Definition
A cockpit display that shows the aircraft's attitude (pitch and bank relative to the horizon) on an electronic screen, and also presents flight director command bars that indicate the pitch and bank changes needed to follow a selected flight path. It replaces the traditional mechanical attitude indicator with a video-style display driven by attitude and flight guidance computers.
Plain English
An electronic screen that shows whether the nose is pitched up or down and whether the wings are level or banked, and adds steering cues that tell the pilot how to fly the chosen course or descent.
Context Anchor
Seen on the instrument panel in aircraft with electronic flight displays, and in maintenance discussions about flight instruments and display systems.
Derivation
Built from three ideas: 'attitude' (the aircraft's orientation in space), 'director' (the steering cues that direct the pilot), and 'indicator' (a display). 'Electronic' distinguishes it from older mechanical attitude indicators driven by gyros and mechanical linkages.
Why Pilots Care
It merges attitude reference and navigation guidance into one instrument, lowering workload and increasing precision in instrument conditions.
Intuition Check
Do not read “attitude” as emotion or behavior here. In this term, attitude means the aircraft’s nose and wing position compared with the horizon.
Example Sentence 1
After replacing the attitude reference unit, the technician verified that the EADI displayed correct pitch and bank during the bench test.
Example Sentence 2
During the ILS approach the flight director bars on the EADI guided the aircraft toward the runway.