Definition
Cockpit instrument displays that present flight information on digital screens instead of traditional mechanical gauges. EFDs typically combine attitude, airspeed, altitude, vertical speed, heading, and navigation information onto one or two large screens, often arranged as a Primary Flight Display (PFD) and a Multi-Function Display (MFD). They draw their data from electronic sensors and computers rather than from individual mechanical or pneumatic instruments.
Plain English
Glass screens in the cockpit that show flight information digitally, replacing the older round mechanical dials.
Context Anchor
You will see this term in discussions of glass cockpits, automation, preflight setup, and in-flight monitoring of aircraft information.
Derivation
Electronic' refers to the use of digital sensors and computer-driven screens. 'Flight display' simply means a presentation of flight information. The name highlights the shift from mechanical instruments driven by pressure, gyros, and gears to information shown on a screen.
Why Pilots Care
EFDs reduce workload and improve awareness by consolidating critical information in one place, allowing faster cross-checks during high-workload phases of flight.
Analogy
It is like replacing several separate dashboard gauges in a car with one screen that can show speed, fuel, navigation, and system warnings together.
Intuition Check
Do not think of an electronic flight display as just a decorative screen or a tablet. In this context, it is part of the aircraft’s installed cockpit equipment and may be the pilot’s main source of flight information.
Example Sentence 1
The training aircraft was equipped with electronic flight displays, so the student spent the first lesson learning how to read the PFD and MFD.
Example Sentence 2
During the instrument approach the student pilot cross-checked the electronic flight displays to maintain the correct glide path.