoff delays incorporation of updated procedures, directly affecting flight planning accuracy and safety margins.
Analogy
It is like a deadline for a printed schedule: if the change comes in after the deadline, it will not appear in that printed version.
Intuition Check
Do not read cutoff time as the time when a procedure stops being usable. Here it means the deadline for including information in a specific publication or database update cycle.
Example Sentence 1
The amended approach plate missed the cutoff time, so it will not appear on charts until the next 56-day cycle.
Example Sentence 2
The team worked late to finalize the submission ahead of the quarterly cutoff time.